Hard Labor: The First African Americans, 1619

by Patricia C. McKissack, Fredrick McKissack Jr., Joseph Daniel Fiedler (Illustrator)

Overview

This illustrated historical chapter book introduces young readers to some of the very first African Americans, who came to American in the early seventeenth century.

In 1619, twenty Africans stepped foot on American soil as indentured servants. They came with dreams of the future, knowing if they could hold on and finish out their sentences, they would be free. Who were they, how did they get here, and did their lives go the way they imagined? Details of their stories have been lost over time but what remains is an important piece of American history.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780689861499
Publisher:	Aladdin
Publication date:	01/01/2004
Series:	Milestone
Edition description:	Original
Pages:	64
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.20(d)
Age Range:	7 - 10 Years

About the Author

Patricia C. McKissack is the author of many highly acclaimed books for children, including Goin' Someplace Special, a Coretta Scott King Award winner; The Honest-to-Goodness Truth; Let My People Go, written with her husband, Fredrick, and recipient of the NAACP Image Award; The Dark-Thirty, a Newbery Honor Book and Coretta Scott King Award winner; and Mirandy and Brother Wind, recipient of the Caldecott Medal and a Coretta Scott King Honor Book. She lives in St. Louis, Missouri.

Fredrick McKissack has nearly twenty years experience as a writer and an editor. His articles, op-eds, and reviews have been published in The Washington Post, Vibe magazine, and others. He lives in Fort Wayne, Indiana, with his wife, Lisa, and their son, Mark.

An award-winning, freelance artist-illustrator since 1973, Joseph Daniel Fiedler has produced art and illustrations that have appeared in numerous publications and exhibitions. Fiedler has illustrated children’s books and received a Silver Medal from the Society of Illustrators of New York. Fiedler’s personal paintings have been exhibited at galleries in Germany, Japan, and throughout the United States. He has taught painting and illustration at Carnegie Mellon University and the College for Creative Studies. Fiedler has lived in Pennsylvania, Japan, New Mexico, and Michigan and now resides in Grass Valley, California. Learn more about Joseph Daniel Fiedler at ScaryJoey.com.

Editorial Reviews

Gr 4-6-The authors begin with an overview of slavery, and the informative text dispels misconceptions about the arrival of Africans in the New World. The text explains that they came not only as slaves but also as indentured servants, that they owned land and servants, accompanied European explorers and conquistadors, and were instrumental in settling North America. Full-page, black-and-white illustrations support the narrative. The research is not supported by a bibliography or source notes, and the lack of a table of contents and index makes it difficult for students to find specific facts. Barring these shortcomings, this well-written offering will stimulate interest and spark discussions.-Tracy Bell, Durham Public Schools, NC Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

The McKissacks tell the story of the first African-Americans in America in an addition to the Milestone Books series. Unfortunately, they take a straightforward story and make it confusing. They try to let young readers know that some of the black settlers were actually indentured servants, capable of earning freedom and owning property and slaves themselves. The most interesting story is of one Anthony Johnson, a servant who earns his freedom, marries, owns land, and eventually wins a lawsuit that returns his escaped black "servant" to him. Investigation into the Web sites provided by the authors makes it clear that Johnson owned a slave, not a "servant." At times, the authors awkwardly address the reader directly-on the subject of slavery, for instance: "Reading about it too can be equally as stressful." Or "remember, slaves were not slaves simply because they were Africans." In other places, the vocabulary is too challenging for the intended audience. There are many stories in this volume that would make interesting history for the young reader; too bad they are sloppily combined into one choppy offering. (timeline, Web sites) (Nonfiction. 7-10)

Kirkus Reviews