My Name is Sally Little Song by Brenda Woods

This is certainly a book for everyone, although you are especially in luck if you are studying American history covering the times of slavery.

I learned something new reading this one. Most of us are familiar with the story of the Underground Railroad and the escapes to the North, to Canada, even to Mexico. I hadn't known much about the the slaves who escaped to live with the Indians until I read this story.

The Muskogee (Creek) nation fled into the Florida swamps to seek their independence from white men and re-named themselves the Seminoles. Some runaway slaves made their way to them and found refuge in their villages and created villages of their own.

This is the story of one family, told through the eyes of their 12 year old girl who fled their plantation and found a home with the Seminoles. Each chapter starts with a small poem, a song, really, as the character, Sally, loves to invent small songs like her mother. It helped them to get throught their tedious, long, hard-working days. Then, the chapter proceeds to tell the story hinted at in the song. It's a beautiful book.

I assume that most children who are reading these stories and times are already familiar with the mistreatment of the slaves. But that along with the death of the mother in the swamp as they are fleeing (she's bitten by an alligator), is why I'm giving a minor safety rating...

Safety Rating: 2 Flags

Historical Fiction: 1802, America; slavery
See: Catechism of the Catholic Church, slavery forbidden