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SUMMARY:Book Review: Freedom at Dawn: Robert Smalls’s Voyage Out o
	f Slavery from LEah Schanke
DTSTAMP:20250825T233335Z
SEQUENCE:0
UID:476-5-c3fe8195a3dde498d013e477e2142422@aalbc.com
ORGANIZER;CN="richardmurray":noreply@aalbc.com
DESCRIPTION:\n	Freedom at Dawn: Robert Smalls’s Voyage Out of Slavery 
	from LEah Schanke @Leah Schanke\n\n	Freedom at Dawn: Robert Smalls’s Voy
	age Out of Slavery Apr 10\, 2025\n\n	Freedom at Dawn: Robert Smalls’s Vo
	yage Out of Slavery\n\n	Book Cover Images image of Freedom at Dawn: Robert
	 Smalls’s Voyage Out of Slavery\n\n	by Leah Schanke\, Illustrated by Obo
	h Moses\n\n	BOOK REVIEW IN AALBC\n\n	https://aalbc.com/book_review/9780807
	524282\n\n\n\n	 \n\n\n\n	MY REVIEW\n\n\n\n	Frederick Douglass once said\
	, “The American Government and the American Constitution are spoken of i
	n a manner which would naturally lead the hearer to believe that one is id
	entical with the other\; when the truth is\, they are distinct in characte
	r as is a ship and a compass.” (The Constitution of the United States: I
	s It Pro-Slavery or Anti-Slavery?\; source) This statement came two years
	 and two months before Robert Smalls sailed a steamboat\, carrying his wif
	e\, children\, and peers in its belly\, successfully using a compass to fr
	eedom during the inescapable Civil War on May 13\, 1862.\n\n\n\n	In Freed
	om at Dawn: Robert Smalls’s Voyage Out of Slavery\, the historical ficti
	on by South Carolinian descendant Leah Schanke\, the narration comes from 
	Lizzy\, the daughter of Robert Smalls. Lizzy’s voice provides unbroken\,
	 honest grammar and a slightly geographic but accessible style for modern 
	U.S. readers. Her narration maintains the pace and tone of the escape adve
	nture in the title\, crafted for four- to eight-year-olds. Lizzy’s story
	 conveys the fear and consequences of failure without delving into the mos
	t gruesome pains of slavery—details that would be difficult for children
	 to comprehend\, inconvenient for adults to explain in today’s context\,
	 or too vast for a book of this size to contain.\n\n\n\n	While the Civil W
	ar serves as the backdrop\, Lizzy’s narration avoids suggesting that eit
	her side in the war was primarily concerned with the enslaved seeking free
	dom. This nuance emphasizes that escapes to freedom were driven by the ens
	laved themselves\, unbound to the motives of any army or navy. It’s a su
	btle but vital message to convey to children—one that many adults may no
	t even know. Schanke’s story concludes with peace after adversity\, and 
	her author’s note provides additional context about the fate of the Smal
	ls family\, satisfying the curiosity of parents\, educators\, and readers 
	alike.\n\n\n\n	The illustrations by Oboh Moses are vibrant digital const
	ructs\, blending the textures of oil and watercolor. The colors shift to m
	atch the text’s mood and tempo\, enhancing the narrative’s dramatic ef
	fects. Lizzy and the other characters are depicted with authenticity\, and
	 Moses’s illustrations often suggest that Lizzy is recounting the story 
	to her younger self\, a heartwarming touch.\n\n\n\n	If you appreciate the 
	works of Ezra Jack Keats—his illustrative forms\, colors\, and narrativ
	e focus—the combination of Schanke and Moses in Freedom at Dawn will u
	ndoubtedly satisfy you.\n\n\n\n	Frederick Douglass remarked in 1867\, five
	 years after Smalls’s escape\, “It is by comparing one nation with ano
	ther\, and one learning from another\, each competing with all\, and all c
	ompeting with each\, that hurtful errors are exposed.” (Our Composite Na
	tion\; source) This book exposes the error of slavery through a child’s
	 lens\, set between two governments fighting over destiny.\n\n\n\n	\n\n
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