FREEWATER

FREEWATER by Amina Luqman-Dawson

I have a confession to make. I wasn't overly excited at reading Freewater by Amina Luqman-Dawson initially. I picked it up solely because it was this year's Newberry winner. This one pleasantly surprised me with a fresh take on slavery in the south and the quest for freedom.

We've all heard the amazing stories of daring escapes made by slaves to find freedom in the north. But did you know that some slaves escaped and made their way deep into the swamp lands not far from the plantations they ran from? Communities were set up and freedom found even in the deep south. Freewater is the fictional story of one such place. Homer and his sister escape from Southerland Plantation to the swamp sanctuary of Freeland, but their mother is left behind. Unable to live with this, Homer sets out with some help from his new friends in a daring attempt to rescue his mother from Southerland.

HEADS UP- Obviously this book is dealing with slavery, so there is mention of whippings, one character is missing several fingers, and family separation is common. There are two times where the characters thank the earth for her provision. We miss the entire spiritual side that is so often intertwined with the slaves.