Elijah of Buxton

The next book I chose to review is the 2008 Coretta Scott King award winner, Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis.

Elijah was the first child born in the Buxton Settlement in Canada, a safe place for former slaves. Despite this distinction, Elijah’s mom is concerned about his fears and fragility. Elijah eventually meets up with some former slaves as well as some who are trying to escape. He decides to get involved in a dangerous plan to free them and shows incredible bravery and resolve.

This story started off a little slow but it really picked up. The first hand look at slavery was definitely eye opening. I was so glad to see Elijah find courage deep within himself to help the slaves who were trying to escape.

This book looks at the touchy subject of slavery in a memorable way. Students may not remember much they’ve learned in school about slavery but I bet they could recall the details of this book.