"Henry's Freedom Box: a true story from the underground railroad" by Ellen Levine (Caldecott Honor Book)

     As the title suggests, this is the true story of how Henry "Box" Brown put himself in a box and mailed himself to freedom.  At a young age, Henry was taken from his mother and give to his master's son.  His new master would beat him if he made any little mistake while working in the tobacco factory.  When Henry grew older he met a slave named Nancy and they were given permission to wed.  They had three children and were happy together.  One day while Henry was working, Nancy's master sold her and their three children at an auction.  Henry arrived just in time to see them tied and hauled away.  He never saw them again, but this event made hime determined to seek freedom for himself.  He consulted with a white doctor who was known to be against slavery.  Henry's plan was to mail himself to safety.  The doctor helped Henry crate himself into a box and mailed him to friends in Philadelphia.  After an excrutiating twenty-seven hour trip, Henry arrived in Philadelphia and was greeted by the good doctor's friends. 
     One of the things I liked about this book is that it brings to light the cruelty of slavery and how it tore families apart.  It shows young readers that the master's of slaves thought of them as nothing more than property.  The illustrations show the raw emotion that is felt by the characters in the story.  They also help demonstrate how rough the transport was for Henry. 
     I learned that a subject as cruel and grotesque as slavery can be explained in such a way that children can understand how horrible it was to be a slave.  Very slight descriptions are enough to let young readers know that slaves were treated cruelly.  The author makes the readers feel sympathy for Henry and his family. 
     My reaction to this story is one that most people share.  I feel sympathy for the way slaves were treated, but then I rejoice when I hear stories like Henry's.  My reaction was to rejoice when Henry made it to freedom.  I just hated that he had to lose his family before he found freedom.  As a mother of three, I can't imagine not being able to ever seeing my children again.
     This book is much like other works written by this author.  Levine has written several books including Freedom's Children:  young civil rights activists tell their own stories.  She also has a series of books called "If You".  Some of these titles include:  If your name was changed at Ellis Island, If you traveled on the underground railroad, and If you lived at the time of the Great San Francisco Earthquake.  Levine brings to light the tribulations different people have gone through throughout history.