Review Detail

Africa is my Home: A child of the Amistad, reveals the tale of a young girl who was taken from her family and narrowly escaped the all-too-common fate of being sold into slavery the moment she set foot in the Americas, due to the bravery of the men on board her particular slave ship. As I read her tale, I was able to picture in my mind the utter loss, devastation, pain, and suffering of the people who endured this tragic and too-long chapter in our nation's history. I learned many things of which I was completely unaware, and the way the story is woven is exceptional. The illustrations paired with the fictional account based on true events enabled me to follow the storyline and I think will help others retain more information and detail. The author shares that she wrote this story as a fictional account written firsthand by Margru because it was more difficult to write it from the third person. I also feel that it would have removed the necessary emotions from the story--emotions I believe important to experience simply because of the nature of teaching and telling history. I used to loathe the subject, and now I seek it out and thoroughly enjoy learning about it on my own because of the way the authors I have read tell it, drawing me in rather than listing dates and facts in a robotic fashion. Monica Edinger possesses that special storytelling ability.

Africa is my Home tells the story of the Amistand in a way that is compelling and leave a lasting impression. The illustrations lend a particularly exotic charm to the book. Though this is written for older children, I was able to read this story to my younger (3 and 5) kids (skipping the more gruesome sections), who were captivated by it. I really can find no fault in this book as it is done exceptionally well. I think it would also be a great addition to any curriculum on the history of slavery.