Passenger on the Pearl

Passenger on the Pearl
Author: Winifred Conkling
Publisher: Algonquin Books
Total Pages: 177
Release: 2015-01-13
Genre: Young Adult Nonfiction
ISBN: 1616201967

The page-turning, heart-wrenching true story of one young woman willing to risk her safety and even her life for a chance at freedom in the largest slave escape attempt in American history. In 1848, thirteen-year-old Emily Edmonson, five of her siblings, and seventy other enslaved people boarded the Pearl under cover of night in Washington, D.C., hoping to sail north to freedom. Within a day, the schooner was captured, and the Edmonsons were sent to New Orleans to be sold into even crueler conditions. Passenger on the Pearl is the story of this thwarted escape, of the ramifications of its attempt, and of a family for whom freedom was the ultimate goal. Through an engaging narrative, informative sidebars, and more than fifty period photographs and illustrations, Winifred Conkling takes readers on Emily Edmonson’s journey from enslaved person to teacher at a school for African American young women. Conkling illuminates a turbulent time in American history, showing the daily lives of enslaved people, the often-changing laws affecting them, the high cost of a failed escape, and the stories of slave traders and abolitionists.

Escape on the Pearl

Escape on the Pearl
Author: Mary Kay Ricks
Publisher: Harper Collins
Total Pages: 450
Release: 2009-10-13
Genre: History
ISBN: 0061850047

The largest mass escape of fugitive slaves in American history is thrillingly chronicled in this “readable . . . valuable account” (Kirkus). On the evening of April 15, 1848, nearly eighty enslaved Americans attempted one of history's most audacious escapes. Setting sail from Washington, D.C., on a schooner named the Pearl, the fugitives began a daring 225-mile journey to freedom in the North—and put in motion a furiously fought battle over slavery in America that would consume Congress, the streets of the capital, and the White House itself. Mary Kay Ricks's vivid history brings to life the Underground Railroad's largest escape attempt, the seemingly immutable politics of slavery, and the individuals who struggled to end it. Escape on the Pearl reveals the incredible odyssey of those who were onboard, including the remarkable lives of fugitives Mary and Emily Edmonson, the two sisters at the heart of this true story of courage and determination. The volume concludes with a thorough overview of the fates of the escapees and their descendants.

New Departures

New Departures
Author: Anthony Perl
Publisher: University Press of Kentucky
Total Pages: 366
Release: 2002-12-01
Genre: Transportation
ISBN: 9780813170480

North America faces a transportation crisis. Gas-guzzling SUVs clog the highways and air travelers face delays, cancellations, and uncertainty in the wake of unprecedented terrorist attacks. New Departures closely examines the options for improving intercity passenger trains’ capacity to move North Americans where they want to go. While Amtrak and VIA Rail Canada face intense pressure to transform themselves into successful commercial enterprises, Anthony Perl demonstrates how public policy changes lie behind the triumphs of European and Japanese high-speed rail passenger innovations. Perl goes beyond merely describing these achievements, translating their implications into a North American institutional and political context and diagnosing the obstacles that have made renewing passenger trains so much more difficult in North America than elsewhere. New Departures links the lessons behind rail passenger revitalization abroad with the opportunity to recast the policies that constrain Amtrak and VIA Rail from providing efficient and effective intercity transportation.

Passenger on the Pearl

Passenger on the Pearl
Author: Winifred Conkling
Publisher: Algonquin Books
Total Pages: 239
Release: 2015-01-13
Genre: Young Adult Nonfiction
ISBN: 1616204362

The “compelling and inspiring” true story of one girl risking her life for a chance at freedom in the largest slave escape attempt in American history (VOYA). In 1848, thirteen-year-old Emily Edmonson, five of her siblings, and seventy other enslaved people boarded the Pearl under cover of night in Washington, D.C., hoping to sail north to freedom. Within a day, the schooner was captured, and the Edmonsons were sent to New Orleans to be sold into even crueler conditions. Through Emily Edmonson’s journey from enslaved person to teacher at a school for African American young women, Winifred Conkling illuminates the daily lives of enslaved people, the often-changing laws affecting them, and the high cost of a failed escape. “Clearly written, well-documented, and chock full of maps, sidebars, and reproductions of photographs and engravings, the fascinating volume covers a lot of history in a short space. Conkling uses the tools of a novelist to immerse readers in Emily’s experiences. A fine and harrowing true story.” —Kirkus Reviews “Covers information about slavery that is often not found in other volumes . . . Conkling’s work is intricate and detailed . . . A strong and well-sourced resource.” —School Library Journal “Edmondson’s life story is compelling and inspiring. It provides the perfect hook for readers into the horrors of slavery.” —VOYA “Conkling is a fine narrator . . . Readers familiar with the trials of Solomon Northup will find this equally involving.” —The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books A Junior Library Guild Selection

Diving for Pearls

Diving for Pearls
Author: Rachael Morlock
Publisher: The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc
Total Pages: 26
Release: 2017-12-15
Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN: 1508164428

Pearls are beautiful flukes of nature. The only gemstones formed inside living creatures, these lustrous gems have fascinated mankind for centuries. Readers will be enchanted by this thorough study of pearls, how they're formed, how they're collected, and their historic uses. Meeting Next Generation Science Standards with a unique spin on curricular subject matter, this book is a guaranteed jaw-dropper for young scientists.

The Pearl Thief

The Pearl Thief
Author: Elizabeth Wein
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Total Pages: 305
Release: 2017-05-04
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
ISBN: 1484719514

Don’t miss Elizabeth Wein’s stunning new novel, Stateless Before Verity . . . there was Julie. When fifteen-year-old Julia Beaufort-Stuart wakes up in the hospital, she knows the lazy summer break she'd imagined won't be exactly what she anticipated. And once she returns to her grandfather's estate, a bit banged up but alive, she begins to realize that her injury might not have been an accident. One of her family's employees is missing, and he disappeared on the very same day she landed in the hospital. Desperate to figure out what happened, she befriends Euan McEwen, the Scottish Traveler boy who found her when she was injured, and his standoffish sister, Ellen. As Julie grows closer to this family, she witnesses firsthand some of the prejudices they've grown used to-a stark contrast to her own upbringing-and finds herself exploring thrilling new experiences that have nothing to do with a missing-person investigation. Her memory of that day returns to her in pieces, and when a body is discovered, her new friends are caught in the crosshairs of long-held biases about Travelers. Julie must get to the bottom of the mystery in order to keep them from being framed for the crime. This exhilarating coming-of-age story, a prequel to the Printz Honor Book Code Name Verity, returns to a beloved character just before she first takes flight.

The Other Side of Infamy

The Other Side of Infamy
Author: Jim Downing
Publisher: NavPress
Total Pages: 185
Release: 2016-11-03
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1631466283

War is uncomfortable for Christians, and worldwide war is unfamiliar for today’s generations. Jim Downing reflects on his illustrious military career, including his experience during the bombing of Pearl Harbor, to show how we can be people of faith during troubled times. The natural human impulse is to run from attack. Jim Downing—along with countless other soldiers and sailors at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941—ran toward it, fighting to rescue his fellow navy men, to protect loved ones and civilians on the island, and to find the redemptive path forward from a devastating war. We are protected from war these days, but there was a time when war was very present in our lives, and in The Other Side of Infamy we learn from a veteran of Pearl Harbor and World War II what it means to follow Jesus into and through every danger, toil, and snare.

Say Her Name

Say Her Name
Author: Zetta Elliott
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Total Pages: 98
Release: 2020-01-04
Genre: Young Adult Nonfiction
ISBN: 1368053890

Inspired by the #SayHerName campaign launched by the African American Policy Forum, these poems pay tribute to victims of police brutality as well as the activists insisting that Black Lives Matter. Elliott engages poets from the past two centuries to create a chorus of voices celebrating the creativity, resilience, and courage of Black women and girls. This collection features forty-nine powerful poems, four of which are tribute poems inspired by the works of Lucille Clifton, Audre Lorde, Nikki Giovanni, and Phillis Wheatley. This provocative collection will move every reader to reflect, respond-and act.

Unbound: A Novel in Verse

Unbound: A Novel in Verse
Author: Ann E. Burg
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Total Pages: 356
Release: 2016-09-27
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 0545937876

From the award-winning author of All the Broken Pieces and Serafina's Promise comes a breathtaking new novel that is her most transcendent and widely accessible work to date. The day Grace is called from the slave cabins to work in the Big House, Mama makes her promise to keep her eyes down. Uncle Jim warns her to keep her thoughts tucked private in her mind or they could bring a whole lot of trouble and pain. But the more Grace sees of the heartless Master and hateful Missus, the more a rightiness voice clamors in her head-asking how come white folks can own other people, sell them on the auction block, and separate families forever. When that voice escapes without warning, it sets off a terrible chain of events that prove Uncle Jim's words true. Suddenly, Grace and her family must flee deep into the woods, where they brave deadly animals, slave patrollers, and the uncertainty of ever finding freedom. With candor and compassion, Ann E. Burg sheds light on a startling chapter of American history--the remarkable story of runaways who sought sanctuary in the Great Dismal Swamp--and creates a powerful testament to the right of every human to be free.

Sylvia & Aki

Sylvia & Aki
Author: Winifred Conkling
Publisher: Yearling
Total Pages: 162
Release: 2013-07-09
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 158246345X

Young Sylvia Mendez never expected to be at the center of a landmark legal battle. Young Aki Munemitsu never expected to be sent away from her home and her life as she knew it. The two girls definitely never expected to know each other, until their lives intersected on a Southern California farm in a way that changed the country forever. Who are Sylvia and Aki? And why did their family stories matter then and still matter today? This book reveals the remarkable, never-before-told story—based on true events—of Mendez vs. Westminster School District, the California court case that desegregated schools for Latino children and set the stage for Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education at the national level.