Henry's Freedom Box

Levine, E. (2007). Henry’s Freedom Box. New York, NY: Scholastic Press.

Brief Annotation: This book is a historical fiction story of a boy’s life during slavery. It is a magically illustrated story that depicts what happens when he is taken from his family and then when his family is taken from him. The illustrator has a beautiful technique that makes the images seem even sadder, if that is possible. It is not until he is being freed that the background lightens and portrays a happier atmosphere.

Grade Level: 3-5

Readers who will like this: Readers who enjoy learning about history. This story tells a true depiction but also makes it bearable to read. It is a sad heartfelt story but it is not traumatizing and graphic.

Response/Rating (1-4): 4! Again the art work in the book is amazing. It is a wonderful depiction of Henry’s life, and I believe it will intrigue young readers to read more about this time in our history.

One question you would ask before a read aloud: Is it wrong to make someone do something they don’t want to do?

Reading Strategies Connection: Power Passages (Yopp, Yopp Pg 106): This book is such a powerful book it would be interesting to see what the students choose as their most powerful passage. I think it would tell a lot about the students depending on which area they chose from. I would probably want to do “written sharing,” if possible at first and allow students who wanted to orally share their passage and why to do so. I would hope that my students would be able to make connections to the powerful passages in this story and relate the ideas to similar stories in a history lesson.