Wow!! That is about all I can say after reading this book! This book is inspired by an African legend about the "Old African", a man who led a group of slaves into the ocean, saying they were walking back to Africa.
As the story begins on a Southern plantation a young boy is tied to a tree and whipped. The Old African puts himself "in the boy's head", giving him the courage to survive the whipping. That is what the Old African does -- he can read thoughts, he can ease pain or cause pain. He uses his powers to take his people back to their homeland.
The story uses flashback to show how the Old African and other members of his village were brutally rounded up and put on slave ships. The author realistically portrays the conditions as the ships crossed the oceans. Back in the present, Riley, the plantation owner wants the Old African dead. Read the book to see what happens to the people.... but know that the cruelity displayed by Riley and other white men is shocking. The book ends with a very hopeful message.
This book has received a Parents' Choice Gold Medal Award.
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