The Night Before Freedom
A Juneteenth Story
-
- $10.99
-
- $10.99
Publisher Description
This moving picture book tells the story of Juneteenth with all the care and reverence such a holiday deserves. The rhyming text and stunning illustrations will teach children about this historic day in history.
'Twas the night before freedom, and all through the South,
long-whispered rumors had, spread word of mouth.
"It’s coming! It’s coming!" I heard people say.
"Emancipation is coming our way."
Eight-year-old David and his family gather at Grandma’s house in Galveston, Texas, for a cherished family tradition: Grandma’s annual retelling of the story of Juneteenth, the holiday that commemorates the end of slavery in the United States.
The signing of the Emancipation Proclamation by President Abraham Lincoln meant that all enslaved persons within the rebellious states would be free as of January 1, 1863. However, people in Texas did not receive the news of their emancipation until two and a half years later—on June 19, 1865.
Grandma tells the story of anticipation, emancipation, and jubilation just as it was told to her many years before by her own grandmother, Mom Bess. As a six-year-old, Bess had experienced the very first Juneteenth. Before that day, she could only imagine what liberty would look like. But once freedom arrived, would it live up to a little girl’s dreams?
The story is written in the same meter as Clement C. Moore's The Night Before Christmas, making it a perfect book for parents and kids to read together.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
"'Twas the night before freedom, and all through the South/ long-whispered rumors had spread, word of mouth." In this historically insightful nested narrative, Armand employs anapestic verse to rhythmically narrate the events of the first Juneteenth as told through the lens of a Black family's present-day Juneteenth celebration. In Galveston, Tex., young David experiences a festivities-filled day, the highlight of which is Grandma's recitation of her great-grandmother's experiences as a child on June 19, 1865. Using a bold color palette to render stylized landscapes and patterns in the past and present, debut illustrator Barksdale depicts individuals receiving the news of freedom via a white soldier reading the Emancipation Proclamation, followed by celebratory reactions. Combining an elder's telling with saturated images, the creators offer up a moving portrayal of intergenerational memory, Juneteenth's meaning, and "all the things that true liberty brings." A contextualizing afterword concludes. Ages 4–8.
