Three enslaved men make a daring escape. These verses exemplify the impact of historical events on the lives of individuals. Based on true events, the book connects history to the distinguished landmark of Virginia’s Emancipation Oak. Author’s Note, Bibliography.

This book is a good way to teach children about an important time in our nation's history when slaves were set free. It may not be very easy to follow for very young children as a lot of the words went over their head when I read to them. However, they did ask a lot of questions and were interested in knowing exactly what was going on. Since the freedom tree was focused on throughout the entire book, a nice extension activity for this book in the classroom may be to have children draw their own version of the freedom tree with happy people reading the Emancipation Proclamation or even a coloring sheet with that. ( )

One night in 1861, three escaped slaves made their way from the Confederate line to a Union-held fort. The runaways were declared "contraband of war" and granted protection. As word spread, thousands of runaway slaves poured into the fort, seeking their freedom. These "contraband" made a home for themselves, building the first African American community in the country. In 1863, they bore witness to one of the first readings of the Emancipation Proclamation in the South - beneath the sheltering branches of the tree now known as Emancipation Oak.

This is a wonderful book that teaches children the importance of the Emancipation Proclamation and what slavery was. Although it is not historically accurate, it does show the importance of what the slaves went through to gain their freedom. It also shows the importance of what the Emancipation Proclamation did.

I love this book. I think the pictures and the message the book sends is important. It starts teaching children at a young age about an important topic in American history. It is simple enough for older children to understand and be able to ask questions. Wonderful book.

I listened to this book while traveling. It is a historical fiction book about the Freedom Tree in 1861 and the Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation. The book was described to be written in taut free verse and tells the little known story of the first contraband camp of the Civil War (Overdrive, Spokane Public Library) I would really like to have read the print book to see the illustrations and how the book is written. (Listening I could not tell that it was done as poetry.)

There is a lot of history in this book and would be wonderful to share with students studying the Civil War. ( )

Personal response: told in free verse, every word is powerful and helps the reader understand the emotions and power behind this story. The illustrations are a nice accompaniment to the text.

Curricular connections: Many--use in writing lessons on word choice and repetition of sound in poetry. Use in a study of Civil war history and the history of slavery. ( )