Amos Fortune: Freeman
Author: Elizabeth Yates
ISBN: 978-0-14-034158-4
Pages: 181
The abstract in the front of the book says:
Amos Fortune was born the son of a king in the At-mun-shi tribe of Africa. The year was 1710. At fifteen he was captured by slave traders and brought to Massachusetts, where he was sold at auction. There he lived as a slave until he was sixty years old and able to purchase his freedom. Then he began again to save and subsequently bought the freedom of several others. At seventy Amos Fortune began a settled life for himself with his wife and his adopted daughter in the small village of Jaffrey, New Hampshire. He was an expert tanner; and when he died in 1801, he was one of the most respected citizens of Jaffrey. Today his tombstone can be found in the village churchyard, a memorial to a man "who was born free in Africa, a slave in America, who purchased his liberty, professed Christianity, lived reputably, and died hopefully."
It is amazing to read these kinds of stories and notice that no matter how much these people went through they still had hope. Hope upon little, but hope that was so large inside them that they managed to succeed. This book told Amos Fortune's story so extremely well that it was my daughter that made (nagged) me to read it also. What I liked most about this story was that he never forgot where he came from and he never stopped hoping to find and save his sister.
This book is recommended for age 8+. My daughter is a young adult and she really appreciated the story. It is easily readable for any competent 8 year old, but I would envision that it would be more appreciated with age.
This book was available from : Book depository, Fishpond and Amazon
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