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Amistad: A Long Road to Freedom
When a group of illegally enslaved Africans takes over their captors' ship, the Amistad, in 1839, they find themselves facing a judge, with not only their freedom at stake but also the issue of slavery as a whole on trial. Reprint.
99 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1998
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About the author
Walter Dean Myers
224 books1,188 followerspseudonyms:
Stacie Williams
Stacie Johnson
Walter Dean Myers was born on August 12, 1937 in Martinsburg, West Virginia but moved to Harlem with his foster parents at age three. He was brought up and went to public school there. He attended Stuyvesant High School until the age of seventeen when he joined the army.
After serving four years in the army, he worked at various jobs and earned a BA from Empire State College. He wrote full time after 1977.
Walter wrote from childhood, first finding success in 1969 when he won the Council on Interracial Books for Children contest, which resulted in the publication of his first book for children, Where Does the Day Go?, by Parent's Magazine Press. He published over seventy books for children and young adults. He received many awards for his work in this field including the Coretta Scott King Award, five times. Two of his books were awarded Newbery Honors. He was awarded the Margaret A. Edwards Award and the Virginia Hamilton Award. For one of his books, Monster, he received the first Michael Printz Award for Young Adult literature awarded by the American Library Association. Monster and Autobiography of My Dead Brother were selected as National Book Award Finalists.
In addition to the publication of his books, Walter contributed to educational and literary publications. He visited schools to speak to children, teachers, librarians, and parents. For three years he led a writing workshop for children in a school in Jersey City, New Jersey.
Walter Dean Myers was married, had three grown children and lived in Jersey City, New Jersey. He died on July 1, 2014, following a brief illness. He was 76 years old.
Stacie Williams
Stacie Johnson
Walter Dean Myers was born on August 12, 1937 in Martinsburg, West Virginia but moved to Harlem with his foster parents at age three. He was brought up and went to public school there. He attended Stuyvesant High School until the age of seventeen when he joined the army.
After serving four years in the army, he worked at various jobs and earned a BA from Empire State College. He wrote full time after 1977.
Walter wrote from childhood, first finding success in 1969 when he won the Council on Interracial Books for Children contest, which resulted in the publication of his first book for children, Where Does the Day Go?, by Parent's Magazine Press. He published over seventy books for children and young adults. He received many awards for his work in this field including the Coretta Scott King Award, five times. Two of his books were awarded Newbery Honors. He was awarded the Margaret A. Edwards Award and the Virginia Hamilton Award. For one of his books, Monster, he received the first Michael Printz Award for Young Adult literature awarded by the American Library Association. Monster and Autobiography of My Dead Brother were selected as National Book Award Finalists.
In addition to the publication of his books, Walter contributed to educational and literary publications. He visited schools to speak to children, teachers, librarians, and parents. For three years he led a writing workshop for children in a school in Jersey City, New Jersey.
Walter Dean Myers was married, had three grown children and lived in Jersey City, New Jersey. He died on July 1, 2014, following a brief illness. He was 76 years old.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
February 4, 2014
I like using quality children's non-fiction for research. You can get all the information you need, and the books are at least as entertaining as adult non-fiction. This was a particularly good history of the Amistad rebellion, and I'd recommend it to any young person wanting to learn more about the Africans who fought for their freedom, and the brave men and women in the US who helped them in the courts.
March 10, 2018
This was a co-read for me and my 10 year old son. We read the book and discuss American History. The book is best for middle school students however, for parents who want their children to know about slavery and the American justice system, I recommend this book.
November 1, 2018
I loved the flow, details and factual history presented. The book is short and packed full of interesting details of the amazing Amistad case. Although this is listed as a children’s book I feel that anyone desiring more historical references to the slave trade, court fight and the facts of the case would throughly enjoy it. I especially liked the additional info at the end on the main characters after they won their freedom. A great read!
December 9, 2022
Very interesting. Very well done.
One of the things that stood out to me was how even those who wanted the Amistad prisoners to be free were also hella racist. The one side wanted to exploit them for physical labor, and the other side exploited them emotionally. Just. A lot to think about. Trying to create space in my own mind to think about the way I have internalized racism just by living in a country where people have historically been treated as sub-human.
One of the things that stood out to me was how even those who wanted the Amistad prisoners to be free were also hella racist. The one side wanted to exploit them for physical labor, and the other side exploited them emotionally. Just. A lot to think about. Trying to create space in my own mind to think about the way I have internalized racism just by living in a country where people have historically been treated as sub-human.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews