The Last Safe House: A Story of the Underground Railroad

by Barbara Greenwood

This is the dramatic story of the Underground Railroad as seen through the eyes of two young girls -- Eliza, a runaway slave from a plantation in Virginia, and Johanna, whose family gives her refuge in St. Catharines, Canada West (now Ontario). In a unique mix of fact and fiction, each chapter is followed by background information and hands-on activities. Kids will learn about life on a cotton plantation, about abolitionists who fought to have slavery made illegal, and about the heroic actions of Canadians who sheltered runaway slaves. Beautifully detailed drawings accompany the text making The Last Safe House a comprehensive, all-in-one resource.

Genres: History, Childrens, Historical, American History, Nonfiction, School, Picture Books

120 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Inspired by her own early fascination with historical tales, author Barbara Greenwood specializes in writing historical fiction and biographies for children and young people. When she was young she couldn't find novels about Canada's past. Now she immerses herself in the subject: reading old diaries, journals, and letters, visiting museums, doing in-depth research at libraries, visiting the areas where her books are set. The information gleaned from her research becomes grist for the background details and settings of novels which emphasize character development and the human side of history. The stories she creates are those she would have liked to read at age ten or twelve or fourteen. The reams of research "left-over" from her first two books was used in A Pioneer Story, an award-winning book which mixes fact, fiction, and hands-on activities as it delves into Ontario's past. Barbara Greenwood studied at the University of Toronto. She taught elementary school for many years and, later, taught creative writing to high-school and adult students. She has been president of CANSCAIP (Canadian Society of Children's Authors, Illustrators, and Performers) and has edited many CANSCAIP publications. Many of her short stories and articles have been published in the Canadian Children's Annual and educational anthologies.

Reviews

[Mary L. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book with interactive pages with things for kids to do to draw them into the feeling of what is was like to be black trying to escape slavery before the Civil War. Greenwood uses a fictional family to tell a story with lots of actual facts sandwiched in between the chapters.

[Tonya · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Last Safe House is a wonderful read to help students understand what life was like for slaves and the people who helped them along the Underground Railroad. The author has done an outstanding job of integrating historical fiction and providing factual information to accompany the story. I have used this book as a read aloud, and I was amazed by the depth of the conversations that were sparked by this piece of literature. The students were so engaged that they did not want me to stop reading! I also think this could be used for a book club. I would recommend it for students no younger than 10, due to the sensitive nature of the material. This book is a WOW book for me because of the various points of view it offers, and the manner in which it illustrates the bravery they exhibited during this most difficult time in American history.

[Alexia Flores · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awards the book has received: Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children's Non-Fiction Nominee (1999)

Appropriate grade levels: 8-12 years

Original summary: This is the dramatic story of the Underground Railroad as seen through the eyes of two young girls -- Eliza, a runaway slave from a plantation in Virginia, and Johanna, whose family gives her refuge in St. Catharines, Canada West (now Ontario). In a unique mix of fact and fiction, each chapter is followed by background information and hands-on activities.

Original review: This book was a great story to read, it was historically accurate and engaging. Additionally, it added activities and illustrations to keep the children engages and I loved that.

1-2 possible in-class uses: Learn about how slaves were treated and how many escaped

[Kathryn Judson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Someone left a tattered copy of this lying around, and I picked it up for a look, and wound up finishing it in one day, in bits and pieces between doing other things. It's one of the better books I've read on slavery and the Underground Railroad. It's set in Canada, which provides information I didn't know, not having read up on safe houses and such up there. Among other things, it looks at the problem of slave catchers coming across the border to capture escaped slaves.

It's a mix of fictional narrative, told largely from the perspective of a girl whose family provides a hiding place to refugees; sections of historical background, and crafts and other activity ideas.

It's aimed at children, but I found it a good read for adults, too.

[Christine Stobbe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a well-written and exciting introduction to the Underground Railroad for younger readers. Each chapter of the fictional story is followed by a few pages of factual information about slavery, those who dared to flee it, and those who helped the refugees along the way. With beautiful illustrations throughout, this book tastefully handles slavery and racism without getting too dark for elementary school children. I highly recommend this book for grades 3 through 7.

[Amy Roebuck · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent introduction to many aspects of slavery and the Underground Railroad, for grades 4-8, I'd say.
Uses the experience of two young girls as a framework, with lots of sidebars and history in just the right places.
Fine bibliography, and a shout-out to Daniel Hill, Sr., for his work and legacy.

[Tracy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought it was a very well-written story of some of the movement on an underground railroad to Canada, as well as a story of one safe house and a runaway slave family. It taught about the underground railroad in a way kids could grasp.

[Laura (Book Scrounger) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent resource for teaching kids about slavery and the Underground Railroad. A fictional story is interspersed with vignettes of real history that cover topics such as plantations, slave catchers, abolitionists, spirituals, and more.

[Lyn Sweetapple · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well detailed yet still child friendly

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book for elementary students studying slavery and the Underground Railroad. Blends text style learning with a fictional story. Science subjects interspersed. Recipes and crafts included.

[claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good!!

[Chloe Hey]

I don't really feel like I can give this a star rating, but I really liked this book when I was younger!

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this book did a great job with combining real facts about The Underground Railroad with the story of fictitious characters during that time. My 7 year old really enjoyed it.

[Tuly Huntington · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good story, accompanied by facts about the underground railroad.

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Last Safe House is a painless way to learn history of the Underground Railroad. Great historical fiction!

[Nikki in Niagara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reason for Reading: Read aloud to my son as part of our history studies.

Summary: The story of a slave mother and her two children who escape from a southern plantation to St. Catharines, Canada via the Underground Railroad. The family is split up and the little girl, Eliza, is the first to arrive across the border at the Reids' house and the story concentrates on her and the youngest Reid girl as they spend time together. From Eliza's point of view we see the weight of slavery lift and are told about her past life through flashbacks. From Johanna Reid we see at first jealousy at this girl who is so eager to please, then understanding of what slavery really is. The two girls become friends and Johanna soon comes to realize that even in a 'free' county there are some two-faced people who treat the blacks in town differently. The plot becomes more exciting as slave catchers come on the scene and through different ways the brother and mother finally make it to safety.

Comments: This book is set up exactly like Greenwood & Collins' Pioneer series of books. Between each chapter of the fictional story there is a non-fiction section which digs deeper into the subjects discussed. These sections often refer to the characters in the story and seamlessly join together. Each of these sections also includes an activity though they are less crafty than in previous books by this team. Here we have a few crafts, baking, singing, and storytelling. This is the first time I've read this title and I enjoyed even more than The Pioneer Story. The characters are real and we are shown the story from many different view points: the runaway slaves, the American Underground Railroad conductors, the Canadian freedom helpers, Canadian women and children with racist attitudes, we even see why the slave catchers would cross into Canada and try to take slaves back when they had no rights on this side of the border. Heather Collins' black and white drawings are very detailed and informative. An excellent book that takes you from the slave on the plantation, to the fugitive on the run, and finally to the free black in the city, working and sending their children to school.

[Kelsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book did not have any awards that I could find online. This book could be good for 5th-7th grade (maybe even higher grades as well). This is about two young slave girls named Eliza and Johanna. This is a story about how they escape to Canada to find freedom through the underground railroad and the things they had to endure along the way. It points out all of the people who were there to help and did not support slavery. I love this story because it usually keeps students attention due to the suspense of the story and the situation. This book can be used during Black History Month or when learning about the Underground Railroad.

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another great read aloud to teach kids about the Underground Railroad and the abolitionists who harbored runaways. I read this to my 4th grade class in about 1 week. After each chapter was a nonfiction section---it wasn't bad, but we had covered a lot of it aready in class and I felt it broke up the story too much, so I just skipped over it. I would use this book again to teach elementary age kids about slavery and the Civil War era.

[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stories and snippets, along with historical facts, are accompanied by activites in The Last Safe House: A Story of the Underground Railroad. The Underground Railroad began around 1800 and lasted until 1865. It helped slave families escape to freedom with the help of other families who believed in freedom for all.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am not giving this book four stars on literary merit. I think this book deserves four stars because it does a nice job of teaching about the underground railroad through story. I will be using this in my classroom this year and will update when I see how this book goes over with my students.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Certainly this isn't the best children's book we've read, but the extras put into the five star category for us. There is a hands-on activity at the end of most chapters. My children loved making the lanterns and corn husk dolls. The history really came alive for them.

[V-ann Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book really makes you think of how many people risked their lives to be free. Really free. A great book for children AND adults.

[Jordan-Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

in my reading class at school i got to read this book i love it

[Thea · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing book for readers who like to read non-fiction.

[Deborah Harris]

RL 5.30

AR Quiz No. 31201 EN Fiction
Accelerated Reader Quiz Information IL: MG - BL: 5.2 - AR Pts: 3.0
Accelerated Reader Quiz Type Information AR Quiz Types: RP

[Lauren White · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good for grades 3-7