In Their Own Words: Harriet Tubman

In Their Own Words

by George Sullivan

This unique biography of Harriet Tubman uses interviews with Tubman, as well as writings from her contemporaries, to tell the story of her life.

"There was one of two things I had a right to, liberty or death. If I could not have one, I would have the other, for no man should take me alive"

Born into slavery on a southern plantation, Harriet Tubman dreamed of the Promised Land to the North. After escaping slavery herself, she repeatedly returned to the South to lead more than 300 other slaves to freedom in the North via the Underground Railroad. During the Civil War, Tubman served as a Union spy. Later in life she established a home for the sick and needy in Auburn, NY. Tubman's faith and determination guided her throughout her long and eventful life.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, History, Childrens

128 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2002

About the author

George Sullivan is a best-selling nonfiction author with more than 100 books to his credit. He lives in New York City.

Reviews

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Harriet Tubman was born a slave but escaped to freedom on the Underground Railroad in 1849. She then devoted her life to helping other slaves reach freedom in the North. Harriet risked her life to guide over 300 slaves to freedom on the Underground Railroad--more than any other person.

George Sullivan's biography of Harriet Tubman will provide middle school students with an inspiring story about a true heroine in American history.

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

My daughter read this with her fourth grade class and grew to love Harriet Tubman. She told me this was a must read and she was right. I always knew Harriet Tubman-- Underground Railroad, but now I know Harriet Tubman much better. What an amazing and brave woman. This is a book I will remember.

[Kirsten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Facts I did not know!

[MD · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe I would have liked this book more if I was in its target age group. Even though I found it a rather tedious read, I’m glad I read it. She was a remarkable woman.

[Lilly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, Harriet Tubman was such a brilliant person.

[Sabrine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Harriet Tubman was born a slave on a plantation in Maryland. Historians think she was born in 1820, or possibly 1821, but birth records weren't kept by most slave owners. Her birth name was Araminta Ross, but she took the name of her mother, Harriet, when she was thirteen. She live a hard life as a slave. Harriet first lived in a one-room cabin with her family that included eleven children. Later Harriet worked a number of jobs on the plantation such as plowing fields and loading produce into wagons. She became strong doing manual labor that included hauling logs and driving oxen. At the age of thirteen Harriet received a horrible head injury. It happened when she was visiting the town. A slave owner tried to throw an iron weight at one of his slaves, but hit Harriet instead. The injury nearly killed her and caused her to have dizzy spells and blackouts for the rest of her life. Slaves would try to escape to the north using the Underground Railroad. This wasn't a real railroad. It was a number of safe homes that hide slaves as they traveled north. The people that helped the slaves were called conductors. Slaves would move from station to station at night, hiding in the woods or sneaking onto trains until they finally reached the north and freedom. In 1849 Harriet decided to escape. She would use the Underground Railroad. After a long and scary trip she made it to Pennsylvania and was finally free. In 1850 the Fugitive Slave Act was passed. This meant that slaves could be taken from free states and returned to their owners. In order to be free, slaves now had to escape to Canada. Harriet wanted to help others, including her family, to safety in Canada. She joined the Underground Railroad as a conductor. Harriet became famous as an Underground Railroad conductor.


Three questions were able to be answered in the book. I know that this is a biography because it talks about an African American slave’s life. Five important facts about Harriet Tubman are that her nickname as a child was “Minty”, she was a very religious woman having learned about the Bible from her mother. Harriet bought a house in Auburn, New York for her parents after helping them to escape from the south. She married John Tubman in 1844. He was a free black man. She married again in 1869 to Nelson Davis, She was so successful in helping slaves to escape that, at one point, slave owners offered a reward of $40,000 for her capture, and She was the famous woman in the Underground Railroad. Harriet Tubman escaped slavery to become a leading abolitionist. She led hundreds of enslaved people to freedom along the route of the Underground Railroad. Thus, Harriet Tubman had many important events in her life such as the Underground Railroad.

This book would be recommended for me to the middle school students to both boys and girls. Also people who like reading about famous peoples’ lives, usually who like reading about the slaves of America. I would recommend this book to people who are strong in reading and who love reading. Also to those who like to read about slaves’ lives and how they can be sometimes heros. Like Harriet Tubman, she served as one of the best guides, or conducters in the Underground Railroad. She also cared for slaves and did her best to protect them. So, I think people who like reading about heros who make sacrifices.

[Monica Lukudu · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is for everyone it really gives the gist and some detail about Harriet Tubman. It was awesome!

[Mel Foster · Rating 3 out of 5]

"In their own words" is a real stretch for the series title, if the others are like this one. Most of the words are the author's. I would say primary sources made up an average amount of the text for a history book for children, probably about 1/4 or less of the text. Primary and secondary sources are discussed in the introduction, but when quotations are used they are not cited, so you will have to track them down on your own. The book is very readable,well-rounded, and genuine. It deals with most aspects of Tubman's life, the good and the complicated, with teh notable exception of the Margaret Stewart story. There are many excellent illustrations, from lithographs and photos to maps.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interest Level Grades 3 - 5
Genre: Biography
Themes: African Americans, Courage, Heroism and Bravery, Slavery, and Social Studies
Uses: 1)Correlate with SOL's
2)During Black History Month
3)During Women's History Month

[Gunther · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even though this is a boigraphy it still has a lot of action

[Paige Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the story of Harriet Tubman. I biography of her life tells of how she escaped slavery, served as a spy, and helped others escape.

[Nadia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was amazing.It showed hardships that slaves faced in 1800-1900.It was a great way to read about Harriet Tubman and all that she did throughout this hard time.I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading biographies.