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Sarny #1
Nightjohn
"To know things, for us to know things, is bad for them. We get to wanting and when we get to wanting it's bad for them. They thinks we want what they got . . . . That's why they don't want us reading." -- Nightjohn
"I didn't know what letters was, not what they meant, but I thought it might be something I wanted to know. To learn." -- Sarny
Sarny, a female slave at the Waller plantation, first sees Nightjohn when he is brought there with a rope around his neck, his body covered in scars.
He had escaped north to freedom, but he came back--came back to teach reading. Knowing that the penalty for reading is dismemberment Nightjohn still retumed to slavery to teach others how to read. And twelve-year-old Sarny is willing to take the risk to learn.
Set in the 1850s, Gary Paulsen's groundbreaking new novel is unlike anything else the award-winning author has written. It is a meticulously researched, historically accurate, and artistically crafted portrayal of a grim time in our nation's past, brought to light through the personal history of two unforgettable characters.
"I didn't know what letters was, not what they meant, but I thought it might be something I wanted to know. To learn." -- Sarny
Sarny, a female slave at the Waller plantation, first sees Nightjohn when he is brought there with a rope around his neck, his body covered in scars.
He had escaped north to freedom, but he came back--came back to teach reading. Knowing that the penalty for reading is dismemberment Nightjohn still retumed to slavery to teach others how to read. And twelve-year-old Sarny is willing to take the risk to learn.
Set in the 1850s, Gary Paulsen's groundbreaking new novel is unlike anything else the award-winning author has written. It is a meticulously researched, historically accurate, and artistically crafted portrayal of a grim time in our nation's past, brought to light through the personal history of two unforgettable characters.
96 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1993
161 people are currently reading
2261 people want to read
About the author
Gary Paulsen
408 books3,977 followersGary James Paulsen was an American writer of children's and young adult fiction, best known for coming-of-age stories about the wilderness. He was the author of more than 200 books and wrote more than 200 magazine articles and short stories, and several plays, all primarily for teenagers. He won the Margaret Edwards Award from the American Library Association in 1997 for his lifetime contribution in writing for teens.
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February 5, 2018
Gary Paulsen, best known for his wilderness survival novels, showcases a different kind of survival in the short book Nightjohn.
Our narrator is a twelve-year-old slave named Sarny, who is bound to a plantation in the South. We have no way of figuring how close the story is to the outbreak of the Civil War; we are only told that slavery has been outlawed in the North. Sarny has never seen a successful escape from her plantation and believes that the entire North might well be a mythical place.
Until the arrival of a man named John. He carries the most painful-looking scars that Sarny has ever seen, and she has seen more than enough lacerated backs to make that judgment. Despite his wounds, and running away and being caught multiple times, John has not given up on life. He offers to tell an important secret to anyone who will trade him some chewing tobacco, and Sarny is the only listener still optimistic enough to want to hear it.
John can read. He learned in the mysterious North. And he got caught again on purpose so he could bring that life-altering knowledge back to his people. The frontispiece illustration shows him carrying a torch like Prometheus.
Content Advisory
The information from the publisher claims that this book is appropriate for fourth graders. I know kids see a lot of violent things these days, but proceed with caution anyway. Just because they have seen a lot of violence does not mean they should be immediately exposed to more violence. There are plenty of other books about slavery that are written for that age group, and therefore are not quite as graphic.
Violence: The sadistic plantation overseer enjoys flogging humans with a whip meant for horses and bulls, to the point where the backs of his victims have multiple scars as long and wide as chasms. He then orders the family members of these people to grind salt into their wounds to maximize the pain. Under this regime a man gets two of his toes chopped off, and an older woman is forced to strip and drag a buggy from a harness like a horse.
Three runaways meet horrifying fates: an elderly man climbs a tree to evade the plantation dogs, but he can’t get his legs out of their range; the beasts gnaw away everything below the waist, and the overseer leaves the torso, fiercely clinging to the lowest branch, as a warning for any other runaways. A young man who was planning to head North with his girlfriend on another plantation is castrated; the castration is botched and he bleeds to death. A girl but a few years older than Sarny gets caught in a thorny bush, and the overseer allows the dogs to gnaw off her breasts before dragging her back to the plantation.
The penalty for literacy among the slaves is having their thumb chopped off.
Sex: Sarny mentions that she has neither breasts nor menstrual cycle, and therefore has a little time before being dragged to the “breeding pen.” The overseer keeps such eager watch over the pubescent female slaves that one can surmise he sexually abuses them.
Language: One use of the word “cracker.”
Substance Abuse: John chews tobacco. No one knew that was unhealthy back then.
Anything Else: Nope.
Conclusion
Nightjohn gives a searing glimpse into the horrors of the plantations, and I do mean a glimpse. My only gripe with this book is that it’s too short, and seems to cut off just when the story is warming up. But it certainly brought the time period to life in a painful way.
Highly recommended for upper middle school and high school kids. Despite the publisher’s opinion, I would use caution with younger students.
Our narrator is a twelve-year-old slave named Sarny, who is bound to a plantation in the South. We have no way of figuring how close the story is to the outbreak of the Civil War; we are only told that slavery has been outlawed in the North. Sarny has never seen a successful escape from her plantation and believes that the entire North might well be a mythical place.
Until the arrival of a man named John. He carries the most painful-looking scars that Sarny has ever seen, and she has seen more than enough lacerated backs to make that judgment. Despite his wounds, and running away and being caught multiple times, John has not given up on life. He offers to tell an important secret to anyone who will trade him some chewing tobacco, and Sarny is the only listener still optimistic enough to want to hear it.
John can read. He learned in the mysterious North. And he got caught again on purpose so he could bring that life-altering knowledge back to his people. The frontispiece illustration shows him carrying a torch like Prometheus.
Content Advisory
The information from the publisher claims that this book is appropriate for fourth graders. I know kids see a lot of violent things these days, but proceed with caution anyway. Just because they have seen a lot of violence does not mean they should be immediately exposed to more violence. There are plenty of other books about slavery that are written for that age group, and therefore are not quite as graphic.
Violence: The sadistic plantation overseer enjoys flogging humans with a whip meant for horses and bulls, to the point where the backs of his victims have multiple scars as long and wide as chasms. He then orders the family members of these people to grind salt into their wounds to maximize the pain. Under this regime a man gets two of his toes chopped off, and an older woman is forced to strip and drag a buggy from a harness like a horse.
Three runaways meet horrifying fates: an elderly man climbs a tree to evade the plantation dogs, but he can’t get his legs out of their range; the beasts gnaw away everything below the waist, and the overseer leaves the torso, fiercely clinging to the lowest branch, as a warning for any other runaways. A young man who was planning to head North with his girlfriend on another plantation is castrated; the castration is botched and he bleeds to death. A girl but a few years older than Sarny gets caught in a thorny bush, and the overseer allows the dogs to gnaw off her breasts before dragging her back to the plantation.
The penalty for literacy among the slaves is having their thumb chopped off.
Sex: Sarny mentions that she has neither breasts nor menstrual cycle, and therefore has a little time before being dragged to the “breeding pen.” The overseer keeps such eager watch over the pubescent female slaves that one can surmise he sexually abuses them.
Language: One use of the word “cracker.”
Substance Abuse: John chews tobacco. No one knew that was unhealthy back then.
Anything Else: Nope.
Conclusion
Nightjohn gives a searing glimpse into the horrors of the plantations, and I do mean a glimpse. My only gripe with this book is that it’s too short, and seems to cut off just when the story is warming up. But it certainly brought the time period to life in a painful way.
Highly recommended for upper middle school and high school kids. Despite the publisher’s opinion, I would use caution with younger students.
November 17, 2019
Drama, adventure, science fiction, comedy, transcendentalism, memoir, how-to...Gary Paulsen has written in many genres, but some of his finest work is historical fiction. Though Nightjohn is a slim novel, Mr. Paulsen poured years of research into this true story of courage under oppression. In 1850s America, twelve-year-old Sarny has served her white master, Clel Waller, for as long as she remembers. The Waller plantation isn't as bad for her as for some other slaves, who work themselves to death in the sun-scorched fields under threat of Waller's deadly whip. Sarny is restricted to lighter work until she comes of age to breed, at which time she'll be forced to bear children to be sold as slaves. Old Delie acts as Sarny's mammy, and though they aren't biologically related, she watches over Sarny as though she were flesh of her flesh. Waller's slaves have to be careful not to anger their master or punishment will be bloody and brutal, and mammy does a good job keeping herself and Sarny out of trouble. That is, until a slave named John arrives.
John is brought to the plantation naked and in chains, immediately forced to do back-breaking labor in the fields, but the first night he beds down among the slaves, Sarny can tell he's different. John carries himself with an assurance beaten out of most blacks during childhood. With Waller asleep in the big house, John asks the slaves for chewing tobacco. In return, he can teach the first three letters of the alphabet. Sarny doesn't know much about letters, but she has a pinch or two of tobacco set aside for a situation like this. She accepts John's offer; mammy has warned her before that reading and writing is forbidden to slaves, but Sarny can do her learning away from Waller's jaundiced eye.
Drawing letters in the dirt with John is the first faint beam of illumination in Sarny's mind. Some nights he's too weary to give the lesson, but over time he adds "D, E, F, G, H, I, and J" to her expanding alphabet, and shows her how to link the letters to form a few basic words. A girl born and bred to serve an evil master, not allowed to make the smallest investment in a free future for herself, has somehow learned the first ten characters of the English alphabet. The power of these letters imprinted in her mind is intoxicating, and the excitement leads to carelessness. When Waller discovers Sarny cheerfully scrawling letters in the dirt, he's enraged that one of his slaves is learning to write. With bloodwrath in his eyes he demands she say who taught her, but a terrified Sarny refuses to betray John. Waller knows worse ways to hurt the girl than beating her; he can turn his violence on mammy until Sarny is unable to remain quiet. Waller will whip mammy to the point of death if necessary to find out who is teaching letters to the slaves, but mammy is prepared to suffer with dignity if it means protecting Sarny's ability to enrich her mind. How far will a few letters in the dirt ultimately take Sarny?
Slavery in the United States prior to the Emancipation Proclamation depended on keeping slaves ignorant. If they were privy to national news, they might hear of activists and politicians clamoring to free the slaves, stirring them to hope for their own eventual liberation. Learning to read might prompt a slave to pick up a book and study America's founding principle of universal liberty, a value opposed by those who claimed blacks didn't possess the same natural rights as white people. Whenever rich upper classes exploit the disadvantaged to retain political power, they do it by pretending to be their highly educated guardians who must tell them what to think and how to act. "Why they be cutting our thumbs off if we learn to read?" Sarny asks John. "'Cause to know things, for us to know things, is bad for them. We get to wanting and when we get to wanting it's bad for them. They thinks we want what they got." Authoritarian leaders fear their victims learning to think for themselves; if they logically trace their oppression to these "benevolent" gatekeepers, they'll take back the power they've given them and start working toward their own free, prosperous future. Sarny's "A, B, and C" are the first three links in a chain by which she can pull herself out of slavery and into a world of unlimited opportunity.
Similarly to Gary Paulsen's The Tent, Nightjohn is so spare that I'm not sure it has enough substance to crest the hump between good and great. Waller's violence against his slaves is horrifying without being gratuitously gory, and the message about the value of learning is timeless, but a somewhat longer novel might have been better. I'll rate Nightjohn two and a half stars, and could easily round to three. The story is scary at times for younger kids, but serves as reminder that the only way to escape oppression is to arm yourself with the tools to become independent. That is John's true lesson.
John is brought to the plantation naked and in chains, immediately forced to do back-breaking labor in the fields, but the first night he beds down among the slaves, Sarny can tell he's different. John carries himself with an assurance beaten out of most blacks during childhood. With Waller asleep in the big house, John asks the slaves for chewing tobacco. In return, he can teach the first three letters of the alphabet. Sarny doesn't know much about letters, but she has a pinch or two of tobacco set aside for a situation like this. She accepts John's offer; mammy has warned her before that reading and writing is forbidden to slaves, but Sarny can do her learning away from Waller's jaundiced eye.
Drawing letters in the dirt with John is the first faint beam of illumination in Sarny's mind. Some nights he's too weary to give the lesson, but over time he adds "D, E, F, G, H, I, and J" to her expanding alphabet, and shows her how to link the letters to form a few basic words. A girl born and bred to serve an evil master, not allowed to make the smallest investment in a free future for herself, has somehow learned the first ten characters of the English alphabet. The power of these letters imprinted in her mind is intoxicating, and the excitement leads to carelessness. When Waller discovers Sarny cheerfully scrawling letters in the dirt, he's enraged that one of his slaves is learning to write. With bloodwrath in his eyes he demands she say who taught her, but a terrified Sarny refuses to betray John. Waller knows worse ways to hurt the girl than beating her; he can turn his violence on mammy until Sarny is unable to remain quiet. Waller will whip mammy to the point of death if necessary to find out who is teaching letters to the slaves, but mammy is prepared to suffer with dignity if it means protecting Sarny's ability to enrich her mind. How far will a few letters in the dirt ultimately take Sarny?
Slavery in the United States prior to the Emancipation Proclamation depended on keeping slaves ignorant. If they were privy to national news, they might hear of activists and politicians clamoring to free the slaves, stirring them to hope for their own eventual liberation. Learning to read might prompt a slave to pick up a book and study America's founding principle of universal liberty, a value opposed by those who claimed blacks didn't possess the same natural rights as white people. Whenever rich upper classes exploit the disadvantaged to retain political power, they do it by pretending to be their highly educated guardians who must tell them what to think and how to act. "Why they be cutting our thumbs off if we learn to read?" Sarny asks John. "'Cause to know things, for us to know things, is bad for them. We get to wanting and when we get to wanting it's bad for them. They thinks we want what they got." Authoritarian leaders fear their victims learning to think for themselves; if they logically trace their oppression to these "benevolent" gatekeepers, they'll take back the power they've given them and start working toward their own free, prosperous future. Sarny's "A, B, and C" are the first three links in a chain by which she can pull herself out of slavery and into a world of unlimited opportunity.
Similarly to Gary Paulsen's The Tent, Nightjohn is so spare that I'm not sure it has enough substance to crest the hump between good and great. Waller's violence against his slaves is horrifying without being gratuitously gory, and the message about the value of learning is timeless, but a somewhat longer novel might have been better. I'll rate Nightjohn two and a half stars, and could easily round to three. The story is scary at times for younger kids, but serves as reminder that the only way to escape oppression is to arm yourself with the tools to become independent. That is John's true lesson.
August 8, 2022
Behind on reviews. Read sometime in July 2022, in a few short sittings.
....................
Nightjohn is a YA title, and it shows. But it’s a riveting, tragic story, and surprisingly violent. I came away shaken, saddened by this reminder of the nation’s shame: slavery. And the story was so involving that I’m very much interested in the sequel. In this novella, John, an adult slave, teaches twelve-year old Sarny the rudiments of reading. Learning to read is completely forbidden for slaves, of course. On penalty of mutilation. (The sequel, Sarny: a Life Remembered, is her journey after the civil war, trying to find her sold-away children.)
"There's some to say I brought him with witchin', brought Nightjohn because he came to be talking to me alone but it ain't so. I knew he was coming but it wasn't witchin', just listening.
It happened. How it came to be was that Nightjohn he came and it wasn't me, wasn't nobody one or the other brought him except maybe it was that God did it, made Nightjohn to come."
Adults will find Nightjohn to be a quick read. Eighty pages, only about 13,000 words by my rough calculations. (Rant: Hey publishers, why don’t you routinely provide the word count? It's easy. You’ve got the document, right? All it takes is a key stoke on Word. Now, add a short line to the book description on Amazon or whatever. “Word count: xxx.” You’re welcome.)
Anyway … some folks recommend Nightjohn for elementary school readers. It depends of course on the maturity of your little ones, but I can’t imagine grade-schoolers being able to handle this material. The story is narrated in first person by Sarny, an illiterate slave girl. I would imagine the syntax and patois would be difficult for someone very young to understand. Admiringly, the author doesn’t just drop g’s and call it a day; instead, he makes every effort to accurately recreate this manner of speech. And the structures of the sentences themselves are occasionally “odd.” This makes the words realistic, but it also makes them probably not a breeze for every reader to follow.
Also, there is quite a bit of violence. When I was young, the depiction of violence in books and TV was infrequent and unrealistic. For example, in a show, when someone was shot, they’d wince and keel over, usually no blood. In this book, whippings are frequent and graphic. Backs become bloody jelly; scars like coils of rope develop. Toes are amputated. Stomachs kicked. Attempted runaways are ripped to shreds by dogs; limbs, chest, buttocks, stripped of flesh. Young slave girls dread their first menstruation, knowing they’ll be forced to “breed.”
Children are sold off, separated from their parents forever. Sure, you already knew that. But let that sink in ...
More psychological violence: I knew that slaves weren’t allowed to worship in church. In this story, slaves aren’t even allowed to pray, in silence, privately. The “rationale” for that I can’t even begin to understand --apparently it wasn’t as universal as forbidding congregation, but on some plantations, as in the one in this story, even private prayer was verboten. In one scene, a slave puts her face into an empty food bowl, ensuring that her whispered prayers go undetected.
Don’t misunderstand. I think it’s important to teach kids how brutal and shameful slavery was. At what age, though, does one introduce this knowledge? The narrator is twelve. Maybe that's a guide point. Again, it's up to parents, and teachers, to decide.
But for those old enough to handle it, Nightjohn is a very good read. For kids of all ages.
....................
Nightjohn is a YA title, and it shows. But it’s a riveting, tragic story, and surprisingly violent. I came away shaken, saddened by this reminder of the nation’s shame: slavery. And the story was so involving that I’m very much interested in the sequel. In this novella, John, an adult slave, teaches twelve-year old Sarny the rudiments of reading. Learning to read is completely forbidden for slaves, of course. On penalty of mutilation. (The sequel, Sarny: a Life Remembered, is her journey after the civil war, trying to find her sold-away children.)
"There's some to say I brought him with witchin', brought Nightjohn because he came to be talking to me alone but it ain't so. I knew he was coming but it wasn't witchin', just listening.
It happened. How it came to be was that Nightjohn he came and it wasn't me, wasn't nobody one or the other brought him except maybe it was that God did it, made Nightjohn to come."
Adults will find Nightjohn to be a quick read. Eighty pages, only about 13,000 words by my rough calculations. (Rant: Hey publishers, why don’t you routinely provide the word count? It's easy. You’ve got the document, right? All it takes is a key stoke on Word. Now, add a short line to the book description on Amazon or whatever. “Word count: xxx.” You’re welcome.)
Anyway … some folks recommend Nightjohn for elementary school readers. It depends of course on the maturity of your little ones, but I can’t imagine grade-schoolers being able to handle this material. The story is narrated in first person by Sarny, an illiterate slave girl. I would imagine the syntax and patois would be difficult for someone very young to understand. Admiringly, the author doesn’t just drop g’s and call it a day; instead, he makes every effort to accurately recreate this manner of speech. And the structures of the sentences themselves are occasionally “odd.” This makes the words realistic, but it also makes them probably not a breeze for every reader to follow.
Also, there is quite a bit of violence. When I was young, the depiction of violence in books and TV was infrequent and unrealistic. For example, in a show, when someone was shot, they’d wince and keel over, usually no blood. In this book, whippings are frequent and graphic. Backs become bloody jelly; scars like coils of rope develop. Toes are amputated. Stomachs kicked. Attempted runaways are ripped to shreds by dogs; limbs, chest, buttocks, stripped of flesh. Young slave girls dread their first menstruation, knowing they’ll be forced to “breed.”
Children are sold off, separated from their parents forever. Sure, you already knew that. But let that sink in ...
More psychological violence: I knew that slaves weren’t allowed to worship in church. In this story, slaves aren’t even allowed to pray, in silence, privately. The “rationale” for that I can’t even begin to understand --apparently it wasn’t as universal as forbidding congregation, but on some plantations, as in the one in this story, even private prayer was verboten. In one scene, a slave puts her face into an empty food bowl, ensuring that her whispered prayers go undetected.
Don’t misunderstand. I think it’s important to teach kids how brutal and shameful slavery was. At what age, though, does one introduce this knowledge? The narrator is twelve. Maybe that's a guide point. Again, it's up to parents, and teachers, to decide.
But for those old enough to handle it, Nightjohn is a very good read. For kids of all ages.
February 25, 2009
For such a short book, this story packs a powerful punch! Yes, in today's world, there is still racism and rampant unfairness as it relates to the color of one's skin. Many kids already know this based on their personal experiences and observations. While today's world still needs some fixing, this story will shock students into the even-uglier realities kids and adults of color faced during a time in which slavery was perfectly legal. This story tells one girl's nightmare of living on a slavery plantation. Imagine what it would be like if learning how to read and write was prohibited and daring to do so behind the back of slave owners would lead to dastardly consequences (including the insanely cruel act of outwardly punishing and torturing this little girl's mother!). This is what 12 year-old's Sarny's life is like. How she deals with it will teach a hard-hitting lesson of courage to anyone, especially among today's crop of often-spoiled and always-naive generation of "entitled" young learners.
July 4, 2016
This is one of those books where you think, "Why is this marketed to children?" and have to remind yourself that if children suffered through it, others can learn about it.
Twelve-year old Sarny is a slave, and the white man who owns her and the others is callous and brutal. Paulsen doesn't gloss over anything, whether separation of families, the use of "breeders" or the casual whippings and maltreatment that was handed out at the time. He packs a lot into those 112 pages as Sarny begins the most forbidden thing of all: she starts learning to read.
Twelve-year old Sarny is a slave, and the white man who owns her and the others is callous and brutal. Paulsen doesn't gloss over anything, whether separation of families, the use of "breeders" or the casual whippings and maltreatment that was handed out at the time. He packs a lot into those 112 pages as Sarny begins the most forbidden thing of all: she starts learning to read.
October 28, 2014
This was great!
Read
April 11, 2023A Terrible horrible story that should be read.
June 17, 2016
Gary Paulsen's Nightjohn gives readers a black and white look at the extreme cruelty and racial discriminatory of the 1850's. The vivid description of the hardships of the slaves on the Waller plantation was a real eye opener. The way Paulsen described the severe treatments and living conditions of the black plantation workers sent chills down my spine and set a rage deep in my heart. However, the actions of an unusual character provided a ray of hope into not just the other slaves but also the reader. Nightjohn provides insight of the unreasonable treatments of people just because of their skin color. It also is an amazing story of one person with remarkable ambition and courage. A must read.
June 7, 2016
I really liked this book, even though it was short, it had a lot of meaning and taught you what your experiences's would have been like and how you would have lived. Good Read:)
January 26, 2020
“It was in the flower bed that I first heard about Nightjohn. Not by name, but by happening.” Sarny remembers that moment well. That and other moments—both horrible and hopeful—that has happened on Master Clel Waller’s plantation: the beatings, the constant humiliation, the rapes, but also the songs and stories that provide some comfort to her and her fellow slaves. But most precious of all were the moments spent with Nightjohn for he brought with him freedom. Freedom that only knowledge could bring, and Nightjohn was bringing it to Sarny and anyone brave enough to accept this unique and powerful gift.
Gary Paulsen notes that the events written in "Nightjohn" (with the exception for variations in time and character identification and placement) are true and actually happened. Knowing the atrocities, brutality, and savagery that happened during the period in American history where slavery was practiced and largely accepted, the story of Sarny and what she witnessed and experienced should come as no shock. Unfortunately, it does for Paulsen is relentless in his detail and spares no sensibilities when it comes to depicting the treatment of slaves and the punishment ravaged upon those attempting escape. The book is recommended for ages 12 and up and although the message is important and the details written are accurate, I would suggest a slightly higher starting age due to several highly graphic scenes and some mature subject matter.
I appreciated the theme of this book and the heroism shown by Nightjohn who had successfully acquired freedom in the north, but chose to return south so that he could teach slaves to read and write. During one pivotal scene, Sarny’s “adoptive” mother, Mammy, asked Nightjohn why teaching the slaves to read and write mattered. “They have to be able to write,” Nightjohn responded. “They have to read and write. We all have to read and write so we can write about this—what they doing to us. It has to be written.” The singular problem I had with Paulsen’s book was the overuse of violence. Paulsen describes what runaways endured when the dogs finally caught up with them and he did so not once, not twice, but three times. The reader understands the gruesomeness of this action and the utter deprave satisfaction the master gets in seeing a man or woman being literally torn to shreds, but to restate it numerous times was borderline gratuitous.
"Nightjohn" is a quick read (the hardback edition is ninety-two pages with large typeface and a narrow page width), but its characters and their unfailing faith, their struggle for dignity, and their fight for a better life will have a long-lasting impact on you and will forever change how you view the everyday things that are often taken for granted. In that respect, Nightjohn has given each of us a very valuable lesson.
(Reviewer’s Note: In 1997, Paulsen wrote "Sarny: A Life Remembered", a sequel to "Nightjohn", which follows Sarny after she fled the Waller plantation in the last days of the Civil War.)
Gary Paulsen notes that the events written in "Nightjohn" (with the exception for variations in time and character identification and placement) are true and actually happened. Knowing the atrocities, brutality, and savagery that happened during the period in American history where slavery was practiced and largely accepted, the story of Sarny and what she witnessed and experienced should come as no shock. Unfortunately, it does for Paulsen is relentless in his detail and spares no sensibilities when it comes to depicting the treatment of slaves and the punishment ravaged upon those attempting escape. The book is recommended for ages 12 and up and although the message is important and the details written are accurate, I would suggest a slightly higher starting age due to several highly graphic scenes and some mature subject matter.
I appreciated the theme of this book and the heroism shown by Nightjohn who had successfully acquired freedom in the north, but chose to return south so that he could teach slaves to read and write. During one pivotal scene, Sarny’s “adoptive” mother, Mammy, asked Nightjohn why teaching the slaves to read and write mattered. “They have to be able to write,” Nightjohn responded. “They have to read and write. We all have to read and write so we can write about this—what they doing to us. It has to be written.” The singular problem I had with Paulsen’s book was the overuse of violence. Paulsen describes what runaways endured when the dogs finally caught up with them and he did so not once, not twice, but three times. The reader understands the gruesomeness of this action and the utter deprave satisfaction the master gets in seeing a man or woman being literally torn to shreds, but to restate it numerous times was borderline gratuitous.
"Nightjohn" is a quick read (the hardback edition is ninety-two pages with large typeface and a narrow page width), but its characters and their unfailing faith, their struggle for dignity, and their fight for a better life will have a long-lasting impact on you and will forever change how you view the everyday things that are often taken for granted. In that respect, Nightjohn has given each of us a very valuable lesson.
(Reviewer’s Note: In 1997, Paulsen wrote "Sarny: A Life Remembered", a sequel to "Nightjohn", which follows Sarny after she fled the Waller plantation in the last days of the Civil War.)
December 14, 2018
Sarny is a 12-year-old slave girl owned by a cruel master. Nightjohn is a slave who escaped to freedom, but came back to teach slaves how to read. He was caught and bought by Master Waller. He begins teaching Sarny to read. Her first word is "bag." When the master catches her writing it in the dirt, he begins his tirade of cruelty, in search of the one who taught her to read.
This is the most disturbing kids book I have ever read. It's less than 100 pages, so clearly it's for upper elementary kids. This one is far more disturbing than Copper Sun which is YA. It holds nothing back in its description of slave cruelty. Slaves are whipped so often that there is nothing but scar tissue left on their backs. The wounds are so bad, flies lay eggs in them. Vicious dogs are set on slaves who try to run away. The dogs attack them like they are a piece of steak, to the point of being eaten alive. They are chained up and made to stand all day in the hot sun with no water. Toes and fingers are chopped off as punishment. Girls become breeders when they reach puberty and children are taken from their mothers, whether they are on the same plantation or not. Utter. Cruelty.
I don't need to say that Paulsen is an amazing writer. As short as this book is, it's the one I will remember. Tells me that too many authors over-write. I can't tell you how many books I've read that would have been so much better if 100 pages had been cut out. There is not one sentence that doesn't belong in this book. If you can get this book into kids' hands, they WILL read it. It's a book that needs to be read. But please, warn them of the cruelty they will encounter so they can decide it they can handle it.
This is the most disturbing kids book I have ever read. It's less than 100 pages, so clearly it's for upper elementary kids. This one is far more disturbing than Copper Sun which is YA. It holds nothing back in its description of slave cruelty. Slaves are whipped so often that there is nothing but scar tissue left on their backs. The wounds are so bad, flies lay eggs in them. Vicious dogs are set on slaves who try to run away. The dogs attack them like they are a piece of steak, to the point of being eaten alive. They are chained up and made to stand all day in the hot sun with no water. Toes and fingers are chopped off as punishment. Girls become breeders when they reach puberty and children are taken from their mothers, whether they are on the same plantation or not. Utter. Cruelty.
I don't need to say that Paulsen is an amazing writer. As short as this book is, it's the one I will remember. Tells me that too many authors over-write. I can't tell you how many books I've read that would have been so much better if 100 pages had been cut out. There is not one sentence that doesn't belong in this book. If you can get this book into kids' hands, they WILL read it. It's a book that needs to be read. But please, warn them of the cruelty they will encounter so they can decide it they can handle it.
July 12, 2010
Snapshot: Nightjohn is a story about a slave named John and a twelve year old girl named Sarny. Nightjohn is an unusual slave for he knows how to read and he knows that they are bound by the words the white masters write on paper. One day John arrives to a new plantation and his new master tries to subdue him with no avail. Sarny observes this beautiful black man and immediately realizes that he is different. For a bit of tabacco John teaches Sarny how to read.
Hook: Nightjohn will interest students because it's very short. The most interesting part of this book is how slavery is told and seen by a child. Paulsen does an extraordinary job of telling the slave's experience through a child's voice.
Challenges: The subject of slavery might be uncomfortable for some students, particularly those who come from African descent. Also, there are some very vivid images of slave life that might be distressing to some students. Although, I believe that the images are less offensive because the story is told in a child's voice.
Student in mind: This book is great for everyone. It can be used as a historical book and deals with issues like slavery, race, white supremacy, and the power of knowledge.
Conference Notes: Why do people refer to John as "Nightjohn"? What is the importance of education? What things keep us prisoner in the present?
Level: Easy; 6th-10th grade (For lower grades I would use it as the main book and for higher grades as an introduction to a unit, etc.)
Hook: Nightjohn will interest students because it's very short. The most interesting part of this book is how slavery is told and seen by a child. Paulsen does an extraordinary job of telling the slave's experience through a child's voice.
Challenges: The subject of slavery might be uncomfortable for some students, particularly those who come from African descent. Also, there are some very vivid images of slave life that might be distressing to some students. Although, I believe that the images are less offensive because the story is told in a child's voice.
Student in mind: This book is great for everyone. It can be used as a historical book and deals with issues like slavery, race, white supremacy, and the power of knowledge.
Conference Notes: Why do people refer to John as "Nightjohn"? What is the importance of education? What things keep us prisoner in the present?
Level: Easy; 6th-10th grade (For lower grades I would use it as the main book and for higher grades as an introduction to a unit, etc.)
March 25, 2013
Genre: realistic fiction
Tags: history, slavery, african-american, troubled times,etc.
My review: I have read this book many times before and it has never gotten boring or old to me. Even though I enjoy it very much, I will give it 4.5 out 5 stars in ratings. I say this because it is a very powerful book and it explicitly tells me what my ancestors and others went through during slavery. I found it emotional and moving at certain periods. I think me watching the movie also influences my judgement of it because I saw the imagery created during the reading of the book come to life and action in the movie. Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a more in depth detail of history.
Plot Summary: in the book, sarny, an African American little girl, meets another slave who was just like her in particular ways. His was known as NightJohn. He appeared to the plantation beaten with scars and wounds on his body. He had these because he had escaped to the north for freedom and came back to teach reading to the other slaves. Back then, it was absolutely lethal and wrong for an African American to be literate. Well, NightJohn ends up teaching Sarny how to read and write but they must be very careful so the master won't discover what they are doing. In the very end, some of the slaves escape to the north also.
Tags: history, slavery, african-american, troubled times,etc.
My review: I have read this book many times before and it has never gotten boring or old to me. Even though I enjoy it very much, I will give it 4.5 out 5 stars in ratings. I say this because it is a very powerful book and it explicitly tells me what my ancestors and others went through during slavery. I found it emotional and moving at certain periods. I think me watching the movie also influences my judgement of it because I saw the imagery created during the reading of the book come to life and action in the movie. Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a more in depth detail of history.
Plot Summary: in the book, sarny, an African American little girl, meets another slave who was just like her in particular ways. His was known as NightJohn. He appeared to the plantation beaten with scars and wounds on his body. He had these because he had escaped to the north for freedom and came back to teach reading to the other slaves. Back then, it was absolutely lethal and wrong for an African American to be literate. Well, NightJohn ends up teaching Sarny how to read and write but they must be very careful so the master won't discover what they are doing. In the very end, some of the slaves escape to the north also.
March 7, 2013
I'm reading my bookshelves in preparation of the purge. Thought I'd begin with something small and picked up Nightjohn.
It has been my regular reading experience to find the best reading in smaller texts. Ayn Rand was at her best in Anthem. Both Animal Farm and 1984 are brief, yet pack a punch.
Sarny lives in slavery and is, therefore, forbidden the knowledge of reading and writing. Nightjohn possesses this taboo knowledge, and insists that others in servitude should possess it as well, even though the penalty for possessing, exercising, or sharing such knowledge is, in this story, dismemberment.
When I think of the real generations descended from such as the likes of Nightjohn and Sarny, imagined as they are, who couldn't be bothered to read, write, or tell a story of their own making, I feel that people are a terrific disappointment, that they do not appreciate the sacrifices that came together to make their current existences reality in a country that once legally held their people as chattel.
Simple, straightforward, Nightjohn is moving and inspiring.
It has been my regular reading experience to find the best reading in smaller texts. Ayn Rand was at her best in Anthem. Both Animal Farm and 1984 are brief, yet pack a punch.
Sarny lives in slavery and is, therefore, forbidden the knowledge of reading and writing. Nightjohn possesses this taboo knowledge, and insists that others in servitude should possess it as well, even though the penalty for possessing, exercising, or sharing such knowledge is, in this story, dismemberment.
When I think of the real generations descended from such as the likes of Nightjohn and Sarny, imagined as they are, who couldn't be bothered to read, write, or tell a story of their own making, I feel that people are a terrific disappointment, that they do not appreciate the sacrifices that came together to make their current existences reality in a country that once legally held their people as chattel.
Simple, straightforward, Nightjohn is moving and inspiring.
February 8, 2011
The slavery population in our American history suffered tremendous abuse. The story NightJohn written by Gary Paulsen was based on a true story and actually happened during a dark and horrifying time in our American culture. Although Paulsen was vague on dates and details, he did a good job of letting us know that the story’s backdrop setting was far too common in the south during the time of slavery. The book was an easy read but compact with a lot of information and facts on how slaves were treated and misused for nothing more than animals. As an adult I felt my eyes well with tears as Sarney, the main character in the story she talk about just a few short months in her life and how it changed her world because of one brave man who was willing take the extra mile and teach his people (slaves) how to read and write.
July 29, 2015
Nightjohn by Gary Paulson was an interesting read. This book challenged my thoughts and made me think about racism today. Although often invisible to some, it's still alive and kicking. Seen not only on TV and interviews, it also happens right under our noses. Recently, studies have shown that police violence is aimed more at people of color than at others. This discrimination shouldn't still exist today.
Back to the book. Overall the read was very short and I feel like some of the characters were a bit underdeveloped because of the length. Despite this, the story was very interesting and kept me wanting more. Although set in a time frame I am not used to reading, Nightjohn was a pretty good read.
Back to the book. Overall the read was very short and I feel like some of the characters were a bit underdeveloped because of the length. Despite this, the story was very interesting and kept me wanting more. Although set in a time frame I am not used to reading, Nightjohn was a pretty good read.
June 24, 2015
Nightjohn was a short and easy book for me to read. I did like all of the detail, but the way it was written messed with me at first. I eventually got the hang of it though. I definitely enjoyed reading it. This book is about a slave named Sarny, and she has always wondered what it was like to read. Until Nightjohn came along. He was willing to teach Sarny, even if it means sacrificing his life. The only reason I didn't give this book a 5 star is because it was a little too gory for me but other than that I thought it was great.
June 8, 2016
Nightjohn is a book that gives readers a whole new view on slavery. Readers will get an inside view of what really happened in the life of a plantation slave. They will hear about the endless beatings, the harassment, and cruelty that these people suffered simply because of the country they came from and the color of their skin. Nightjohn is a startling wake up call that you simply can't hit snooze on.
June 27, 2018
This book was terrible! The fact that a man could treat other people this way was dreadful! I gave the book 5 stars because we should all feel the horror of slavery. The book made me cringe that such things could go on. Let us never see other people as less than human, or we will become less than human ourselves.
July 23, 2019
Very short but an emotional read. This was one of the class sets of books for my 7th graders, and I think I am going to start off the quarter with this text as part of my unit.
What I really liked about this novel is that it touched on some very complex topics but didn't dive too deep into them which will allow for some rich and challenging discussion for my students.
I will definitely be including additional texts into my classroom to supplement this one, maybe do a linked text set unit?? While this was a great book, I think I would not be doing Sarny justice if I didn't include texts from POC authors who talk about slavery and literacy. I definitely need to add some more diverse authors into my classroom text sets, so maybe next year I can ask for another shorter book to pair with it from a POC author.
What I really liked about this novel is that it touched on some very complex topics but didn't dive too deep into them which will allow for some rich and challenging discussion for my students.
I will definitely be including additional texts into my classroom to supplement this one, maybe do a linked text set unit?? While this was a great book, I think I would not be doing Sarny justice if I didn't include texts from POC authors who talk about slavery and literacy. I definitely need to add some more diverse authors into my classroom text sets, so maybe next year I can ask for another shorter book to pair with it from a POC author.
March 25, 2019
This short simple story is quite horrifying because it is true. Sarny is a slave girl who meets NightJohn when he is bought by their white owner, Waller. John is a slave who escaped once, but came back to teach the others how to read and write, and he does that for Sarny. It has graphic descriptions of what happens to some of the men who try to run, or what happens when Waller finds out that John is teaching Sarny how to read.
It took me all of 25 minutes to read, but it is powerful.
It took me all of 25 minutes to read, but it is powerful.
April 10, 2020
I thought this book would be great to read in my future classroom. It is about a twelve year old who meets NightJohn at the Waller Plantation. The girl's name is Sarney. She learns that NightJohn had previously escaped slavery and went to the North as a freeman. He soon returned to the south to teach reading a writing to other slaves. This was very brave of him because it was not allowed. He began teaching Sarney how to read and write.
This book could be used in many different areas. It could be used to teach history. Since the book talks about NightJohn teaching slaves to read and write, it could be used to teach a reading or writing lesson and explain that some people do not have all of the resources and luxuries that we have today. It could also be used to introduce different types of music since slaves often communicated through song since most did not know how to read or write.
This book could be used in many different areas. It could be used to teach history. Since the book talks about NightJohn teaching slaves to read and write, it could be used to teach a reading or writing lesson and explain that some people do not have all of the resources and luxuries that we have today. It could also be used to introduce different types of music since slaves often communicated through song since most did not know how to read or write.
July 31, 2018
This was a good book, but a bit too much for my students. I had hoped we could read it for African-American history month but it’s more appropriate for junior high.
May 29, 2021
Very gritty. Might be too heavy for younger readers, but very eye-opening.
April 27, 2022
Brutal and wonderful. Paulsen is great because he writes for children and pulls no punches. Another author I wish had been around when I was a kid.
August 3, 2017
This book really shows how it was like for slaves back then, and how threatening reading and writing was for the slave drivers.
July 13, 2019
3/5 Stars
I read this for a class in June, and for a 98 page book, it is quite interesting and a very unique look into slavery in America.
I read this for a class in June, and for a 98 page book, it is quite interesting and a very unique look into slavery in America.
November 13, 2017
Wow.... I was not expecting this level of violence or visceral reality in a book that is designed for adolescents, not that I am complaining, exactly. But I was unprepared, going in. Like, American Psycho level descriptions of torn flesh and sadism. It was the reality of slavery and I think that it is an amazing book. But, it's horrifying and tragic.
September 21, 2017
A well-written book about what slavery was really like all shown from the point of view of a young girl.
January 9, 2019
A interesting read, but not enjoyable
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