Title of the Book: Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt
Author Name: Deborah Hopkinson
Reviewer's Name: Batul
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
Date of Publication: 1995
Rating: 1-5 Stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt, a book written by Deborah
Hopkinson, is about the story of a young girl named Clara’s trip to freedom.
This story is set in the time period when there were still a lot of slaves, and
slave owners in America. Clara used to work in the plantations, but she just
became a seamstress for her owners that live in the “Big House”. She used to
work with her mom but her and her mom were split up when Clara was about
11 or 12. One day while Clara is working she hears the cooks talking about
maps and the underground railroad. Clara realizes that with the help of the
underground railroad Clara could go to Canada with her and her mom and
finally be free, if only she had a map. The only way she could get one is to
make one, so she starts making a quilt, and stitches the squares and string in
order to form the perfect map that she needs to get to safety. She knows that
this is a dangerous plan, but with the help of her friend Jack and a bunch of
the other workers, she is able to finish the map. After months, she and Jack
go to find her mother and the three of them with her new baby sister make
the dangerous trek to Canada, and eventually find their way to freedom.
This story teaches the ideas of perseverance, and never giving up. Clara
is a very strong character that even due to the situation she was put in, tries
to find the good, and starts sewing. She also keeps going even when it takes
her months and months to finish her map. She doesn’t give up knowing what
she will gain if she finishes. Also, the illustrations and/or paintings in this story
really help readers understand the story better. This book is not something
that a 5 year old would necessarily read because it has more words that are
bigger and harder to understand. With the pictures it is very easy to
understand the storyline; this helps the readers improve their vocabulary and
become better readers themselves. All in all, this is a really good and
important story because it is a way to teach the younger generation about a
really important and sad event in American history. It also teaches them to
neve give up, this is a lesson that you can never hear too much.
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