The Story of Harriet Tubman: Conductor of the Underground Railroad

I came across this children’s book in a donation to my Little Free Library. As I was registering this book with BookCrossing prior to its release, I decided I should read it. With Black Lives Matters protests going on now in full force, I thought that I needed to know more about Harriet Tubman so this was as good a time as any to start. I’m glad I did. Although this book is written as a story for school age children, I found it worth my while to learn some facts about Harriet Tubman. She lived in my own state of Maryland, in Dorchester County, a little over 100 miles from where I live now and a little over 50 miles from where my own family used to go fishing years ago. Tubman was told to follow the Choptank River north to reach show more freedom in Pennsylvania. I know of that river. I didn’t realize as I started this book that I’d be reading local history. It is painful to read about the slavery that existed in my state even though my own ancestors were living in Europe at the time Harriet Tubman was alive. Harriet’s escape to freedom in Pennsylvania sadly reminded me of my mom’s escape to freedom as a Jew from Nazi Europe, while realizing that her own parents were not free to leave. When reading about the different feelings toward abolition in Pennsylvania (the North) and in Maryland (the South) and reading about racism in the news now, over 200 years later, I realize how little has really changed in race relations in the United States.

In this book, I learned about the coded letters concerning “bales of hay” and coded words like the “railroad” to facilitate communication among working slaves and free blacks. I learned what it meant to be a conductor on the Underground Railroad. I learned there were slave pens in Cambridge, Maryland. That reminded me of current-day Hispanic undocumented immigrants, many of them children, currently on the U.S. border in cages. John Bowley, Harriet’s brother-in-law, hid his family in an attic—shades of Anne Frank. I learned that Harriet Tubman had to live in Canada because it was too dangerous in the United States with her being part of the Underground Railroad. She lived in St. Catherine’s, a city I visited three years ago. I lament the fact that I am not more knowledgeable about American History.

I’m not trying to equate situations of the Underground Railroad with others who were not black slaves but also in dire situations. I’m only telling you where my mind took me while reading this book and how I realized that each of our lives is so intricately tied up with those of others in more ways than we can ever realize.

Page after page of this book had me astounded by Harriet Tubman’s strength and courage. I was in tears as this book ended. show less

Summary: "The Story of Harriet Tubman, Conductor of the Underground Railroad" is a biography about a slave named Harriet Tubman and how she became a inspiration to people around the world. Harriet was born into slavery where she was treated terribly by many different masters. One day, there was news that she would be sold to another master and have to work in a chain gang. As a result, she escaped North by herself with the help of Quakers. However, she vowed to return to Maryland and help others escape to freedom. Over the years, Harriet Tubman helped more than 300 slaves escape slavery.

Review: The main idea of this book is Harriet Tubman was a brave woman who knew in her heart she was meant to be free woman and she never let anyone show more stand in her way of becoming free. Her bravery and selflessness is what made her a conductor on the Underground Railroad. My favorite part of this book was the large amount of detail the author uses to describe the events of Harriet Tubman's life. For example, the book describes nights in Harriet's family home by saying "In the winter bitter wind blew in through the cracks between the logs. Then Minty was glad to snuggle close to her nine brothers and sisters to keep warm." The author uses great detail to help readers visualize the events. Additionally, I liked how the book included pictures which also helped readers visualize specific details described in the story. For example, the book described how Harriet Tubman had to watch her slave master's baby all night and rocked the baby to sleep. The picture helped showcase the exhausted look on Harriet's face which can help readers connect to the story. show less

My very first hero! Read in 3rd grade.

Independent Reading Level: 3rd-7th
Awards: ALA Notable Book, New York Times Outstanding Book, and Selection of the Schomburg Center's Black Liberation Reading List.

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