Under the Quilt of Night

This book has great illustrations and detail telling the story of a young boy traveling through the Underground Railroad to be freed from slavery. It is written in sections based upon what the boy is going through in each part. The author uses great detail to help the reader truly grasp what it was like to be a slave fighting for freedom in this time period. As the boy waits to continue traveling when the sun goes down the author writes, "It's hot. Sweat dribbles down my neck. Thorns rake my arms and legs." These vivid details really paint the picture for the reader and help bring the story to life. It also makes it clear how rigorous this experience was for people of all ages. It is a great book for describing the period of the Civil show more War and teaching it as well. show less

Although I am not normally the biggest fan of poetry, I really enjoyed this book. I liked how the poems were separated by different parts of the main character’s journey. This made the poem easier to read and kept my attention. I also enjoyed the narrative style of writing. It felt like you were actually there in the moment with the young girl. The writing was also very descriptive which I liked. The main message of the book was to show the young girl’s journey on the Underground Railroad and depict what a difficult and long journey this was for her. I also liked that the story had a page in the back of the book that talked briefly about how this is a fictional story, but the Underground Railroad was real.

There are three reasons I liked this book. First, the story is written in poem/verse form. This makes it easier to read but also lightens the seriousness of what the book is all about. Another thing I liked about the book is the point of view. It is told through the voice of a young runaway slave and makes this topic easier to understand and picture because it is coming from a child. One part I pictured really well was when she approaches the house to see if they hid runaways’, “Who’s there? Comes a voice. I swallow hard before I give the password. What if I am wrong? But I trust the quilt, so I say, the friend of a friend”. Lastly, I like the illustrations in this book, every detail was shown and it helped bring the words to life.

This is an account written in the first-person voice of a young runaway slave girl. Traveling late at night, she spies a quilt hanging outside a house. The quilt's center is a striking deep blue -- a sign that the people inside are willing to help her escape. Can she bravely navigate the complex world of the Underground Railroad and lead her family to freedom? The text is simple and the illustrations vivid.

This story is about a young girl who flees with her family from the place she was a slave. They use the Underground Railroad to escape to Canada. The book is separated into sections. The first is about them running away from the farm & their "master." The second is about them waiting during daytime because they have to travel by night. The next is about the little girl watching for a sign from the Underground Railroad. She sees a quilt being hung over a fence which means the house hides runaways. Then, they are hiding. They sleep at the house in a secret room and wait. They then travel and narrowly escape being caught. The last section is called Singing. The family stops at a church and friends help them with the route to Canada. The show more girl is overjoyed because she knows they are on their way to freedom.

I thought this story, although fiction, comes alive and puts you in the little girl's shoes. The young girl is telling you the story from her perspective. She is full of many emotions. She is afraid, hopeful, and optimistic. The paintings are beautiful and capture the essence of the story.

I would introduce this story during Black History Month. It would be a perfect opportunity to show the children about what the slaves faced through a child's eyes. After the story, we will make quilts out of construction paper and hang outside of the hallway throughout the month. show less

This is a fiction tale of a girl fleeing slavery using the underground railroad. Though the story is fiction it provides a very gripping account of what some runaway slaves may have gone through. The story is told in a series of poems. They are short but very powerful. This book paints a very good picture of the type of courage it must have taken to be a runaway slave. The girl and her party use the underground railroad to reach the north.

I really liked this book. Because it is written in verse form it lightens the seriousness of what the book is about. This would be a great book to read to older children during black history month or during a unit on slavery.

1.) Have a discussion about what might have been like to be on the run.

2.) show more Have an open discussion about slavery, why it was wrong, and what it might have been like to be a slave. show less

A young girl and her family, who are running to escape from slavery, know that they have found freedom, safety and their friends when they see a quilt hung over a fence.

I think this would be a great book to introduce during a discussion on slavery and civil rights. The story also uses beautiful imagery and figurative language and the illustrations helps convey the emotions felt by the little girl and her family while running to freedom.