Letters From a Slave Girl

Jacobs, Harriet, Letters From a Slave Girl, (Scribner, 1992, Aladdin paperback, 1996 ISBN:0-689-80015-0). Jacket illustration copyright ©1992 by Todd L. W. Doney.

One of the books I chose was Letters From a Slave Girl, the story of Harriet Jacobs, by Mary E. Lyons. I liked the format of the book, how it tells a story through letters and stories of Harriet Jacobs. Nothing really surprised me much, these were very harsh times during slavery but we study this in our history classes. It’s amazing what she went through, how she thought about escape, and how she hid for seven years, thinking about escape gave her hope and something to live for. Harriet made it through the worst of times during the 1800’s, the letters begin in 1825 and end in 1897 when she died, at the age of 83, I hope I make it that long. The way the author portrayed the issues during this time period was very personal and meaningful coming from the perspective of Harriet, in letters that were written. I actually thought the things she said and how she described these times of slavery was pretty nice, compared to what could have been said. She could have bashed the white people and really said some bad things, but for the most part it was mellow, just like reading a journal or a diary. The story left me with a couple “I wonders.” It says a biographer wrote this, I wonder how accurate these letters are, if they were altered, and if any information was left out. I wonder how difficult it must have been to teach herself how to write, especially when it wasn’t allowed. Harriet wasn’t an ordinary slave; she could read and write, I wonder if having that knowledge helped her decide to escape, because she knew she could survive having these tools. Overall, a very tough time in history, I think the book did a great job giving the reader a good feel of what is was like. I enjoyed this style, reading the letters and reading everyday events and stories, I think it’s a great way to express detail, thoughts, and emotions. This book could help students learn about slavery, the impact one race has on another, and what times were like during the 1800’s. This could be connected with talking about the expansion of the U.S and how people migrated, when transportation was difficult. Students could compare and contrast the life of someone their age during the 1800’s with their life today. This book would be better appropriate for upper elementary students and I think background knowledge should be built before reading, so they have a better understanding of the time the story takes place.