Let My People Go: Bible Stories Told by a Freeman of Color is a 1998 book by Patricia McKissack. Set in 19th century South Carolina, it is about a freed slave, Price Jeffries, who uses Bible stories from the Old Testament to answer questions that his daughter, Charlotte, poses about the things she sees around her.

Let My People Go: Bible Stories Told by a Freeman of Color
AuthorPatricia McKissack, Frederick McKissack
IllustratorJames Ransome
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
GenreChildren's literature, Historical novel, US history
Published1998 (Atheneum Books for Young Readers)
Media typePrint (hardback, paperback)
Pages134
ISBN9780689808562
OCLC36865694

Reception edit

Booklist, in its review of Let My People Go, called it "stirring" and concluded, "With the rhythm and intimacy of the oral tradition, this is storytelling for family and group sharing and also for talking about history and our connections with the universals of the Old Testament."[1] School Library Journal found it "A masterful combination of Bible stories and African-American history."[1]

Let My People Go has also been reviewed by Publishers Weekly,[2] The Horn Book Magazine.[3] Library Media Connection,[4] Multicultural Review,[5] and Parenting.[6]

Awards edit

  • 1998 Capital Choices Noteworthy Book for Children and Teens[7]
  • 1998 CCBC Choice[8]
  • 2000 Anne Izard Storytellers' Award - winner[9]

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Let my people go: Bible stories told by a freeman of color to his daughter Charlotte, in Charleston, South Carolina, 1806-16". Buffalo and Erie County Public Library. Retrieved March 9, 2017.
  2. ^ "Let My People Go: Bible Stories Told By A Freeman Of Color". Publishers Weekly. PWxyz LLC. September 28, 1998. Retrieved March 9, 2017. Readers will likely return to this extraordinary volume again and again, knowing that the answers to life's painful questions reside in the stories of faith that have comforted others for thousands of years.
  3. ^ Run Away Home. Atheneum Books for Young Readers. 1998. ISBN 978-0-689-80856-2. OCLC 36865694. Retrieved March 9, 2017. Though somewhat elaborate, the framework is skillfully set up, and the stories of African-American slavery in the early 1800s and retellings of Old Testament stories are relevantly paired and well told. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  4. ^ "Let my people go: Bible stories told by a freeman of color to his daughter Charlotte, in Charleston, South Carolina, 1806-16: Reviews". catalog.wccls.org. Retrieved March 9, 2017. A compelling book to read and enjoy. Highly Recommended.
  5. ^ "Let My People Go: Bible Stories Told by a Freeman of Color (Book)". Multicultural Review. 8 (2). GP Subscription Publications: 111. June 1999. Retrieved March 9, 2017.[dead link]
  6. ^ "Bible Books for Kids". Parenting. 12 (10). Bonnier Group: 99. December 1998. Retrieved March 9, 2017.[dead link]
  7. ^ "Capital Choices Noteworthy Book for Children and Teens: 1998 Books for Ages Ten to Fourteen" (PDF). capitolchoices.org. Capital Choices. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  8. ^ Kathleen T. Horning; Ginny Moore Kruse; Megan Schliesman (1999). CCBC Choices 1998: Fiction for Children (PDF). Friends of the CCBC Inc. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  9. ^ "Anne Izard Storytellers' Choice Award Winner" (PDF). westchesterlibraryassociation.org. Westchester Library Association. p. 16. Retrieved March 12, 2017.