Starred review from July 20, 2015
Born a slave, George Moses Horton taught himself to read, memorizing the poems he composed until he later learned to write. Hand-lettered excerpts of Horton’s writing amplify his successes and setbacks as he gains a reputation as a poet among students at the University of North Carolina, to whom he sold produce. Horton’s poems drew additional attention and were published (“Needless to say, it was a dangerous time for Horton, whose poems often protested slavery,” Tate writes in an afterword), but freedom remained elusive until the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, when Horton was 66 years old. Tate’s mixed-media illustrations glow with bright greens and yellows, radiating a warmth, hope, and promise that echo this stirring biography’s closing message: “Words loosened the chains of bondage long before his last day as a slave.” Ages 6–10. Agent: Caryn Wiseman, Andrea Brown Literary Agency.
Starred review from July 1, 2015
Gr 2-5-This picture book biography of poet George Moses Horton (1798-1884), a slave and the first African American poet to be published in the South, recounts his fascinating long life and masterly way with words. Tate's distinctive illustrations feature gently curving horizons, bucolic washes of color, and figures with oversize heads and stylized, expressive faces. The illustrations and the accessible, lyrical text spare readers from the full force of slavery's brutality: enslaved people are shown as ragged but resilient, Horton's forced labor in the fields is genteelly called "disagreeable," and the scene of a slave revolt is bloodless. Tate integrates historical context into the narrative, for instance, describing how prominent abolitionists tried to help Horton buy his freedom or how his business writing love poems for hire folded because his customers enlisted in the Confederate army. Nevertheless, the focus remains on Horton and his emotional journey: triumph at his first publication; heartbreak when he was sold from his family; joy and contentment in his old age when he was, at last, free. Several of Horton's verses appear throughout the book, and back matter includes an extensive author's note and source list. VERDICT A lovely introduction to an inspirational American poet.-Sarah Stone, San Francisco Public Library
Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
Starred review from June 1, 2015
Tate paints a portrait of a North Carolina man who pursued his passion for language through long years of enslavement. Nothing about the life of a slave could truly be deemed "lucky," but George Horton was fortunate to live where he did. When he was growing up, literacy was not yet against the law for slaves. Fascinated by the power of words, Horton taught himself to read and began composing verses. His owner eventually allowed him to live in nearby Chapel Hill and work as a writer. His earnings were not his own, and he deeply felt the pain of his circumstances, but writing poems and living among educated people was better than the back-breaking labor most slaves performed. Straightforward, accessible text covers the basic facts and evokes, albeit in an understated way, the hardships Horton faced. Created in mixed media, including gouache, pencil, ink, and digital, luminous illustrations provide context and convey emotion. Double-page spreads, insets, and vignettes show George as he ages and moves from the rural life of his childhood to town and, for a brief period, out West. While the author justifiably bemoans the disproportionate number of titles about African-Americans that focus on slavery, his decision to illuminate this remarkable man's life offers a new perspective with remarkable clarity. (bibliography, author's note, acknowledgements) (Picture book/biography. 5-8)
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October 15, 2015
Grades 2-4 George Horton, an enslaved person living in early-nineteenth-century North Carolina, taught himself to read by listening to white children recite the alphabet and puzzling through an old spelling book. He could not write, but he began composing poetry and memorizing his work. Sent by his master to sell produce at the University of North Carolina, he started sharing his poetry with the students, who commissioned him to write poems for their sweethearts. Though still enslaved, Horton eventually learned to write and published his work. Although his master never let him purchase his freedom, he felt that words loosened the chains of bondage long before his last day as a slave. Tate's full-color mixed-media illustrations are slightly cartoonish, which helps leaven the serious subject matter and effectively portrays Horton's love of language, while frequent quotations from Horton's poems keep his voice a constant presence. Though large blocks of text make this better suited to more experienced readers, the ample historical context and moving story will help children better understand the antebellum period.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)
September 1, 2015
Young people may have heard of Langston Hughes's poetry and Booker T. Washington's quest for literacy, but they most likely have never heard of George Moses Horton, who taught himself to read and compose poetry, and who lived as a slave in North Carolina until he was sixty-six years old. Tate tells Horton's story, omitting none of the sadness (he is sent away from his family at the age of seventeen to serve his master's son) but still making the story accessible to the young reader and listener. Horton's story is uplifting: he teaches himself to read from a tattered old spelling book; collects words and phrases from sermons, Bible verses, and songs; and eventually learns about poetry from reading the newspaper. When he finds an audience at the University of North Carolina, where he sells fruits and vegetables on the weekends, he becomes a paid poet, delivering love poems aloud and finally learning to write from a professor's wife (herself a published author) who appreciates his work. The illustrationsgoauche, ink, and pencilare as straightforward as the text but pack the appropriate emotional punch. Young readers may need an adult intermediarya classroom teacher, perhapsin order to understand the historical context, but Tate tells a compelling story for any age. Lengthy and interesting back matter adds much for the reader who wants to know more about this poet and the times in which he lived. robin l. smith
(Copyright 2015 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)