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Sojourner Truth: All Men (and Women) are Created Equal - The bold speeches of Sojourner Truth and her passionate fight for freedom and equality were instrumental in bringing about important changes in the laws and social attitudes, so it makes sense that young people should learn about her life and background. This biography does a wonderful job of telling her story honestly and respectfully, and with great story-telling style.
The Prologue introduces the feisty former slave speaking up at a convention for women's rights in 1851, with the phrase that many recognize - "I have plowed and planted and gather into barns, and no man could have done as much. And ain't I a woman?" And after that intriguing introduction, her story begins at the beginning - with a child born into slavery and her early years. Belle, as she was called by her parents, was tall and strong from an early age, and was passed from one owner to another throughout her childhood and teen years. Some were relatively kind and some were horribly cruel. Belle was given in marriage to another slave, and had four daughters and a son. Freedom was promised and then snatched away from Belle, and finally she ran away. Through the kindness of a Quaker family and various other people, she found work, built a new life, and was eventually able to reconnect with the children she'd left behind.
Her spiritual journey is told in the book as well, and it had as many ups and downs as her quest for freedom. She became a Christian and believed she had received a mission from God - to speak up for the needy and the oppressed, so she decided she needed a new name. She called herself Sojourner after a verse in Psalms about being a stranger and sojourner, and she took the last name Truth, saying that she had only one master at that point - God, whose name is Truth.
Sojourner traveled all over the United States, speaking in churches and many gatherings and doing all she could to end slavery and suffering, and later in support of equal rights for women. She met, influenced, and worked with many great leaders of her day, including Frederick Douglass, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and President Abraham Lincoln.
Although written for a younger audience in an easy-read style, this biography was an inspiring and interesting page-turner for me as an adult. I learned a lot about this great lady who fought tirelessly for freedom through her many personal trials and against great odds.
From the publisher:
They're bold. They're fearless. They're adventurous. They have a faith that can move mountains. They're women of courage.
This series of easy-read biographies celebrates the lives of women who lived lives committed to changing the world for better. What set them apart? The willingness to live courageously for Christ, even in the midst of impossible situations.
In Sojourner Truth, you will meet the tall, powerful former slave and abolitionist whose biblically-based call for equality -- for both African Americans and women -- secured her a place in American history.
Wherever she appeared, the wise words and electrifying presence of Sojourner Truth brought audiences to their feet. The lengthy shadow cast by her near-six-foot frame and the challenge to injustice issued by her stinging speeches have secured her a place in American history -- a place as a woman of courage.
Get inspired by her story, celebrate her legacy, and learn that God can use each of us for mighty things . . . if we have courage.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing and was under no obligation to post a review.
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