Product Description
Eleven-year-old Elijah is the first child born into freedom in Buxton, Canada, a settlement of runaway slaves just over the border from Detroit. He’s best known in his hometown as the boy who made a memorable impression on Frederick Douglass. But things change when a former slave steals money from Elijah’s friend, who has been saving to buy his family out of captivity in the South. Elijah embarks on a dangerous journey to America in pursuit of the thief, and he discovers firsthand the unimaginable horrors of the life his parents fled—a life from which he’ll always be free, if he can find the courage to get back home.
|
|
 CPC at his best! ( biblioagape )
As a middle school literature teacher, I've ALWAYS been a fan of Curtis. Elijah is some of his best work,although reminiscent of Watsons in language usage~~~not a bad thing, it helped my students make connections. Curtis has a gift for taking serious subject matter and making it palitable and even humorous for adolescents. Once he grabs your attention with his character development, he takes you places you'd never go otherwise. Good job!
|
Read along for Book Club
I wanted to make this high level book available to my fifth graders who are studying the Civil War, but was concerned about the dialect being difficult for some of them to read. I purchased books for each student and then purchased the CD so they could follow along as the professionally recorded CD played enabling them to understand the "foreign" words. They love being able to see the printed word as well as hear the intent of the author. They are able to flag parts of the book as they "read" along. It is making this book club a much richer experience for them.
|
It is, as always, an honor and a pleasure to lose oneself in one more mesmerizing tale from Curtis
Elijah has a good life in Buxton, the Canadian settlement that is a refuge for runaway slaves and their children. He and his best friend, Cooter, go to school, attend church, do chores and think up elaborate pranks, such as putting a huge "toady-frog" in his mother's knitting bag. Of course, sometimes the pranks get turned on them. Elijah's mother is able to exact revenge; a town visitor known as the Right Reverend Deacon Doctor Zephariah Connerly the Third, or "the Preacher," preys on Elijah's fear of snakes with wild tales about vicious rolling hoop snakes.
The truth is, Elijah is sensitive. His mother calls him "fra-gile." Riding horses terrifies him, and it doesn't take much for him to cry. When he practices his special skill of killing fish by throwing rocks at them, the Preacher easily talks him out of much of his catch. Elijah's sensitivity is put to the test when he must deliver sad news to a neighbor. Will he be able to fully realize what the moment means while not breaking down?
The story takes another deeper, darker turn when one freed slave sends a man to buy his family's freedom. When the situation goes awry, Elijah finds himself on a quest to set things right. In his attempt, he faces devastating circumstances and decisions. His actions will prove his mettle. Is he up to the task, or is he too fragile to cope?
Elijah's coming-of-age story is a powerful page-turner, full of humor, adventure, heartbreaking sorrow and buoyant promise. It also introduces the reader to a fascinating (and little known) time and place in our history. Loose threads are not woven together into a tidy ending, yet the climax serves up a satisfying uplift of hope and triumph.
There are storytellers, and then there are Storytellers; it's no surprise that Christopher Paul Curtis, winner of numerous awards for his fiction (including the prestigious Newbery Medal), qualifies for that capital letter. It is, as always, an honor and a pleasure to lose oneself in one more mesmerizing tale from him.
--- Reviewed by Terry Miller Shannon
|
 Slang difficult to read and understand
This book is required reading for my rising 6th grader. Even though she is an advanced language arts student, she found the slang difficult to read and understand. Definitely not a book she enjoyed reading and would have never finished if it was not required for school. When asked about the book, she instantly focuses on the difficulty of reading the slang and the actual story is secondary.
|
 Just, no... ( 4amandaf )
The thing I didn't like about Elijah of Buxton is that I was having trouble with the slang... I understand that it added kind of a uniqeness to the book, but what's the use if you can't even READ the book? So that was a little bit bothersome. And also, there's not as much dialogue, (which for my prefrance, I enjoy lots of dialogue) and Elijah sometimes rambles a little bit throughout the book, which can sometimes get boring and endless.
I had to read this book for book club, and I ended up just skimming it, because I just really didn't like it... This is only my opinion. The one good thing about the book though, is that it's religious, and sends a very positive message to stay strong in tough times.
|
|
View Larger
Add to Cart 
