Song of Freedom

Evocative images and heart wrenching text effectively portray the heroic struggle to escape the horrors of slavery in these two picture book retellings of The Underground Railroad. Both books feature the image of a blacksmith, forging iron under the pounding pressure of a hammer and the fiery intensity of the flame.
​Hammer and fire. The Underground Railroad. Freedom’s Song

Voices from the Underground Railroad
​by Kay Winters ill by Larry Day

Young Jeb knows that the time has come. He and his sister Mattie must keep the promise that they made to their mother and depart from Maryland, leaving the only life they know and traveling north in search of freedom. Jeb, hired as a blacksmith, and Mattie, a house slave, vow to remain together as they plot their escape from an impending slave auction. Under cover of night the pair find sanctuary in safe houses and eventually board a steamship headed for New Bedford, where their older brother Ben resides.
Voices from the Underground Railroad is told through alternating voices of: Jeb, Mattie, conductors who offer protection, slave catchers, and an irate master and his wife. Each unique narrative is a personal perspective. The compelling points of view would make an excellent Readers Theater.
​Kay Winters includes a wealth of additional information: end papers featuring a map of the children's route from Maryland to Massachusetts, Historical Notes, Author's Note, and References.

Art created by Larry Day brings emotions to the forefront with expressive faces. Uncertainty, fear, smoldering hostility, rage, and ultimately joy illuminate the text. I was particularly drawn to images of the two siblings. Mattie reaches out to Jeb and he takes her hands, guiding her into a boat and later assisting her in boarding a train. I love these reminders of mutual trust.
The charming little string of ducks, waddling across the acknowledgement page echo the theme of a family journey. Nice touch Mr. Day!

Blacksmith's Song
Elizabeth Van Steenwyk ill by Anna Rich

Elizabeth Van Steenwyk imagines a skillful blacksmith, using his hammer to tap out coded messages for enslaved people waiting and hoping for the opportunity to escape a life of servitude. Those attempting to flee from the evils of slavery are determined to head for freedom. Their flight is aided by brave people of conscience known as conductors. Because assisting escaped slaves is illegal, communicating and helping slaves with travel and shelter was of necessity a carefully guarded secret. Hence the need for coded messages. Blacksmith's Song rings with a fierce determination. 

Elizabeth Van Steenwyk postulates on the possibility of communication via the rhythm of a blacksmith's hammer. Here, the son of a blacksmith learns the rhythms, handed down from his father and his father's father. He practices at the forge, skillfully learning to relay important information to those making the difficult journey. He waits for his chance to pound out rhythms signaling the opportunity for a safe escape.

Anna Rich illustrates the text with somber oil paintings, bringing prominence to the terrors awaiting those who attempted escape and the overwhelming desire for freedom. She portrays most of the enslaved individuals with faces in shadow. This is highly symbolic. In presence of white slave owners, identity is obscured and ignored. These images serve as a powerful reinforcement to the pain as well as the hope experienced by those who sought for freedom.

Most enslaved people were denied a formal education. None-the-less, they brilliantly devised their own methods of communication. Code words, astronomy, visual symbols, and music were some of the means of expression used to guide travelers on the treacherous road to freedom. Code words and a star constellation are featured in Follow the Drinking Gourd.

Bonus: Meet Master Ironworker Philip Simmons

​"Philip Simmons is a poet of ironwork. His ability to endow raw iron with pure lyricism is known and admired throughout, not only in South Carolina, but as evidenced by his many honors and awards, he is recognized in all of America."

Philip Simmons was a remarkable blacksmith from Charlotte, North Carolina. At an early age he was fascinated with the process of forging iron. He worked for seventy-seven years. Over time his work evolved from making functional pieces to creating works of art. Learn more about his life and his legacy of ironwork.