Elijah of Buxton was written by Christopher Paul Curtis in 2007 and received a Newbery Honor in 2008. Elijah of Buxton is about a boy who is the firstborn free child in the Canadian settlement of Buxton, settled by free and escaped slaves. After his friend is double crossed by the town preacher, Elijah goes with the friend to help him get the money back he has been saving to buy is family into freedom. Elijah has never encountered anything as horrific as what he sees on the Underground Railroad in America.
I feel this book should be in every school library, aside from the fact that EVERY Christopher Paul Curtis book should be there, because Elijah is so relatable to students of his age. This coming of age story is what heroes are made of. Curtis is a master at researching his books and the historical aspects of this story are so educational. Elijah’s story is just an added bonus to keep the reader hanging on every page. Read it…enough said!
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