Freewater
- Downloads：2936
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-02-18 01:21:53
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Amina Luqman-Dawson
- ISBN：0316056618
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
Debut author Amina Luqman-Dawson pens a lyrical， accessible historical middle-grade novel about two enslaved children’s escape from a plantation and the many ways they find freedom。
Under the cover of night， twelve-year-old Homer flees Southerland Plantation with his little sister Ada， unwillingly leaving their beloved mother behind。 Much as he adores her and fears for her life， Homer knows there’s no turning back， not with the overseer on their trail。 Through tangled vines， secret doorways， and over a sky bridge， the two find a secret community called Freewater， deep in the swamp。
In this society created by formerly enslaved people and some freeborn children， Homer finds new friends， almost forgetting where he came from。 But when he learns of a threat that could destroy Freewater， he crafts a plan to find his mother and help his new home。
Deeply inspiring and loosely based on the history of maroon communities in the South， this is a striking tale of survival， adventure， friendship， and courage。
Under the cover of night， twelve-year-old Homer flees Southerland Plantation with his little sister Ada， unwillingly leaving their beloved mother behind。 Much as he adores her and fears for her life， Homer knows there’s no turning back， not with the overseer on their trail。 Through tangled vines， secret doorways， and over a sky bridge， the two find a secret community called Freewater， deep in the swamp。
In this society created by formerly enslaved people and some freeborn children， Homer finds new friends， almost forgetting where he came from。 But when he learns of a threat that could destroy Freewater， he crafts a plan to find his mother and help his new home。
Deeply inspiring and loosely based on the history of maroon communities in the South， this is a striking tale of survival， adventure， friendship， and courage。
Reviews
Meredith Burton
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Freewater is historical fiction at its best。 The characters are complex and fully realized。 Homer's 'invisibility，" and his growth as he learns about the maroon community and discovers his own worth is so well done。 THe author illustrates resistance to oppression with the use of her young protagonists。 I loved how the action took place both at the SOutherland plantation and in Freewater irself。 My favorite character was Sanzi， the freeborn child of Mrs。 Light。 SHe so longs to be a hero and to pr Freewater is historical fiction at its best。 The characters are complex and fully realized。 Homer's 'invisibility，" and his growth as he learns about the maroon community and discovers his own worth is so well done。 THe author illustrates resistance to oppression with the use of her young protagonists。 I loved how the action took place both at the SOutherland plantation and in Freewater irself。 My favorite character was Sanzi， the freeborn child of Mrs。 Light。 SHe so longs to be a hero and to prove herself。 I loved the contrast between her and her sister Juna。 Billy was also an excellent character。 HIs shyness but ultimate strength was so wonderfully portrayed。 Nora， the daughter of the plantation owners was outstanding as well。 Her selective mutism and her longing to help the woman who raised her was so complex and beautiful。 It was also good to find that none of the characters were flat。 AN example of this fact is one of the slaves， who is called Turner or Two Shoes。 The book explores the brutality of slavery without engaging in excessive violence or unnecessary descriptions of exploitation。 Even so， Luqman-Dawson illustrates the horrific predicaments the slaves endured as well as providing beautiful scenes of freedom and coexistance in the community of Freewater。All the characters had significant roles to play in the story， and I loved how there was not a false step in the narrative。 The plot points were woven together into a vibrant tapestry。 The book is fast-paced with short chapters from multiple perspectives。 Readers' interests will be maintained throughout the novel。 I could not put it down。Luqman-Dawson has written a riveting tale about the maroon communities of free individuals who resisted oppression and made a difference in the world。 I learned so much from this novel and thoroughly recommend it。 This is one of the best historical fiction books that I have read in some time。 Happy reading， and God bless you all。 。。。more
Hope
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Well this is going to be a book I push in everyone's face。 Hard to imagine another middle grade book topping it for me this year。 Absolutely stellar in every way。 Well this is going to be a book I push in everyone's face。 Hard to imagine another middle grade book topping it for me this year。 Absolutely stellar in every way。 。。。more
Amanda June Uhl
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I previewed for my eight year old daughter and am excited for her to read it。
Audra
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This is a story of resistance and bravery， as well as an honest look at the brutality of those who enslaved Black individuals in America。 It does an excellent job of being real about history while also being developmentally appropriate for the middle grade audience。 I did， however， struggle with the multiple perspectives and keeping track of each of the threads of the story， making it difficult to truly get lost in the world。 Others who love multiple POVs may feel differently。
Gabriele Davis
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A joy to read！Set in the swamplands of the South and rich with lyrical language， engaging characters and a riveting plot， this thoughtfully rendered story gives voice to a little-known part of Black history。 A compelling and empowering exploration of Black resistance during the time of African enslavement。 Highly recommended for middle grade readers。
Paige
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Disclaimer: I received this e-book from the publisher。 Thanks！ All opinions are my own。Book: FreewaterAuthor: Amina Luqman-DawsonBook Series: StandaloneRating: 4/5Diversity: Black MC and charactersRecommended For。。。: middle grade readers， historical fiction， slavery， plantationsPublication Date: February 1， 2022Genre: MG Historical FictionRecommended Age: 12+ （slavery， violence， slight gore， scary moments， slight allusion to rape， romance， religion， child abuse， drug allusion， drug abuse allusio Disclaimer: I received this e-book from the publisher。 Thanks！ All opinions are my own。Book: FreewaterAuthor: Amina Luqman-DawsonBook Series: StandaloneRating: 4/5Diversity: Black MC and charactersRecommended For。。。: middle grade readers， historical fiction， slavery， plantationsPublication Date: February 1， 2022Genre: MG Historical FictionRecommended Age: 12+ （slavery， violence， slight gore， scary moments， slight allusion to rape， romance， religion， child abuse， drug allusion， drug abuse allusion）Explanation of CWs: The book discusses slavery， child abuse， and has scenes of running away from an overseer and allusions to drugs and drug abuse as well as rape to the mother character。 There are some very scary moments in the book that might be upsetting to some readers。 There is some very slight romance。 There is also religion mentioned throughout the book。Publisher: Little， Brown Books for Young ReadersPages: 416Synopsis: Under the cover of night， twelve-year-old Homer flees Southerland Plantation with his little sister Ada， unwillingly leaving their beloved mother behind。 Much as he adores her and fears for her life， Homer knows there’s no turning back， not with the overseer on their trail。 Through tangled vines， secret doorways， and over a sky bridge， the two find a secret community called Freewater， deep in the swamp。In this society created by formerly enslaved people and some freeborn children， Homer finds new friends， almost forgetting where he came from。 But when he learns of a threat that could destroy Freewater， he crafts a plan to find his mother and help his new home。Deeply inspiring and loosely based on the history of maroon communities in the South， this is a striking tale of survival， adventure， friendship， and courage。Review: This was a good read。 It is a deeply profound book about a child who is living and escapes from slavery。 The book was wonderfully well paced and plotted。 The book had amazing character development and world building。 The book did well to explain slavery and some of the horrors that Black people saw during slavery to a young audience。 I feel like this book should be part of a teaching curriculum to show younger children and lay the groundwork for further understanding of the enslavement period of the United States。The only issue I really had with the book is that I thought it was hard to get into at first and that I needed the synopsis to fully understand what was happening in the book at first。Verdict: It was well done！ Highly recommend！ 。。。more
Cece
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Freewater is an extraordinary piece of writing。Debut author Amina Luqman-Dawson’s story is one that shines bright in the resistance of enslaved people and shares a neglected part of American history with young readers。 And her well researched fiction gives readers a landscape of Sothern swamps and those who fled for its safety。 She paints these scenes in bright， bold， and vibrant colors filling it with indelible characters readers will root for and remember。And the characters will have young rea Freewater is an extraordinary piece of writing。Debut author Amina Luqman-Dawson’s story is one that shines bright in the resistance of enslaved people and shares a neglected part of American history with young readers。 And her well researched fiction gives readers a landscape of Sothern swamps and those who fled for its safety。 She paints these scenes in bright， bold， and vibrant colors filling it with indelible characters readers will root for and remember。And the characters will have young readers fully engaged。 Each character leaps off the page fully formed。 Having a unique voice， as well as an inner strength and drive to take risks， even when they are scary。 The changing points of view added to the richness of the story telling， moving from one character to the other， in tandem with the pulsing beat of the story。Balancing truths and the realities of enslavement with hope and courage， Luqman-Dawson eloquently crafts prose that at times have these intense moments， yet conveys a powerful message about courage， the bonds of family， and the will to survive。A must read。Visit my blog for my Blog Tour Post and how to grab a copy of this incredible book。Thank you to Little， Brown Books For Young Readers for the advance copy for review。Blog|Instagram|KoFi 。。。more
Jennifer
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Beautiful book based in history。 Characters are so vivid。 I couldn’t put it down。 Great for adults too！！
Susan
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A heart-stopping， heartrending window， via masterful storytelling， on a little-known subgroup of slavery times: escapees from their shackles--men， women， and children of all ages--making an unlikely hideout and self-sufficient free community together not in the expected northeast U。S。 or in Canada， but in the dankest， most inhospitable depths of the Great Dismal Swamp of the South dangerously near the plantations that abused them， and for years on end of backwoods survival。 The resourcefulness a A heart-stopping， heartrending window， via masterful storytelling， on a little-known subgroup of slavery times: escapees from their shackles--men， women， and children of all ages--making an unlikely hideout and self-sufficient free community together not in the expected northeast U。S。 or in Canada， but in the dankest， most inhospitable depths of the Great Dismal Swamp of the South dangerously near the plantations that abused them， and for years on end of backwoods survival。 The resourcefulness and focus of even the youngest and newest residents of Freewater， as well as their diverse elders， are awesome to behold。 While Homer， 12， and his young sister Ada are the first characters we meet， there are a whole host of memorable friends and foes， all skillfully fleshed out， who make Freewater--and the plantation owners and slave-catchers who are intent on recapturing them--so thrilling to experience。 Freewater is chockablock with larger-than-life heroes， but to realize that such courage is as accurately exhibited by Ms。 Luqman-Dawson fictionally as occurred in real life。 This historical novel should be on every middle-school reading list across the country--brava， Ms。 L-D！ 。。。more
Tracey Vince
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First off I like to say a big thank you to TBR Tours & Beyond for allowing me another chance to be on one of their wonderful tours and to the Publishers for sending me a Netgalley Arc。Well for one I do not pick up many historical fiction and that includes Middle Grade but there was something about Freewater which intrigued me and so I was delighted when I got approved。Amina managed to get me hook， line and sinker after reading the first few pages that I knew I was onto something special。 I loved First off I like to say a big thank you to TBR Tours & Beyond for allowing me another chance to be on one of their wonderful tours and to the Publishers for sending me a Netgalley Arc。Well for one I do not pick up many historical fiction and that includes Middle Grade but there was something about Freewater which intrigued me and so I was delighted when I got approved。Amina managed to get me hook， line and sinker after reading the first few pages that I knew I was onto something special。 I loved the different POV's and you always knew which was POV you were reading about as it was in the main chapter header。 Out of all the POV's my favourite was Sanzi as she was so sassy but yet had so many flaws to her character。 I also loved the short chapters it gave the story a huge momentum which worked amazingly well towards the end。 One thing that really hit me was that the consequences of each character's actions not only could change them but for all those around them and that must of been huge for them。I am not going to delve anymore into the book but I would say is read the author's notes。 This should be a mandatory read in schools even in the UK where I am from I think this would be a great book to be discussed about。 So I am rating Freewater 5 stars 。。。more
Vincent
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"Freewater" （a Goodreads free book） is a good solid YA Historical Novel。 It does really call for the suspension of disbelief for scale not substance。 I would recommend that any reader first read the Author's note to put the story into a historical perspective。 Certainly， an engrossing and enjoyable read about the adventures （trials） of young， escaped slaves。 It mixes realistic crises with plenty of literary license。 "Freewater" （a Goodreads free book） is a good solid YA Historical Novel。 It does really call for the suspension of disbelief for scale not substance。 I would recommend that any reader first read the Author's note to put the story into a historical perspective。 Certainly， an engrossing and enjoyable read about the adventures （trials） of young， escaped slaves。 It mixes realistic crises with plenty of literary license。 。。。more
Shifa S
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I requested this ARC on netgalley when I saw the author’s Muslim-sounding name （my daughters name actually😊！）。 I don’t really know if the author is Muslim or not， and tbh， I don’t really mind either way。 This book was so amazingly written， POWERFUL， and educating that I am so glad I read it and I think its a genuine must-have for everyone！！！Genre: Upper MG Historical FictionAges: 11/12-15Available: make sure to preorder before the Feb release dateScreening: slight allusion to the Master being th I requested this ARC on netgalley when I saw the author’s Muslim-sounding name （my daughters name actually😊！）。 I don’t really know if the author is Muslim or not， and tbh， I don’t really mind either way。 This book was so amazingly written， POWERFUL， and educating that I am so glad I read it and I think its a genuine must-have for everyone！！！Genre: Upper MG Historical FictionAges: 11/12-15Available: make sure to preorder before the Feb release dateScreening: slight allusion to the Master being the rapist of the mother。 Crushes。 Prayers and Thanks given to nature/tree/swamp。 Abuse/beating/lashes。 Music/instruments， eating pig。 Allusion to drugs in form of poppy flower and a purposeful drugging as part of an escape plan。 （There is no specific faith actually mentioned in the book， and I found it pretty appropriate and very clean for the recommended age）In the swamps of the American south， theres a small community where slaves are free。 Homer and his sister Ada are running from the plantation with their mom when they stumble upon someone who takes them to this place: FreeWater。 However， one problem: Homer’s mother is caught and taken back to the plantation， and its all “Homer’s fault”。 At Freewater， Homer meets Sanzi， Billy， Ferdinand， and Juna （who all have their own stories and chapters）。 When Homer decides to go back for his mother and best friend Ana， his friends go with him。 And at the plantation， these brave children face all their fears…（I won’t spoil it because honestly it was so well written and the reader must experience it on their own。）I feel like this book needs to be required reading for upper elementary and middle school students。 Not only does it paint the picture of the injustice of slavery in the history of the American South and how it broke families and spirits， but it also showcases the resistance and strength of Black Americans。 The free swamp community of FreeWater is actually based on a truth of real historical free communities at the time and the author’s note at the end explains this well。 Honestly， this story is inspiration and educating and it was truly written masterfully。 A must have！ 。。。more
Ms。 Yingling
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E ARC provided by Edelweiss PlusHomer and his sister Ada are enslaved people on the Crumb's Southerland Plantation。 Their mother， Rose， works in the house with Nora， the daughter of the owners， who has a strawberry birthmark on her face and has chosen not to speak， so is largely ignored by her family。 When their mother planned to run away North， Homer did not want to leave his friend， Anna， behind， so the mother went back for her。 When the mother did not return， Homer decided to go North with hi E ARC provided by Edelweiss PlusHomer and his sister Ada are enslaved people on the Crumb's Southerland Plantation。 Their mother， Rose， works in the house with Nora， the daughter of the owners， who has a strawberry birthmark on her face and has chosen not to speak， so is largely ignored by her family。 When their mother planned to run away North， Homer did not want to leave his friend， Anna， behind， so the mother went back for her。 When the mother did not return， Homer decided to go North with his sister alone。 They were chased by Stokes， the overseer， but managed to get deep into the swamp， where they are aided by Suleman and taken to a hidden community made up of people who have also escaped plantations。 Sanzi， a young girl who has been raised in this community， welcomes the new children， but is interested in how they could help provide for their tools or supplies for Freewater。 Back at Southerland， everyone is preparing for a wedding。 Anna and Nora both have plans for escape， some of which involve trying to use an herbal elixir to sedate the attendees。 Homer also has a plan to go back to the plantation and to use the event to help his mother escape， and Suleman and Sanzi agree to help， but mainly for their own reasons。 With bounty hunters clearing land near the Freewater community and sending groups with dogs to search for runaways， will Homer， his family， and his new community be able to withstand so many threats？Strengths: I had never heard of communities of former enslaved people living in the Great Dismal Swamp， and it's always good to see unknown history highlighted。 There is enough description of life on the plantation and the poor treatment of the residents that even students who are not familiar with this time period as they should be will get a better understanding of why communities like Freewater existed， since living in the middle of a swamp was not a pleasant experience。 Homer's dedication to his family， and his determined attitude to escape and make a life for himself and his sister will resonate with young readers who want to work against injustice。 Weaknesses: Nora was an interesting character， but there were so many plot threads going on that her experiences could have been minimized。 The treatment of white people who were different was interesting to see， however， and I could see why the author included this character。 416 pages is just a bit long for most middle grade readers。 What I really think: This is an interesting fictionalized version of historical communities that have not been discussed in middle grade literature， and about which little is known。 The author does a good job of creating a likely historical world and exploring the different circumstances that would have driven people there。 A good addition to books like Christopher Paul Curtis' The Madman of Piney Woods and Rhodes' Sugar， both of which deal with historical effects of slavery but are written by Black authors and do not center the white experience， as so many titles from years past do。 。。。more
Julie
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With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy in return for an honest review。A well researched historical fiction middle grade book told from multiple POVs， bringing the resistance story of enslaved people to life。 I think it's important to read the Author's Note at the end of the book for additional historical context and details。As a note my rating of this book is 4。5 stars but rounded up to 5 and not down to 4。 I thoroughly enjoyed the story， but at 416 pages it's on the longer With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy in return for an honest review。A well researched historical fiction middle grade book told from multiple POVs， bringing the resistance story of enslaved people to life。 I think it's important to read the Author's Note at the end of the book for additional historical context and details。As a note my rating of this book is 4。5 stars but rounded up to 5 and not down to 4。 I thoroughly enjoyed the story， but at 416 pages it's on the longer side of middle grade books。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Freewater
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Freewater&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Freewater&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0