A biography of the ninteenth-century woman who escaped slavery and helped many other slaves get to freedom on the Underground Railroad.

The story follows Hetty "Handful" Grimke, a Charleston slave, and Sarah, the daughter of the wealthy Grimke family. The novel begins on Sarah's eleventh birthday, when she is given ownership over Handful, who is to be her handmaid, and follows the next thirty-five years of their lives. Inspired in part by the historical figure of Sarah Grimke (a feminist, suffragist and, importantly, an abolitionist), the author allows herself to go beyond the record...

"The abolitionist movement existed alongside slavery in the US from the beginning. Learn about the movement's history, prominent abolitionists, and how they used tactics from powerful rhetoric to direct, disruptive action to help end slavery"-- Provided by publisher.

"In addition to slave uprisings and escapes on the Underground Railroad, enslaved people also resisted their mistreatment through small acts in their everyday lives. Discover the many forms of resistance to slavery"-- Provided by publisher.

Traces Frederick Douglass's journey from slavery to international renown as writer and lecturer.

"Known in his day as the "Father of Abolitionism," Reverend John Rankin is one of the greatest heroes previously lost to history. Sitting high above the small community of Ripley, Ohio, a lantern shone in the front window of a small, red brick home at night. It was a signal to slaves in Kentucky--a beacon of liberty in the darkness--just across the Ohio River. Anyone fleeing bondage could look to Reverend John Rankin's home for hope. To the slaveholders...

Briefly describes the accomplishments of American abolitionists from the seventeenth through the nineteenth centuries as they struggled to end slavery.