Freedom in Congo Square, Carole Boston Weatherford
Freedom in Congo Square, Carole Boston Weatherford
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Freedom in Congo Square

Author: Carole Boston Weatherford

Narrator: J.D. Jackson

Unabridged: 13 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 07/25/2017

Synopsis

As slaves relentlessly toiled in an unjust system in 19th century Louisiana, they all counted down the days until Sunday, when, at least for half a day, they were briefly able to congregate in Congo Square in New Orleans. There, they were free to set up an open market, sing, dance, and play music. They were free to forget their cares, their struggles, and their oppression. This poetic, nonfiction story about this little-known piece of African American history chronicles the daily duties of such slaves-from chopping logs on Mondays to baking bread on Wednesdays to plucking hens on Saturday-and builds to the freedom of Sundays and the special experience of an afternoon spent in Congo Square, capturing humanity's capacity to find hope and joy even in the most difficult of circumstances and demonstrating how New Orleans' Congo Square was truly freedom's heart.

About Carole Boston Weatherford

Carole Boston Weatherford has written many award-winning books for children, including Kin, illustrated by her son Jeffery and a Coretta Scott King Author Honor recipient; Box, which won a Newbery Honor; Unspeakable, which won the Coretta Scott King Award, a Caldecott Honor, and was a finalist for the National Book Award; Respect: Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, winner of the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award; ALA Notable Children’s Book You Can Fly; and Caldecott Honor winners Freedom in Congo Square; Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer, Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement; and Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom. Carole lives in North Carolina. Visit her at CBWeatherford.com.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Calista on June 26, 2018

What a book experience. You can feel the rhythm pulse in this book, you can feel the heat and the oppression pound down, down, and then on Sunday's, you can feel the release and the moments of freedom. The art work is a wonder in this story. I love the artwork and it's simplicity. It conveys energy a......more

Goodreads review by Abby on May 03, 2016

EVERYONE, PAY ATTENTION. THIS IS HOW YOU WRITE A BOOK THAT CELEBRATES SMALL JOYS IN THE LIVES OF SLAVES. In rhythmic, rhyming text Carole Boston Weatherford takes the reader through a week in the lives of slaves, touching on different work slaves did while counting down to Sunday when they would be......more

Goodreads review by Barb on May 24, 2016

This story is written in couplets and as a read aloud it carries its own beat while presenting the oppression of slavery and the freedom of blacks gathering at Congo Square in New Orleans to share their music and culture. One afternoon a week, slaves had the afternoon off and they danced and played......more

Goodreads review by Bookishrealm on June 02, 2019

Wow! I've heard a lot about this picture book because it's won both the Caldecott Honor and the Coretta Scott King Honor. This goes beyond the usual confines of a picture book. It examines the one place that slaves and free blacks were able to spend time together in New Orleans. The artwork was not......more

Goodreads review by Vernon Area on February 14, 2016

Weatherford and Christie depict the days of the week for U.S. slaves and builds anticipation for Sunday, the one afternoon that slaves were allowed to commune. The artwork is unique and full of movement. The author includes a forward AND an Author's Note to elaborate on the relatively sparse--yet po......more

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