Elijah is a “fragile” boy. After playing a practical joke on his elders, his mother repays the effort by having Elijah pull out a snake from a cookie jar. The boy runs screaming through the forest, and we are exposed to why his family has given him this tag. Elijah as the first free born black child in the Canadian settlement of Buxton, Ontario has much to learn about the complexities of adult life. Upon catching 10 fish, the local preacher uses his authority and Elijah's ignorance of the word “tithing” to trick Elijah into giving more fish than he should. Elijah will have to make some hard choices and quicker than his young 11 year old mind can emotionally or mentally handle. Elijah and Cooter celebrate the ringing in of five runaway slaves who have found their way to Buxton. It's a joyful moment for Elijah and his friend Cooter. Their innocence is about to end. When Mrs. Holton conveys to the community, and Elijah, that her husband has “left this world” due to the whippings at the hands of the slave owners, Elijah enlists himself along with the untrustworthy preacher to free Mr. Leroy's family from slavery in Michigan. With $2,200 in hand from Mrs. Holton, Mr. Highgate, Elijah, and the Preacher set off on their dangerous mission. The Preacher shoots Mr. Highgate, and takes the money. Elijah returns back to Buxton, and he and Mr. Leroy intend to return to Michigan to recapture the stolen money and free the slaves. On the way, Mr. Leroy dies of an apparent heart attack, and now Elijah has to decide to return to Buxton, or find a way to back to the 6 slaves who are hiding on a farm in America. Elijah's choice will dispel his “fragile” nature forever.Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis is tailor made for a rich oral story retelling. I listened to this story on audio CD, and the various voices, inflections and cadences, and comical and tragic narrative flow within the storyline is recaptured by the readers. Minus the rich retelling of the voices on the CD, the reviewer doesn't believe that he could have captured the essence of Elijah's and the community of Buxton's dramatic story. Christopher Paul Curtis' historical fiction is based on the real experiences of free communities in Canada who used the underground railroad of networked white and black contacts to free family and neighbors living in bondage in the United States. Elijah's, and his family, Cooter, and the rest of the community's authentic dialect is a constant presence in the book, and the reader is transported to the sights, sounds, and voices of this small freed black community. Christopher Paul Curtis' book is filled with comedic and tragic scenes and character lines, and any young reader could easily immerse themselves and imagine this world. Although some chapters are slow moving,the reader understands that Mr. Curtis has placed Elijah in many situations where his innocence is exposed against the preacher and others wisdom. Elijah will have to make some big choices with no real win-win outcomes for all parties involved, and all the buildup in the lengthy previous chapters is necessary character development for Elijah's dramatic confrontation with the evil Preacher, the true life and death perils of slavery, and his own "fragile" self. The historical fiction story would be an illustrative moment for History teachers from 7th through 12th grade to explore the challenges of freed blacks and their communities in Canada and America. Teachers would do well to supplement the historical record of the underground railroad, tragedy of the slave experience, and the challenges and triumphs of becoming freed citizens by reading “Elijah of Buxton”. The readers bring the print to life with their varied and unique interpretations of the characters motives, actions, and emotions, so brief excerpts from the audio CD along with discussion webs and pair shares about Elijah's and the community of Buxton's experiences would be worthwhile discussion and assignment for students. Teachers should also explore how the oral tradition of storytelling has kept the narratives and personal stories of African American experiences about slavery alive in the 21st century. Exploring the library of Congress for photographs and audio narratives from former slaves who survived into the 20th century to tell their tale are useful starting points for this discussion with students: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collectio..., and http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/snhtml/. Other stories that speak about the African-American experience include “One Crazy Summer” by Rita Williams Garcia about Black Panthers and family reunions, “The Mighty Miss Malone” by Christopher Paul Curtis concerning black family life during the Great Depression, and “If You Traveled on the Underground Railroad” a picture book by Ellen Levine.
It's going to be hard for me to write about this book without resorting to blatant gushing, but I'll do my best. Elijah of Buxton is one of those books that kept popping up on all the lists this year. When it won both the Newbery Honor and the Coretta Scott King Award, I thought I'd better pick it up and give it a shot.Now I had read Christopher Paul Curtis' Bud, Not Buddy when it won the Newbery Medal in 2000, and I liked it quite a bit, but I have to admit I wasn't completely blown away. I didn't rush out and recommend it to everyone I knew. Elijah of Buxton is another story.The book is set in the mid 1860's in Buxton, Canada--one of the early Black settlements of escaped slaves from the United States. Elijah, the book's fictional hero, is the first free-born child in the settlement.In some ways, it's a basic coming of age story. Elijah is what his mother calls a "fra-gile" child, and he is trying very hard to learn how to become more grown-up. In other ways, it's an amazing glimpse into what life on one of these settlements could have been like. There is a poignant juxtaposition between the young children in the settlement who've known nothing but freedom, and the adults, who have each risked everything to be free and carry heavy wounds and scars that the children can't begin to comprehend.Mostly what I loved about this book, besides the beautiful writing and engaging story, is that it is ultimately a story about community. It is about how people can come together to try to make the world a better place, not just for themselves, but for one another. When Elijah, who goes to school and can read and write, is asked to read a letter to Mrs. Holton, informing her that her husband has been whipped to death by a slave owner, the women of the settlement go with him:"Mostly I think I didn't bawl 'cause once Ma and them women bunched up 'round Mrs. Holton with their watching, waiting eyes and hands, it felt like a whole slew of soldiers was ringing that parlour with swords drawed and waren't no sorrow so powerful it could bust through."I'll warn you, I bawled. I cried straight through the entire last three chapters. But it's not just sadness that makes you cry, it's the redemption and grace and joy mixed up in the sadness that is so affecting. This is a beautiful story and I know it won all the "literature for young people" awards, but I would recommend it to adults as well. A good story's a good story, after all.You can visit the real Buxton Museum website here.You can read about Christopher Paul Curtis' R.E.A.D Program and Kenya School Project here.This review was originally posted to my blog Please Come Flying.
What do You think about Elijah Of Buxton (2007)?
Elijah of Buxton is recommended for children in grades 6-8. I read this book in the audio book format, which was an Odyssey Award Honor book in 2009. This book is focused around Elijah Buxton, the first child born into freedom in Buxton, a settlement in Canada of runaway slaves. He is best known for his ability to throw rocks. He is also known to be “fragile”, but that changes when he goes on journey to America to find a thief who steels money from a friend who is trying to save money to buy his family out of captivity in the south. When traveling, he discovers the hardships of slavery, and becomes extremely grateful for a life in which he is always free. This story is interesting and full of adventure as it describes slavery in a first person perspective. Readers will learn about slavery conditions, through the eyes of someone close to their age. There are several memorable scenes throughout the book, especially when meeting escaped slaves. The language used throughout the book gives it a very emotional feel. The story is also very adventurous and humorous. I think this is a great novel that will introduce readers to slavery. When listening to this story in the form on an audio book, the storyteller was particularly strong with many voices, pausing, and inflection. To me, it was more like performance theater, then the reading of a great novel.
—L-Crystal Wlodek
I listened to this book on audio CD, and it was fantastic. Mirron Willis does a great job of bringing Elijah and all the other numerous characters to life. Christopher Paul Curtis's story is informative, moving and uplifting. We get a glimpse of life in Buxton, a settlement of escaped slaves in Canada. Elijah is the first child born free in Buxton. I loved the way the historical details were woven into the story, from the school routine to daily chores to daring escapes from the brutality of slavery. Along the way, Elijah narrates as if we're reading from his journal, and it seems natural, as if we're listening to a friend share stories from their life. Elijah and his friend, Cooter, get into the usual scrapes 12-year old boys might encounter, and Elijah works hard to show the adults he is growing up and doesn't deserve to be described as "fragile" all the time, just because he is a very sensitive boy emotionally. Elijah's stories tell us of his family history, and the struggles of others in the settlement as they try to build a new life or continue working to rescue their loved ones who are still enslaved. Elijah also begins to experience what it's like to for adults to begin to treat him as a young adult, sometimes with good results, sometimes not so good. Some of the grim realism that comes into the story at this point makes this a book for older readers, 12 and up. This was a memorable book, and the emotional drama of some of the scenes will stay with me forever.
—James Govednik
In my opinion Elijah of Buxton is a very adventures book. The setting takes place in Buxton Canada, a settlement of runaways slaves who have escaped from slavery. This book tells about the time of slavery. In particular this book is about a boy named Elijah, who was the fist free born slave of Buxton Canada. Elijah's home life was blue sky's and sunshine the majority of the time. However that all changed when a former slave steals Elijah's friend Mr. Leroy's money, which he saved up to buy his family out of slavery. Elijah joined Mr. Leroy on a dangerous journey to America to help restore his money. Along the way Elijah is opened up to a new world of horror his parents kept him away from all this time and sadly his friend Mr. Leroy Dies. When Elijah finishes his business in America he travels fast back to Buxton To escape the horror film he was in. I thought this was heart breaking, sit on the edge of your seat, adventurous book. I recommend reading this book if your looking for some true grit.
—Neziah Whitson
