Читать книгу Stolen into Slavery: The True Story of Solomon Northup, Free Black Man - National Kids Geographic - Страница 5

WE FRADINS HAVE WRITTEN DOZENS OF BOOKS together. Researching and writing about the life of Solomon Northup has been both fascinating and inspiring.

Following the Civil War, many slaves wrote about their experiences. Solomon Northup’s narrative, written prior to the Civil War, is particularly gripping. Having previously lived as a free man in New York State, his enslavement seemed all the more bitter. His desire to escape fueled his determination to survive. Solomon drew strength and solace from his music, which allowed him a temporary refuge from his seemingly endless years in Louisiana cane and cotton fields.

Soon after he returned to his wife and family, Northup published his autobiography, Twelve Years a Slave. That book was the source of much of the detail and all of the dialogue in Stolen Into Slavery. Solomon Northup’s memoir, co-authored with David Wilson, reflects not only Northup’s memory of his experiences but also his deepest feelings about them.

Of course, memory can be tricky. Therefore we verified the basic events of Solomon’s life in bills of sale and in court records. But it is Solomon’s interpretation of events that gives us a unique glimpse into that most “peculiar institution,” American slavery.

—Judith and Dennis Fradin