Listen for the Whippoorwill

Trailblazer Books (Chronological) #16

by Dave Jackson, Neta Jackson

Living as a slave with her family on an old Maryland plantation in 1853, twelve-year-old Rosebud Jackson had been helping her mother with the cooking for the Big House as long as she could remember. Rosebud's world seemed like an endless pile of pots and pans to wash, food to prepare, and bread to bake. Her father worked long days in the fields while her fifteen-year-old brother Isaac was the stable boy.

But when a series of tragedies strike, Rosebud is left alone and very afraid. Her only hope is that the words of her father will come true: "Just listen for the whippoorwill." When the harvest season is over, this sound will be her signal to follow in a desperate attempt to escape her cruel slavery.

On the darkest of nights, Rosebud will meet the mysterious person the slaves called "Moses," who will lead her and other slaves on a harrowing journey toward the North on the Underground Railroad. Harriet Tubman, known as "Moses," was also an escaped slave and became notorious for leading bands on runaways on their dangerous passage to Canada.

Will Rosebud be able to keep up? Does Harriet Tubman know the way?

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Christian, Childrens, Historical, Christian Fiction, Juvenile

144 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1993

About the author

Dave and Neta Jackson are a full-time husband/wife writing team who have authored and co-authored many books on marriage and family, the church, relationships, and other subjects. Their books for children include the TRAILBLAZER series and Hero Tales, volumes I,II, III, and IV. The Jacksons make their home in Evanston, Illinois.

Reviews

[Luisa Knight]

I have fond memories of my mom reading these books to us over lunch. And we’d beg her to keep going when lunch was over too, because we just had to know what happened! Well told, engaging, adventuresome and you learn about a famous Christian in history.

Ages: 7+

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[Abigail]

I really enjoyed this book. The Jacksons did well at creating an engaging tale for children that also portrayed things realistically. I learned a lot about Harriet Tubman in the appendix. She had a very hard life, giving of herself and receiving little to nothing in return. The courage and determination it took for slaves to run to freedom is inspiring.

Note: I don’t give five stars easily and my gut says 4.5, but I could think of nothing objectionable, content or grammar wise, so since it is a kids book, it is the first book this year to which I give five stars.

[Jayenna]

was an amazing book. since i homeschool i have to read books. so i decided to read this one cause why not. it was such a good book. since it was only for school i still read over time just to find out what was actually gonna happen. it just idk, in ways everyone can relate to this book. ha idk, just seems like it anyways.

[Meghan Bohn]

Religious focus is on how enslaved people aren't allowed to gather for church or sing certain hymns, so Rosebud has only heard them and Bible stories in whispers; I don't know how accurate that is and a really quick Google search has most of the results being from religious sites. Harriet is very religious and that tracks with the Wikipedia article. Could probably appeal to secular kids, but not sure about the other books in the series that focus more on missionaries. Written in 1993. Two uses of the n-word. Unsure how much of the use of 'mammy', 'pappy', and vernacular English is accurate and how much is me looking at it critically. Slavery painted better than it was, but tracks for a kids book from that era by white authors. 140 pages, took me an hour and a half to read, last ten pages on the real history of Harriet and further reading sources. Decent story and characterization, appropriate for grade 4 and up.

[VK]

This book is a normal book, nothing more, nothing less. I personally read this book out of curiosity. I can see how it might introduce children to the concept of slavery. It perfectly accomplishes that task, but for a person who might want to learn more and/or have a pleasant, enjoyable reading experience where they can share moments with the book characters, it lacks major points. Firstly, the facts behind this aren't very clear. Secondly, Rosebud is a character you cannot relate to. Yes, a young child might say that they like her, but if you are looking for depth in her personality and character, you will not find it. All the characters are shallow and lack depth. Her sheer ignorance is sometimes bothersome and plainly irritating.

[Natasha]

My kids gave this 5 stars, and although I have fond memories if reading it as a child myself, I would probably only give the the writing 3-4 stars. The character development isn't great, but the story is still interesting for a younger audience and it did evoke some emotion (mainly choking up), which is something I appreciate in a book.

"O Lord, I'm goin' to hold steady on to You, and You've got to see me through..."
- Harriet's prayer

[Brian C]

This isn’t my favorite young kids biography/ history series. I find the writing a bit choppy and I’m not a huge fan of them introducing new characters as a composite of many people. However, I loved introducing my daughter to Harriet Tubman and her bravery and her faith.

[Aaron]

Read this with my son for his class read aloud. It was an informative book of one girl’s journey along the Underground Railroad. It also learned much about Harriet Tubman. Great read for youth interested in American history.

[Tina Roos]

A couple instances of historically accurate language in the form of a racial slur we don’t use anymore. I don’t have a problem with books using language in a way that is historically accurate, but I was reading this to children, so I had to edit it as I went.

[Gabby]

Used this and the accompanying curriculum for a read aloud as we studied the underground railroad. The curriculum resources are a little dated but it gave us a great shell to make this more than just a story.

[Grace Lynch]

Read this book for school and really enjoyed it!

[Shelby]

I read this with a student and it was a good book! We both enjoyed it.

[Rebecca]

Twelve-year-old Rosebud Jackson has lived her whole life as a slave on a Maryland plantation. But with her family beside her, it hasn't been so bad. That all changes in the spring of 1853. Her older brother, Isaac, tries to run away, but is caught and sold away to the deep south. Her mother gives birth to a stillborn baby and dies soon after. Then Rosebud's father decides to escape to freedom, but Rosebud must stay behind to give him more time to get away. He promises to return for her that fall, but instead, Harriet Tubman comes, saying she will lead Rosebud to freedom, where she can be reunited with her father. But the escape north is long and dangerous, and Rosebud begins to wonder if she will ever be free, and ever see what is left of her family again.

This was a good historical novel for young readers that brought to life the terrible hardship of slavery and how it tore families apart. Rosebud is a very sympathetic character who at a young age goes through so much hardship and tragedy yet manages to hold on to her hope and faith. I recommend this book to readers who like to read historical novels about this era.

[Laura]

Another Trailblazer book. I wrote a paper about Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad my senior year of high school and have been interested in it since. The family Tubman helped was made up, but the parts about her life were based on fact.

[Madeline Henricksen]

"Listen for the Whippoorwill" is about a girl called Rosebud(Rosalie)Jackson who is a slave. She gets her freedom because "Moses of her people"(Harriet Tubman)rescues her. I recommend this book to anyone that wants to learn more about the Underground Railroad.

[Audrey]

Excellent Book. Very fast read. I read it all in one sitting in just a couple of hours. It was a fascinating story about a young slave girl who is guided along the Underground Railroad by Harriet Tubman. Very well written and was hard to put down. Loved it.

[Donna]

Great read

This was a very well written engaging story. We read a chapter to our children every night and sometimes two chapters because we could not stand the suspense. We will be buying another book to read to the kids.

[Cws]

JAR5-Jac

[Shalom Lanphear]

It is so sad and happy at the same time .

[Cheri]

Read this with my fifth grader's school curriculum. Found it appropriate and educational and sad and enriching.

[Jessica]

See the first book in the series (Spy for the Night Riders) for a full review.