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Freedom Stone

Jeffrey Kluger

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Apr 05, 2011 Shazzer rated it liked it

As posted on Outside of a Dog:

Jeffrey Kluger's Freedom Stone is an odd little book. Part historical fiction, part magical fantasy, it meshes together in the story of one slave child trying to write a wrong, save her little brother from being sold and see her family free. Lillie is thirteen years old when her father is killed fighting for the Confederate army, an act that should have freed her, her mother and her brother, Plato. But when a sack of Union gold is found on her father's person, he i As posted on Outside of a Dog:

Jeffrey Kluger's Freedom Stone is an odd little book. Part historical fiction, part magical fantasy, it meshes together in the story of one slave child trying to write a wrong, save her little brother from being sold and see her family free. Lillie is thirteen years old when her father is killed fighting for the Confederate army, an act that should have freed her, her mother and her brother, Plato. But when a sack of Union gold is found on her father's person, he is called a thief, and their Master not only keeps the gold for himself, but refuses to free Lillie and her family. Lillie must prove her father was an honest man, and goes about doing so with the help of Bett, the old slave woman who bakes bread. Because Bett has a secret. Her baking can bend time, making it slow down, like the bees outside her cabin, or sped up, as Lillie needs it to do one night when she has a mission at another plantation.

I wasn't sure how I felt about Freedom Stone when I finished it. It had taken a day or two to really get into the story, though once it hit its stride, I was invested and eager to get to the conclusion. There was just something that unsettled me, and I think I know now what it was. The magical element of the story, while inventive, was not really needed. This was a story that could have been told, with only a few changes, with no magic at all. I would almost say the magic was wasted. Lillie is a wonderful character, full of strength and courage, and her story has a certain charge to it that would have been just as interesting without the magic of Bett's stones.

I would still recommend Freedom Stone to readers. My only issue was in wishing the magical elements of the story had been better integrated. As a whole it has value as historical fiction, and its point of view (acknowledging that slaves weren't simply, magically freed when Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation) is one that you don't see very often and was interesting to read. And Lillie is definitely a character worth getting to know.
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Mar 28, 2011 Kris Springer rated it liked it

Shelves: 2012-newbery-reads

Either a 2.5 or a 3. Disappointed in this one. Writing was average, not amazing, and the fantasy element just wasn't believable at all. I wanted to believe, but I also kept comparing this (in its tone, especially) to Never Forgotten by McKissack, and Freedom Stone came up short. I did root for the protagonist and her family, yet the fantasy part of this story kept me from suspending my disbelief, so it really took me a long time to get through this. ...more

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Apr 11, 2011 Malissa rated it really liked it

Shelves: historical-fiction-kids, fantasy-kids

I'm not a huge fan of anything that isn't realistic but this was a really well done story. The characters are very real, the pacing was perfect and you just wanted to know if everything worked out for everyone. ...more

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Nov 29, 2010 Rachel marked it as to-read

Mar 16, 2011 Kathy marked it as abandoned-2011

Shelves: tbl-mock-newbery-2012

May 20, 2011 Teresa Garrett marked it as to-read

May 01, 2012 Michal Hope rated it really liked it

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