Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
When Americans think of escaped slaves, their first thought is usually to the Underground Railroad – the mechanism responsible for ferrying so many men, women, and children to freedom. But the first passages on the Underground Railroad did not occur until the late 1780’s – decades after David George attempted escape from his plantation. For George, escape was a self-driven battle through both countryside and city looking for sympathetic individuals who could help him survive. But his escape from the plantation was on the beginning of a long and storied tale of fighting for justice and equality for himself and his community. In The Escapes of David George, Gregory E. O’Malley explores George’s life from childhood in slavery through capture by Native American tribes to establishment of the first Black Baptist Church in America to his migration to Sierra Leone. This complete look at the life of this remarkable man will leave readers in awe of George’s bravery and the circumstances that worked both for and against his favor.
I give The Escapes of David George 4 out of 5 stars. This was as very detailed account, but there were several passages that felt like repeats with the author revisiting previous chapters nearly word for word. It was surprising the amount of detail provided for George’s life and those repeated details left me confused at times. I was also surprised at this recounting – I have lived in the areas where George was taken by the Native American and where he established his church, but never heard of him. I have also studied church history without hearing of him. Books like this are an important piece to teaching the full history of our country, which is why confusing repetition must be kept at a minimum to lead to engagement and retention.
This is a fantastic book for readers looking to learn about slavery before and during the Revolutionary War. I would also recommend this to readers looking to learn more about the dangers from Native American tribes that white and black settlers faced during this time period. We’ve read similar books like Twelve Years a Slave, but this is the first focused on this timeframe.
The Escapes of David George will release on February 3rd. Preorder yours today on our Bookshop.org page!
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What I’m Reading
- Current print book: Daughter of Egypt, Marie Benedict
- Current audio book: Everfair, Nisi Shawl
- Book I’m most looking forward to: How to Be Okay with Nothing is Okay, Jenny Lawson
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