Nightjohn
Author: Gary Paulsen Category: High School and (Young) Adult, Middle School, Perseverance and Determination, Slavery, Upper Elementary, Writing and Literature Language: English Share: More Details“To know things, for us to know things, is bad for them. We get to wanting and when we get to wanting it’s bad for them. They thinks we want what they got . . . . That’s why they don’t want us reading.” — Nightjohn
“I didn’t know what letters was, not what they meant, but I thought it might be something I wanted to know. To learn.”–Sarny
Sarny, a female slave at the Waller plantation, first sees Nightjohn when he is brought there with a rope around his neck, his body covered in scars.
He had escaped north to freedom, but he came back–came back to teach reading. Knowing that the penalty for reading is dismemberment Nightjohn still returned to slavery to teach others how to read. And twelve-year-old Sarny is willing to take the risk to learn.
Source: Publisher
Other Books From - High School and (Young) Adult
Arrival of the Snake-Woman and Other Stories
Anthologies and Collections, High School and (Young) Adult, Historical Fiction, Middle School, Short Stories and Essays, Slavery, Small-Town Living and the Countryside, Social Class Differences
The Pain Tree
Coming-of-Age, High School and (Young) Adult, Historical Fiction, Middle School, Self-Esteem and Identity, Short Stories and Essays
Encyclopedia of Jamaican Heritage
Biographies and Non-Fiction, Black History, Culture and Heritage, High School and (Young) Adult, Middle School, Upper Elementary
Long Walk to Freedom: The Autobiography of Nelson Mandela
Activism and Social Justice, Autobiographies, Biographies and Non-Fiction, Black History, Diversity and Inclusion, High School and (Young) Adult, Nobel Prize Winner, Politics and Government, Prison and Criminal Sentencing, Racial Violence and Terrorism
All the Noise at Once
Activism and Social Justice, Crime, Disabilities and Differences, Emotions and Feelings, Family, High School and (Young) Adult, Middle School, Prejudice and Racism, Prison and Criminal Sentencing, Sports, Values and Virtues
War of Flesh and Metal
High School and (Young) Adult, Middle School, Science Fiction, Thriller and Suspense
Clash of Flesh and Metal
Grief and Death, High School and (Young) Adult, Middle School, Mysteries and Secrets, Science Fiction, Thriller and Suspense
Girl of Flesh and Metal
Grief and Death, High School and (Young) Adult, Middle School, Mysteries and Secrets, Natural and Man-Made Disasters, Science Fiction, Thriller and Suspense
Enter The Hurricane (East Kennedy High, 3) 
All For Us (East Kennedy High, 2) 
Recent Comments