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Freedom Over Me
Freedom Over Me: Eleven Slaves, Their Lives and Dreams Brought to Life by Ashley Bryan | Ashley Bryan
48 posts | 25 read | 10 to read
Using original slave auction and plantation estate documents, Ashley Bryan offers a moving and powerful picture book that contrasts the monetary value of a slave with the priceless value of life experiences and dreams that a slave owner could never take away. Imagine being looked up and down and being valued as less than chair. Less than an ox. Less than a dress. Maybe about the same asa lantern. You, an object. An object to sell. In his gentle yet deeply powerful way, Ashley Bryan goes to the heart of how a slave is given a monetary value by the slave owner, tempering this with the one thing that CANT be bought or solddreams. Inspired by the actual will of a plantation owner that lists the worth of each and every one of his workers, Bryan has created collages around that document, and others like it. Through fierce paintings and expansive poetry he imagines and interprets each persons life on the plantation, as well as the life their owner knew nothing abouttheir dreams and pride in knowing that they were worth far more than an Overseer or Madam ever would guess. Visually epic, and never before done, this stunning picture book is unlike anything youve seen.
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Jhill24
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“ people like you. Like me. For sale!”

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Jhill24

This book tells several stories of 11 slaves. It is so powerful and provides insight from our American History. This book is great for children to read to get a better grasp of enslavement and how it worked.

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Jhill24
Pickpick

This book is so powerful. It tells the stories of 11 slaves of the Fairbank family. Each story is easy to read and gives insight to life as a slave. The end of the book provides a better understanding of the history of enslavement. Great read !

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Apolandvery

“As slaves, we do what our owners expect and demand of us. As human beings, our real lives are our precious secret.”

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Apolandvery
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This picture speaks so loudly.

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Apolandvery
Pickpick

Freedom over me eleven slaves, their lives and dreams brought to life, by Ashley Bryan (2017) is a Newberry Honor Book. This book shows the perspectives of 11 slaves and then discusses their dreams. The book illustrations speak volumes. This book does a great job bringing to light the thoughts, experiences, and dreams of slaves.

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Emitalski

“May our songs and stories keep alive in us the will to grow in learning. The longing to be free!

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Emitalski

I like how this book includes the slaves‘ pasts in Africa and how their names are completely different than what they are here.

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Emitalski
Pickpick

Freedom Over Me by Ashley Bryan is a Newberry Honor book that was published in 2017. This book tells the stories of eleven slaves. Both from their slave point of view and their dreams. It also included the wife of the plantation owner. It‘s interesting to hear the different points of view. This would be great for older grades who are learning about slavery and how people were treated during this time.

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amberpeltz
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“My encouraging words warm every heart. We embrace one another in hope and love, singing softly the comforting words: Freedom! Oh, Freedom!”

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amberpeltz

This book opens your eyes to the realities of the lives slaves lived. They worked hard and did as they were told, but never gave up hope for freedom.

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amberpeltz
Pickpick

This Newberry Honor Book is written from the perspective of eleven slaves. We learn stories and hear of dreams straight from the eyes of Peggy, John, Athelia, Betty, Qush, Jane, Stephen, Mulvina, Bacus, Charlotte, and Dora. Each slave expresses their desire for freedom in a hopeful and excited way. They tell it like there is nothing they could ever want more.

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BookishMarginalia
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Pickpick

This is an amazing book, worthy of a place in every home and school library. #AshleyBryan gives voice and life to eleven #enslaved people auctioned off when a #plantation was sold. It brings home the horror of American chattel #slavery as a system that dehumanized both enslavers and enslaved. #humanrights #freedom

82 likes5 stack adds
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BookishMarginalia
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tpixie The Last 3 lines…. 💖💖💖 3y
71 likes1 comment
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BookishMarginalia
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Heartrending. #slavery

Illustration by #AshleyBryan

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ShardaeP
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Pickpick

“Freedom Over Me“ is a historical fiction picture book. The author Ashley Bryan obtained authentic documents of slavery and chose one to base this book on. The document listed the enslaved people's names and how much they were being sold for. This author brought eleven slave's stories to life. It shows how life was for them. What they loved. How they endured abuse. Most importantly, how they dreamed of freedom.
#ucflae3414sp20

ShardaeP This book is good for a Read Aloud. So students can listen and comprehend the story, instead of focusing on decoding words.
UDL: 3.1 Activate or supply background knowledge (it is best to be read after a lesson on African American history).
ESOL: Continually monitor students comprehension (RA allows the teacher to clarify details of the story)
5y
ShardaeP Website: Curriculum ideas for all of Ashley Bryan's books https://d28hgpri8am2if.cloudfront.net/tagged_assets/2554146/9781481456906_cg_ash...
5y
juliap99 This was such a great book, I used it in a history lesson for another class! It‘s a great resource for humanizing the people who were in such terrible times. 5y
DrSpalding This was the book that got you to research him for your author study! Read aloud would work and nice alignment. 5y
3 likes4 comments
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k.gauze
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“Through all my years enslaved, I‘ve listened to ancestral voices echoing through my weariness, giving me strength to withstand injustice to believe in myself and survive”

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k.gauze

I love this book. Would 100% read this to my children or my students. This book held me in and I had to keep reading.

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k.gauze
Pickpick

This book is am amazing. Having books about slavery and different cultures is SO important. This book talks about the different views of slavery. It is often only seen as history but this book brings the people to life. because they are actual people and that is so important for children to grasp. The illustrations are incredible as well.

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Juliafass
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Pickpick

Freedom over me written by Ashley Bryan and published in 2016. This three time Corbett‘s Scott king award winner is a beautiful and imaginative telling of the possible stories of these real people. Ashley Bryan found these real people in a real document. This amazing retelling of the Fairchild estate of 1828

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cparsley
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This is a quote that stood out to me becuase it was it was an unexpected thing to hear

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cparsley

I would use this with older children so that they could focus on the story

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cparsley
Pickpick

This is a poetry book. This was different from the other ones I read becuase it doesn‘t rhyme, but still good becuase it‘s a story

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Estradan
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Pickpick

This HF book by Ashley Bryan has won the Newberry Award and the Coretta Scott King Award. This books gives a glimpse of a group of 11 slaves and their lives serving the Fairchild‘s family. It shares their roles in the estate along with their dreams and stories before becoming slaves. It‘s truly a beautiful story to share during a history lesson! It could work as a good S, while reading a magnet board can help describe the roles of each slave.

Estradan https://www.slj.com/?detailStory=ashley-bryans-freedom-over-me-an-interview provides an interview of Mr. Bryan‘s inspiration of Freedom over me. This aligns with ESOL 13 because this interview can help as a review activity. UDL 7.2 also aligns because it provides value and authenticity to a history lesson. #ucflae3414su19 5y
DrSpalding Books and social studies… I love it! Use this. What a cool resource to include during an author study. 5y
2 likes2 comments
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erincox

“I have grown in artistry through the clothes I create”

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erincox

I think this would be best in 4th grade and up. This is a book that makes the students think and reflect on how they are treated and how their lives are.

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erincox
Pickpick

Historical Fiction
This is a book who asks readers to imagine what it felt liked to be looked up and down and found very invaluable to others.

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Makenziebrumfield

“Mrs. Fairchild‘s praises my cooking. She often chooses a menu and invites friends to show off my skills. Afterward, I sneak leftover food to the slaves.”

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Makenziebrumfield

This is an important book to read to children that teaches them about slavery; this book gives first-hand experiences of slaves, which will allow the children to see this time period from a slave‘s perspective.

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Makenziebrumfield
Pickpick

Genre: Historical Fiction
In the author‘s note, the author talks about how she brings the slaves in this story “alive” as human being, whereas they were not treated as human beings by slave owners or anyone else for that matter. I thought this was a really cool aspect of the book; the author puts the words into the slaves‘ perspectives.

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cjbattiste
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cjbattiste

The author, Ashley Bryan, illustrated this book so beautifully. I specifically love the choices of lines he made as well as attention to the eyes (especially when it is just one person he is drawing).

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cjbattiste
Pickpick

The book is a series of stories and poems told about 11 slaves. The author addressed how much they were sold for, their jobs, and things that made these people so special and wonderful. I love that the stories are broken up into poems and other anecdotes.

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CassidyCantrell
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I like how this book gives hope and tells what each one of the 11 people dreamt of.

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CassidyCantrell
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CassidyCantrell
Pickpick

-historical fiction
-Corbett‘s Scott king award
11 slaves have their lives brought to life in this book. In this book the slaves were sold and worth a certain amount of money depending on what they could do. Good book but would only let older readers read who understand slavery. Touching book.

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tjwill
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Pickpick

Ashley Bryan created this picture book based on a historical document: a plantation property appraisement that included the sale of several slaves. He has told their lives with poems and vibrant illustrations. This won a Caldecott Honor and Coretta Scott King Honor for this year.

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ReadItAndWeep
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Some of the Youth Media Award Winners. #Caldecott and #Newbery Honor books.

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BookInMyHands
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Pickpick

Inspired by the "Fairchild Appraisement," author and illustrator Ashley Bryan has created a story around each of the eleven people sold as slaves after the passing of Mr Fairchild.

Bryan juxtaposes each person as what they are understood to be by their owners with who each person is as a creative human being.

Beautifully illustrated with contrasting pallets, this book won Newbery and Scott King honors today.

#notawhiteprotagonist

LindsayReads I was so happy this showed up for a few of the awards! 8y
BookInMyHands @LindsayReads And March! Wasn't that exciting!! I also really liked the "The Girl Who Drank the Moon," although in my book group it did not go over as well with my friends who had adopted kids. 8y
LindsayReads YES!! I need to add The Girl Who Drank the Moon to my book club list. 8y
49 likes2 stack adds3 comments
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kathyellendavis

Coretta Scott King Illustrator honor!

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kathyellendavis

Coretta Scott King Author honor!

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kathyellendavis

Newbery honor!