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Master Slave Husband Wife
Master Slave Husband Wife: An Epic Journey from Slavery to Freedom | Ilyon Woo
9 posts | 11 read | 24 to read
The remarkable true story of Ellen and William Craft, who escaped slavery through daring, determination, and disguise, with Ellen passing as a wealthy, disabled White man and William posing as his slave. In 1848, a year of international democratic revolt, a young, enslaved couple, Ellen and William Craft, achieved one of the boldest feats of self-emancipation in American history. Posing as master and slave, while sustained by their love as husband and wife, they made their escape together across more than 1,000 miles, riding out in the open on steamboats, carriages, and trains that took them from bondage in Georgia to the free states of the North. Along the way, they dodged slave traders, military officers, and even friends of their enslavers, who might have revealed their true identities. The tale of their adventure soon made them celebrities, and generated headlines around the country. Americans could not get enough of this charismatic young couple, who traveled another 1,000 miles criss-crossing New England, drawing thunderous applause as they spoke alongside some of the greatest abolitionist luminaries of the dayamong them Frederick Douglass and William Wells Brown. But even then, they were not out of danger. With the passage of an infamous new Fugitive Slave Act in 1850, all Americans became accountable for returning refugees like the Crafts to slavery. Then yet another adventure began, as slave hunters came up from Georgia, forcing the Crafts to flee once againthis time from the United States, their lives and thousands more on the line and the stakes never higher. With three epic journeys compressed into one monumental bid for freedom, Master Slave Husband Wife is an American love storyone that would challenge the nations core precepts of life, liberty, and justice for allone that challenges us even now.
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jlhammar
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Incredible and important story well told.

Aimeesue I have this one on Kindle. I should get to it! 2w
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JHSiess
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📬 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐌𝐚𝐢𝐥 / 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐂𝐥𝐮𝐛 𝐒𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 📖

I suggested 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐥𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐇𝐮𝐬𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝗪𝐢𝐟𝐞 by 𝐈𝐥𝐲𝐨𝐧 𝗪𝐨𝐨 to my in-person book club, & all enthusiastically agreed to read & discuss it at our next meeting. It's the amazing true story of how Ellen & William Craft escaped slavery through daring & disguise. Ellen passed as a wealthy, disabled White man & William posed as “his” slave. Thank you, Simon & Schuster!

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ncsufoxes
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Listened to this one over audio but need to get a copy for myself. Definitely worth the praise. It is long & very detailed. I thought it was fascinating. Especially as a person that recently moved to Boston to learn more about the abolition movement here (& the Craft‘s lived here for a part of their lives). I really enjoy learning so much more than what I was taught many years ago about the abolition movement. As well as the narratives of people

ncsufoxes that escaped enslavement. Henry & Ellen Craft devised a plan to escape their lives in the South. The book details their plans, escape & the difficulties that followed them for years after their escape. The Craft‘s also wrote their own book about their lives, which would be interesting to read one day. #bookspin 1mo
TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 1mo
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Chelsea.Poole
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Deserving of all the praise heaped upon it: a nonfiction book that reads like fiction. The story of a couple who are determined to be free, no matter the cost. Enslaved and desperate for escape, Ellen and William make a plan to travel by train to the northern states. Ellen has light skin and uses this to her advantage to pose as William‘s master during their journey to freedom. The next section features many historical figures from the period.

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RickW
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I really enjoyed this book. It‘s told in two parts, with the first being the most exciting. There is so much here and Ilyon Woo makes it possible for the reader to feel just how difficult it was to escape captivity. She also reveals the peculiar secrets of many popular politicians and Presidents and introduces us to writers and artists of the time while also revealing the jealousy and infighting among the anti slavery protesters. Great read.

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Hooked_on_books
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In 1848, enslaved couple Ellen and William Craft set off on an audacious, ingenious escape: the white-passing Ellen posed as a young man and William as her slave. This book tells their story alongside the changing laws and attitudes of the time and the fugitive slave lecture circuit wherein people spread the word about the truths of slavery. Fantastic narrative nonfiction.

jlhammar I'm in line for this audiobook. Glad to hear it's a good one! 12mo
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MaggieCarr
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Wow. This was fantastic, I liked the woven way it was written from their perspective adding in the historical content that they may or may not have known themselves during their journey. Instantly captivated and eye opening of a time in American History.

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Floresj
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Even with knowing the ending, the first 2/3‘s of the book was stressful. Written as the Crafts are escaping slavery in GA, I was reading quickly to see if they‘d make it….though I knew they did. Well written, good development of who they were before escaping, and their lives post slavery.

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Zbayardo
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This a great nonfiction narrative, African American history book that demands to be read, that we should all know about. The story of a slave couple that escape from the south to north in plain sight, out in the open! I highly recommend it!

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