Henry's Freedom Box - Bog 8

A fantastic example of a multicultural work of children's literature is Henry’s Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad.  This beautifully illustrated and heartwarming story is one that children will love to read and that can gently teach them about the difficult concept of slavery in the United States.

Henry is a little boy who doesn’t even know his birthday because nobody keeps track of slaves birthdays.  He lives a tough life and when his first master dies, he is torn-away from his mother and given to the master’s son who puts him to work in his tobacco factory.  Henry’s new master is mean and Henry is unhappy until he meets and falls in love with a woman named Nancy, also a slave.  Henry and Nancy are married and start a family.  Then, when Nancy and Henry’s children are sold by their master, Henry’s life again turns to pain and sorrow.  He decides he can no longer take it and, with the help of a sympathetic friend, packages himself in a crate – which will be mailed to Pennsylvania where Henry can be free.  Henry endures a great deal while trapped and confined in the crate as it is shipped on steamboat all the way North.  Finally, Henry arrived in Philadelphia on March 30, 1849, which became what he had never had before, his birthday.

This book is an example of a multicultural work because it features a story about a part of American history and culture that is different from that of many of us, myself included.  Henry’s story is similar to many slaves in that it teaches children about life in the South before slaves (and many African Americans in general) were freed.

Classroom Activities:

The students can make their own “freedom boxes” – just like the crate in Henry’s story – and place inside them something important to them which can be mailed from school to their house.

We can build a lifesize “freedom box” for the children to climb inside of so that they can see – for just a few minutes – what it would have been like for Henry to be trapped in his crate for hours and hours.

Questions for Students:

What do you think it would be like to be taken-away from your family?  What do you think Henry felt when, after he was taken from his mother, he saw his children taken-away from him?

What is a difficult trip that you have made and why?

Henry’s story is truly inspiring.  This book is easy to read and has absolutely beautiful, colorful illustrations.  I enjoyed the story and the incredibly tough experiences Henry “Box” Brown had to face as well as the uplifting ending which showed that despite all those difficulties, Henry could be “born again” into a free life which he truly deserved.

Levine, E. (2007). Henry's Freedom Box. New York, NY:Johnson Co.