Come August, Come Freedom
The Bellows, The Gallows, and The Black General Gabriel

Ok fully aware that this book is probably meant for younger audiences and I would honestly recommend it to a middle or high schooler but I think this book could have been a lot better. It had a strong beginning and I liked the inclusion of primary sources, but it felt like the author got bored of th......more

In 1800, in Richmond, Virginia, a twenty-four-year-old literate slave known as Prosser’s Gabriel planned an insurrection involving thousands of African-Americans freedom seekers. The rebellion did not succeed – a mixture of bad weather and betrayal prevented the revolt from even starting – and Gabri......more

This YA historic fiction focuses on an important but flawed insurrection, directed. The writing is crisp, the organization compelling.Amateau makes good use of rich sources and projects Gabriel as a young idealist with high ambitions for his quest and his community. His story is worthy of the effort......more

This beautiful but tragic story is based on actual events relating to the slave Gabriel, who had the temerity, in 18th Century Virginia, to dream of freedom. The author imagines Gabriel’s interior life, based on what is known about his actual circumstances. Born into slavery on a tobacco plantation i......more

I loved this book! I found myself completely immersed in the time period of Revolutionary War America and completely drawn in by all the characters and by the charismatic Gabriel in particular. In a book that could be in danger of instructing us what to think, Gigi Amateau wisely and beautifully let......more