Book Review: Courage To Run, By Wendy Lawton

Courage to run is based on the story of Harriet Tubman.

A little girl called Minty whose parents are in slavery, helps her mother look after the workers baby's. Minty has always had a dream to be free.

When Minty is still young she is hired out to work for Mr and Mrs Cook. Mrs Cook is a very harsh woman and was never good to Minty. Minty ends up getting very ill. Mr and Mrs Cook decided to take Minty back home.

After Minty recovered, Mr Cook came to fetch her to take her back to work for Mrs Cook again. Her stay with the Cooks was worse than before. She shivered in winter and sweats in summer, and Mrs Cook was always handing out unfair punishments.

At Last Minty’s hire finished and her mother and another worker came to pick her up. But she didn't even get to go home. Her mother had come because Minty was to be taken straight to work for someone else.

Minty was to work for Miss Susan who had a little baby and she wanted a house maid to to help with the baby and house work. Minty learnt a lot from Miss Susan's sister Emily who lived with Miss Susan for the time being. Miss Susan was not as harsh as Mrs Cook, although she still gave Minty a whip around the neck at night if the baby had woken her and Minty was still asleep, but Minty learnt to sleep lightly.

One day Miss Susan was having tea with her friends. When Miss Susan's friends were gone she told Minty to take the tea and food down to the kitchen. While Minty was doing this she spotted the sugar cube bowl, she had never tasted sugar before, so she put a cube in the pocket of her apron. Miss Susan was standing inside the door way at the time and saw Minty take the cube. Miss Susan started to shout at her. Half frightened to death Minty ran passed Miss Susan and out the door and ran away.

After a week or two Minty knew she would not be able to survive. So she went to Miss Susan's house. Miss Susan was so angry with Minty that she just simply took her back to her master.

The years went on. Minty's master hardly hired Minty out if at all because he felt sorry for her because of how badly treated she was with the Cook's and Miss Susan.

When Minty was thirteen she was given her adult name "Harriet". Harriet grew to be really strong, she was as strong as any man on the plantation. Harriet's master gave her the job of working with her father (which she was very happy to do).

One day there was a slave running away from an overseer, the slave ran into a shop hoping to hide. But the overseer knew the slave was in there, so he went in after him. Harriet had followed the overseer to see what would happen. When the overseer had the slave cornered he told Harriet to hold the slave so he could tie him up (For he intended to whip the slave). Harriet didn't want to do it. While the overseer was shouting a Harriet to do as he said, the slave bolted out the door and got away. This made the overseer so mad, he picked up one of the heaviest weights in the shop and threw it at her. The weight hit her in the head.

The blow of the weight left a hole in her head. She got very sick.

When Minty finally understood what had happened she realized that she had been sick for months. Harriet had brain damage, this meant that at any time she could have a sleeping fit and and go in to a really deep sleep. She started to regain her strength and remember things.

The book ends there.

Harriet Tubman is known for leading over three hundred people out of slavery through the Underground Railroad.

It's a great book, and I recommend reading it.