 | Most Perilous World: The True Story Of The Young Abolitionists And Their Crusade Against Slavery Author: Gaddy, Kristina R. | |
| Price: $14.99 | ||
Summary:
The stories of the four teenage children of prominent abolitionists before and during the Civil War combine to form a surprisingly familiar tapestry of struggle, disappointment, and ultimately hope.
Reviews:
Booklist (+) (12/01/25)
The Hornbook (00/07/25)
Full Text Reviews:
Booklist - 05/01/2025 *Starred Review* While Frederick Douglass, William Lloyd Garrison, and other notable abolitionists made it their mission to free enslaved Black Americans, what were their teenage children, raised in these very specific households, doing? Gaddy explores the lives of four young abolitionists, two Black (Lewis Douglass and Charlotte Forten) and two white (George Garrison and Lucy McKim), before and during the Civil War. Within chronologically arranged sections, short, intertwined chapters—fueled by extensive research, quotes from journals, letters, and other primary sources—alternate perspectives among the four young adults. Through their experiences, readers learn more nuanced history, such as how the Kansas–Nebraska Act led to violence and further divided the North and the South, Abraham Lincoln’s delayed abolition of slavery, and racial discrimination of Black soldiers within the Union army. Equally enlightening are the ways these young people received information at the time and interpreted the Constitution, as well as how their views aligned with or differed from their influential parents. At the heart of this narrative nonfiction are also the accounts of typical young adults who aspired to forge their own paths, find romance, realize their dreams, and change the world. Numerous interspersed primary source documents provide greater context to their stories. Gaddy’s thought-provoking take on what abolition means today concludes this distinct, well-researched view of American history. - Copyright 2025 Booklist.
