Solomon Northup's Twelve Years a Slave by Sue Eakin

Solomon Northup's Twelve Years a Slave by Sue Eakin

Solomon Northup was torn from his family in Saratoga Springs, New York, and thrust into a life of servitude in Bayou Boeuf, Louisiana. Northup, a well-educated and modestly successful family man, made his living as a fiddler and carpenter. When work grew scarce, Northup was tricked into traveling to Washington, DC, hoping to earn money for his family. There, he was drugged, kidnapped, and sold into slavery. For Northup, coming from a life of freedom and comparative privilege, slavery was intolerable. This powerful, first-person account, rewritten for younger readers, personalizes the experience of millions of slaves.

Sue Eakin, who passed away in 2009, was a professor of history at Louisiana State University at Alexandria. She spent more than four decades teaching Louisiana history, bringing a fresh approach to analyzing the state's vibrant past. Eakin's previous work included a rewrite of Solomon Northup's Twelve Years a Slave 1841-1853 that is intended for younger audiences. She resided in Bunkie, Louisiana, near the plantation where the events in Solomon Northrup's tale took place.