Maritcha: A Nineteenth-Century American Girl, a children’s book by Tonya Bolden, offers a rare glimpse into one young girl’s life growing up in all the hustle and bustle of mid-1800’s New York City. Her parent’s boarding house, a welcome stop for luminaries such as Frederick Douglas, also served as safe haven for the estimated one thousand people escaping slavery who stopped there on their underground railroad journey. Bolden pairs artwork, artifacts, and portraits of the time to unearth the day to day experiences of young Maritcha’s life as well as the unrest that threatens the family, not once but on multiple occasions, eventually causing them to venture to Rhode Island where Maritcha goes to court to win her right to be educated among her white peers at Providence High School.

Discover more…
Tonya Bolden – http://www.tonyaboldenbooks.com/
Maritcha Lyons – http://www.lyonscommunityschool.org/about-lyons/maritcha-lyons

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