Book Launch Party: Frederick Douglass for Kids

Welcome back to my book launch party to celebrate the release of my newest book, Frederick Douglass for Kids!

LET’S PARTY!
Today’s stop on my virtual Book Launch Party is taking place at the site of children’s author Mary Cronk Farrell.

Visit her site to learn more about Frederick Douglass as well as the important role black troops had in the Civil War!

PRIZES
The prize that you can enter today for a chance to win is a set of autographed full-color bookmarks for my new book, Frederick Douglass and Kids! Here’s what to do to get your name in the hat today for a chance to win the prize. (A winner will be announced on Monday, June 11 here on my blog.)

Visit Goodreads and read portions of the book in their Google preview. Then post a 5-star review of Frederick Douglass for Kids at Goodreads!

Visit Amazon and read portions of the book in their “Look inside the book” feature. Then post a 5-star review of Frederick Douglass for Kids on Amazon!

Just post one 5-star review and e-mail me at jeffandnancys@gmail.com to let me know. I’ll put your name in the hat for a chance to win a free set of autographed bookmarks.

And if you post two 5-star reviews (at both Goodreads and Amazon)…well guess what?! I’m offering a new prize just today for a free critique of the first page of your manuscript. I know I have some readers around the world in different timezones, so just e-mail me when you read this and I’ll put your name in the hat. I’ll announce this winner on Monday, June 11. People pay big bucks for a first page critique like this so don’t miss this wonderful opportunity to get a free critique AND help spread the news about this important book.

About Frederick Douglass!
Here on my blog during the book launch party, I’m sharing photographs I took with my husband Jeff as we traveled through the eastern states where Frederick Douglass once lived. Midway through out trip, one of our sons, Ben, joined us, too.

One of the places we stopped at was a historic site called Mount Misery. It is now a private residence of someone quite well-known, so we didn’t ask to come inside. But we stopped at the driveway and took the photo above. It was here that Frederick Douglass experienced some of the darkest days of his life. After living in Baltimore as a house slave, he was moved back to the Eastern Shores of Maryland during the settlement of estate when various property was divided up among family members. The family member Frederick was sent to live with, Thomas Auld, determined that city life in Baltimore had made him unfit to be a slave. So he was sent to live here at Mount Misery with a “slave-breaker” and the brutalities and extreme exposure he experienced during that time plummeted him into darkness and despair.

After various series of events that I explain in detail in my new book Frederick Douglass for Kids, Frederick Douglass tried to escape, but was caught and sent back to live in Baltimore, once again, with his former master, Hugh Auld. Once back in Baltimore, Frederick Douglass learned the trade of being a caulker.

After our visit to the Eastern Shores of Maryland, we traveled to Baltimore to visit the Douglass-Myers Maritime Park and Museum. What a great resource this museum is for learning more about Frederick Douglass and his life in Baltimore as a young man!

This is a mural at the front of the museum. Everyone at the museum was so helpful, and graciously permitted us to take as many photographs as we wanted to use in my new book. That isn’t always the response I get from museums, so I was very, very grateful for their help.

Here’s a display that was inside the museum that shows what the harbor in Baltimore looked like over 100 years ago.

And here’s a display depicting Frederick Douglass working as a caulker, the job he learned as his trade. As a caulker, he made ships that were being built watertight to withstand the long ocean voyages.

And here’s a beautiful quilt on display at the museum when we visited.
This quilt artist also depicted a caulker in her project.

I highly recommend that if you’re ever in the Baltimore area to stop in and explore this museum. It will give you a much deeper understanding and appreciation for Frederick Douglass and the workers in the maritime trade during these years in our nation’s history.

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