The Candle Star
Page 15
“We expected you last night. When you didn’t show, we decided to come looking.”
Twenty minutes later, the cart turned off the road and onto a rutted track. As we approached a rickety shack, the driver grinned. “Welcome to Milford Manor.”
“We have food and clean clothing for you. Water to wash. I’ll bring medical help as soon as I can,” the boy offered, gazing at Sarah. “Rest up and regain your strength. When your woman has healed, I’ll drive you to the next safe house myself.”
His kindness overwhelmed me. For now, we were safe. I hugged Sarah tight to my chest and I wept.
Historical Note
Sometimes when writing historical fiction, the line between truth and imagination blurs. I’d like to take the opportunity to identify some factual people and events mentioned in The Candle Star.
Michigan played a very important role in the Underground Railroad, the network of secret routes escaping slaves followed to Canada. Seven lines crossed the state, most running through Detroit. My inspiration for The Candle Star came from the true account of a Detroit man named Seymour Finney who hid runaways in his barn while hosting slave catchers in his hotel. The railroad stock advertisement Zeke read was taken from an 1853 Detroit UGRR broadside now kept by the Detroit Public Library.
The most important historical figure to appear in my story was Frederick Douglass. A former slave, he rose to become one of the most eloquent and influential American orators of his day. He really did speak in the Second Baptist Church of Detroit on March 12, 1859. There is no record of what he said that day. The words I have written for him are actually his own, taken from several of his speeches then lumped into one address and shaped to fit this story.
George deBaptiste was another real-life character. His steamship, the T. Whitney, frequently carried human cargo to safety. Mr. deBaptiste hosted Frederick Douglass in his home where he met with the famous abolitionist, John Brown, after the address at Second Baptist. The church, the first in Michigan to be started by free Blacks, was instrumental in assisting thousands of runaway slaves to freedom. It still operates in Detroit today.
Sir George Cayley, an engineer from Scarborough, England, was the first person to discover the principles of flight. In 1853, he built and successfully tested the first manned glider. It probably wasn’t recreated and demonstrated five years later at an American state fair, but it could have been. All the other inventions mentioned at the fair were also accurate to the time period. Flying Tom Landless is fictional.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was one of America’s most noteworthy poets. He was alive and very popular when this story takes place. The quotes are taken from his poems “Autumn,” “The Building of the Ship,” and “To the River Charles” in that order.
Finally, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, the book mentioned by Emily in chapter 3, was published by Harriet Beecher Stowe in 1852 and helped to popularize the abolitionist movement, which aided the nomination of Abraham Lincoln to the presidency, which in turn led to the Civil War in 1861.
About the Divided Decade Collection
As a teacher, I wrote the Divided Decade Collection with the classroom in mind. I wanted to show the impact of the war on one region—my home state of Michigan—so I created three separate, loosely-related stories that illustrate three important Michigan roles.
Though Michigan never hosted a battle, it played an important role in the events surrounding the Civil War. Strongly pro-abolition, several of her counties were active in the Underground Railroad, with seven documented routes to freedom and as many as 200 safe houses. The Michigan home front was also vital to the war effort, supplying food, materials and support for the Northern Cause. And after the war, Michigan’s vast forests lured many who were looking for a new start. This collection spans the years surrounding the war and travels from city, to farm, to wilderness. Each book can be used as a stand-alone novel in the classroom.
The Candle Star
Detroit, 1858
After a tantrum, Emily Preston is shipped from her plantation home to her inn-keeping uncle in Detroit. There Emily meets Malachi, son of freed slaves, who challenges many ideas she grew up believing. But when Emily stumbles upon two runaways hidden in her uncle's barn, she finds that old ways die hard. And Mr. Burrows, the charming Southern slave catcher, is only yards away, lodged in the hotel.
Blood of Pioneers
Wayland, Michigan, 1862
Hannah craves excitement, but all local adventures dried up long ago, when her parents unpacked their wagon on the Michigan frontier. Then war breaks out and her father and brother leave to fight the Confederacy. Hannah is left at home chafing under the boredom of never-ending chores--until the farm is threatened. The one place she longs to leave suddenly becomes the one place she'll do anything to save.
Beneath the Slashings
Michigan Wilderness, 1865
Grace Nickerson's life has been shattered by four years of war. She's desperate to return to a sense of normalcy, but soon after her father returns, he sells the farm and drags the family to a lumber camp in Michigan's northern wilderness. Living among the rough loggers is frightening enough, but then a series of accidents prove intentional. Who is sabotaging the camp, and why? Will the winter in the woods bring the healing Grace's family needs? Or will it drive a wedge between Grace and her father?
The Divided Decade Collection is now FREE!
In an effort to serve more classrooms, I’ve made ebook versions of all three books free. (They may cost .99 cents on some retail sites where free is beyond my control.) Permission is granted to share them freely on school-issue Kindles and student devices.
In addition, paperback versions are available wholesale through Baker & Taylor and Ingram. (They’re available on Amazon for the rest of us.) The Candle Star is has also been produced as an audiobook; the other two books will soon follow. Each book has been Lexiled, and downloadable MARC files are readily available for library systems. And finally, an accompanying Classroom Resources booklet is available for each novel. All links, all versions, Lexile scores, and MARC file downloads can be found in my sidebar at the top of my blog: www.MichelleIsenhoff.com.
Thanks for passing this information along and helping me reach more teachers, librarians and home schoolers!
Michelle Isenhoff writes for tweens and teens. Her titles include works of historical fiction, fantasy, and one humorous action/adventure series. When she’s not writing imaginary adventures, she’s probably off on one. She loves roller coasters and swimming in big waves. She’s an enthusiastic runner and cycler. She likes big dogs, high school football games, old graveyards, and wearing flip-flops all winter. Her dream vacation would include lots of castle ruins, but so far she’s had to settle for pictures on Pinterest. Once an elementary teacher, Michelle now homeschools two of her three kids and looks forward to summer adventures as much as they do.
Michelle is also a firm believer in the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. As such, she will never include profanity or objectionable content in books meant for children. Works intended for older readers are written with conscionable restraint. Michelle writes in the religious genre under her nickname, Shell Isenhoff, and shares thoughts of a more personal nature on her blog, The Book and the Author.
Visit MichelleIsenhoff.com for additional titles and lesson plans to accompany them.
Michelle Isenhoff is a proud member of Emblazon:
A wise man once said, “Write your name on the heart of a child.”
We hope to emblazon our stories there.
Twenty authors
Dozens of tween books
Creating thousands of lifelong readers
Titles by Michelle Isenhoff
The Color of Freedom
Nominated for the 2012 Maine Student Book Award
Massachusetts, 1774
Meadow Wynn McKenzie hates the British. Turned off her Irish farm and forced to book passage to America as an indentured servant, Meadow understands why the
rebels wish to throw off the yoke of King George’s rule. But is freedom worth the cost? And in Puritan Boston, will liberty be extended to Irish Catholics?
Historical fiction, ages 12+
Watch the trailer.
The Quill Pen
If you owned a pen that wrote the future, would you use it? What if the consequences spread like ripples in a pond? What if they raged out of control? What if the pen demanded tribute...in blood? Micah Randall has found such a pen. One that’s ensnared him in a curse dating back generations. One that’s devastated two families and now threatens his whole New England village. But how can Micah destroy the pen when it offers him his only chance at the future he dreams of?
Fantasy, ages 10+
Watch the trailer.
Song of the Mountain – now FREE!
Semi-finalist in the Kindle Book Review 2013 Book Awards
Nominated for the 2013 Cybils Award
Song has grown up listening to his grandfather recite legends of the distant past. But it is his own history he seeks to uncover, particularly the events surrounding his parents’ deaths. But that is a secret closely guarded by his grandfather. Then Song discovers a puzzle box that links him to an ancient prophecy. His destiny lies within the old tales he has scorned. Song must follow the path that killed his father.
Fantasy, ages 10+
Taylor Davis and the Flame of Findul – now FREE!
Taylor didn’t want to follow his parents to the Caribbean. When he’s sucked into a world of angels and their supernatural adversaries, he wants the mission assigned to him even less. The Flame of Findul–the sword that guards the Tree of Life–has been allowed to burn out. The only way to avoid worldwide disaster is to relight it in the forge of Findul the Firesmith. Taylor has been chosen for this task. But there is One who stands in his way.
Fantasy, ages 12+
Watch the trailer.