![]() ![]() ![]() Slavery was declared illegal and subsequently outlawed in the state. With the help of a young lawyer, she went to court and the following year, won her freedom, becoming Elizabeth Freeman. In 1780, Mumbet heard the words of the new Massachusetts constitution, including its declaration of freedom and equality. With the words of Massachusetts colonial rebels ringing in her ears, a slave determines to win her freedom. Still, this may serve as an entry point for kids who think that history is dry as dust, and “Ye Olde True or False Section” really is pretty funny. While there is a hallowed place for irreverence in children’s literature, one might wish for a work that more evenly balances humor with substance. John is bold, writing his name large on the blackboard Paul is noisy, bellowing out customers’ orders in his family’s shop George is honest, confessing to the chopping down of not only the cherry tree, but the whole orchard Ben is clever, sharing his aphorisms with all who will listen and Tom is independent, making a model of Monticello instead of a birdhouse out of “ye olde balsa wood.” Smith’s faux-antiqued illustrations deliver bucket-loads of zany energy, but his text lacks his sometime partner Jon Scieszka’s focus. Each is imagined in his youth, identified by one characteristic that becomes key to his involvement in the American Revolution. Despite the Beatles-reminiscent title, this offering concerns itself with not four, but five of the Founding Dads: John (Hancock), Paul (Revere), George (Washington), Ben (Franklin) and Tom (Jefferson). ![]()
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