Forty Acres and Maybe a Mule

By Harriette Gillem Robinet, Wendell Minor (Illustrator)

Two brothers fight to protect their newfound freedom from night riders threatening their farm.

4.0/5 Goodreads · 760 ratings

144 pages

$7.99Save 7%

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Bookroo's summary

In the aftermath of the Civil War, brothers Pascal and Gideon, recently freed from slavery, strive to secure their dream of freedom on their farm, Green Gloryland. Promised land and a mule, they build a life with their found family. But as they savor their hard-won liberty, the ominous threat of night riders looms, determined to strip them of their home and peace. Can they defend their sanctuary and hold onto the freedom they've claimed? This gripping tale of resilience and hope unfolds during the turbulent Reconstruction era.

From the publisher

Winner of the 1999 Scott O’Dell Award A Notable Children’s Book in the Field of Social Studies Maybe nobody gave freedom, and nobody could take it away like they could take away a family farm. Maybe freedom was something you claimed for yourself. Like other ex-slaves, Pascal and his older brother Gideon have been promised forty acres and maybe a mule. With the family of friends they have built along the way, they claim a place of their own. Green Gloryland is the most wonderful place on earth, their own family farm with a healthy cotton crop and plenty to eat. But the notorious night riders have plans to take it away, threatening to tear the beautiful freedom that the two boys are enjoying for the first time in their young lives. Coming alive in plain, vibrant language is this story of the Reconstruction, after the Civil War.