The Slave Dancer: Amazon.ca: Paula Fox, Peter MacNicol: Books

Product Description

Review

"Fox has woven a spellbinding tale of suspense and survival that will horrify as well as fascinate..."

-- Library Journal (starred review)

"A story that movingly and realistically presents one of the most gruesome chapters of history, with all the violence, inhuman conditions, and bestial aspects of human nature -- exposed but never exploited in Fox's graphic, documentary prose."

-- Booklist (starred review)

Book Description

"Take up the pipe, Claudius," a voice growled near Jessie's bound head. "He's worth nothing without his pipe!"

Snatched from the docks of New Orleans, thirteen-year-old Jessie is thrown aboard a slave ship where he must play his fife so that captured slaves will "dance," to keep their muscles strong and their bodies profitable for their owners' use.

Jessie is sickened as he witnesses the horrible practices of the slave trade. But even those horrors can't compare to the one final event awaiting Jessie's witness. Can the cruelty to his fellow human beings be stopped? And will it be too late when it finally does stop?

In a stunning performance by Peter MacNicol, Paula Fox's enduring classic comes magnificently alive, with the seating truth about a period of American history we would otherwise most likely wish to forget.

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Customer Reviews

104 Reviews

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(25)
3 star:		(14)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(25)

Average Customer Review

3.2 out of 5 stars (104 customer reviews)

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Most helpful customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Compelling novel, Mar 17 2004

By

R, your friendly neighborhood reviewer - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Slave Dancer (Paperback)

I recently read that when Mrs. Fox had accepted the Newbery award for this powerful novel that a small group of African Americans had protested outside the calling this book rascist. In my personal opinion, it is every author's right to record the way things were even if they do offend someone people, especially when writing a historical novel such as The Slave Dancer or Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry. And it gives me great pleasure to say that this group has persevered and rose above the tyrant which was called slavery

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5.0 out of 5 stars A Powerful, Compelling Read, Feb 1 2004

By

anthony nasti (Brooklyn, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Slave Dancer (Paperback)

I had to read this book as a school assignment as a sort of author study on Paula Fox. I have to say that I really enjoyed it. I didn't enjoy it as much as "Monkey Island" (also by Paula Fox), but I did find it a very satisfying book.

"The Slave Dancer" tells the story of Jessie Bullier, a 13 - year - old boy who lives with his mom and sister in a run - down, moldy shack in New Orleans. Right from the start you can tell that Jessie does not live a very charmed life. One day while at the docks, Jessie is kidnapped and brought aboard a slave ship called "Moonlight". He is introuced to an odd assortment of characters, among them Captain Cawthorne, Nicholas Spark, Ned Grime and Clay Purvis, who befriends Jesse throughout the four months or so he spends on the ship. Jessie is forced to "dance" the slaves with his fife. Towards the end he becomes friends with a slave named Ras. From here on you can probably guess what happens, but the last paragraph of the book makes for one of the eeriest endings in literary history.

I suggest the purchase of this book. It is very good, and proves that Fox has a unique blend of creating intricate storytelling combined with adult - style phrases and language. Perfect.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Easy reading for those who might best benefit from it, Oct 25 2002

By

S. Silverman "ReaderGeode" (California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Slave Dancer (Paperback)

A mid-70's Newbery winner, and a gem. With Out of the Dust, and Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry, the very finest Newbery has to offer in historical fiction. The reading level may be late elementary or early middle school, but the content calls for later middle school or high school. The details of abducting and carrying slaves, their treatment at the hands of their transporters, the crude and often cruel behavior of the ship's crew, and the horrors of shipboard life make the themes tough for sensitive younger readers. It will provide a young reader with a thoroughly unsettling look at an unseemly part of American history. The main character, the white boy kidnapped from the streets of New Orleans in 1840 to play his fife to encourage the slaves to dance, is a good, clear, child's view of things, properly aghast and open-minded, the pleasant part of the story and its first person teller. What Slave Dancer gives is brilliant in its clarity and horror. I recommend it highly with the caveats above.

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Most recent customer reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars The Unsatisfied
I read this book thinking that it would be an epic. I was very wrong. I give it two stars so that it can claim it's dignity, but I will not be as easily swayed in this review. Read more

Published on May 24 2004

5.0 out of 5 stars The Slave Dancer
The Slave Dancer, by Paula Fox is a wonderful book. It is full of excitement and adventure! The story is set in New Orleans. Read more

Published on Jan 7 2003