Horn Book Review
Addy's adventures as a free black person in Philadelphia continue. Facing segregation and discrimination in a northern city proves difficult for ten-year-old Addy and her family. Friendship, the chance to choose a date to celebrate her birthday, and working at a fair provide happy moments. Each book ends with an informative synopsis of the African-American experience during the time period. From HORN BOOK 1994, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
Gr. 2-4. From the American Girls series, these books continue the adventures of Addy, a former slave living free in Philadelphia in 1864. Addy and her parents have freedom but still experience hard times and long to be reunited with the rest of their family. In Happy Birthday, Addy befriends an elderly neighbor, helps her father get hired as a carpenter, and celebrates the end of the Civil War by designating the date as her birthday. In Saves the Day, Addy and her parents plant a garden and work on the church bazaar, hoping to earn the money they need to search for Addy's brother Sam, sister Esther, aunt Lula, and uncle Solomon. Addy must work to befriend a girl she dislikes when their animosity gets in the way of their common goal. Illustrated in color with some full-page pictures as well as small vignettes of places and artifacts of the period, these books fit right into the series known for its simplicity, period settings, and child appeal. ~--Carolyn Phelan