Before She Was Harriet

Mia Ellis narrates this iconographic-animated adaptation of the 2017 picture book written by Lesa Cline-Ransome and illustrated by her husband James E. Ransome on the life of Underground Railroad icon Harriet Tubman. Now in her craggy-faced "twilight" years, Harriet is glad to be old, stiff, tired, achy, wrinkled, worn, etc., after all that she has lived through. The program recalls her young days as a slave called "Minty" (Araminta), the daughter of Ben and Rit; work as a Union spy during the Civil War; and leadership on a boat raid on the Congaree River to free South Carolina slaves. Somewhat incongruously, this short program also mentions notable black women from various walks of life, including Fannie Lou Hamer, Toni Morrison, Michelle Obama, and Viola Davis. Also including a read-along option, this is a strong optional purchase. Aud: K, E, P. (J. Williams-Wood)