The Kidnapped Prince: The Life of Olaudah Equiano Paperback – January 25, 2000

I purchased this to read aloud to my son as we did a unit study on Nigeria. We both were deeply moved by the heartbreak experienced by Olaudah Equiano, but also thoroughly entertained by all of his incredible adventures and acts of true bravery. I can tell that my son has a much more well-rounded perspective on the events of the 18th century. Most history texts seem to give the impression that it was only white men colonizing the Americas, sailing the ships, and fighting the wars. This book corrects that bias.I will admit that I did skip some of the most graphic details in the book since my son is only 7. However, I expect that he'll be returning to it in a few years when he's ready to read it independently.

Great for middle school history classes

Made my kid read this book to get a more balanced education on black history as well as slavery. Most kids are taught it's a thing only in US history but this simply is not true as you will read in this account. He was caught by Africans in his own country as it was a way of life. Eventually he was sold to white men as a slave even helping in the slavery trade at that time. Eventually he does get his freedom as well as respect and a title.

My son was assigned this book as part of his 5th grade curriculum. Sadly, I had never even heard of Olaudah Equiano. We read it together. I found this book to be profoundly touching. It is the true life story of a young boy kidnapped from Africa and sold into slavery. For me to write that this is a heart wrenching story would be an understatement. This was a difficult story (not in difficultly reading the words but the content of the words) for my 10 year old son. I am glad we read it together because honestly I think we both learned a lot.

This was a well written book for younger audiences looking into history/biography. The additional information of this character fills out his life and makes one realize how the human spirit must win over adversity to rise above the wrongs committed. It would be a good read for a school project.

I am using this for language arts tutoring fo a sixth grader. He loves this true story, and wants to read more about Olaudah.

This is a great book because it is a primary source for people who want to study slavery. But be warned-there are very cruel things in this book that are described...

Great story. Easy read.

Great read

Felt this book glorified the enslavement of Olaudah. Also, it did not follow him to the very end of his life, so the reader is left wondering what happened. So much detail was expressed in how he maintained himself while in servitude. Didn't like it!

I bought this book along with a few others as a gift for a teacher who wanted some English books relating to black history and literature as she could not find any in her country. Her response was that it was good and informative for the children.

Excellent

I bought this book for my child and she enjoyed it