In 1831, Patience Crandall opened a school for girls and young women in Canterbury, Connecticut, and soon after began accepting African American students, to the anger and dismay of many Canterbury citizens. Free black families throughout the East sent their daughters to be educated while opponents in Canterbury looked for ways to close Miss Crandall’s school. When arresting Miss Crandall didn’t deter her, they turned to violence and eventually succeeded in shutting the school down. Connecticut poets Elizabeth Alexander and Marilyn Nelson imagine the feelings of the students, their teacher and families, townspeople, and others in powerful sonnets that also incorporate historical facts to mark moments on the timeline of events in the remarkable school’s brief history. The final sonnet, in the voice of student Julia Williams, concludes, “I have twice seen bloodlust / and ignorance combust. I have seen it.” The volume’s introduction is an essay giving the history of Miss Crandall’s school, and the authors’ endnote discusses the collaborative process by which they found inspiration in striving to understand many perspectives on this piece of the past. (Age 11 and older)

ALSC Notable Children's Book

Here is the story of Miss Prudence Crandall and her black students, who endured the cruelty of prejudice and hateful actions for the sake of their education.

Miss Crandall faced legal proceedings for opening her school of African American women. But her young students knew that Miss Crandall had committed no crime. They knew that the real criminals were the rich white residents of Canterbury, Connecticut, who had poisoned the school's water and set fire to the schoolhouse. But hatred could not destroy their patience and compassion. From March of 1833 to September of 1834, when persecution forced the school to close, these African American women learned that they deserved an education. What they needed was the courage to go after it.

Poets Elizabeth Alexander and Marilyn Nelson have re-created the remarkable story of Prudence Crandall's school in this award-winning book, using the sonnet form with innovative style. Floyd Cooper's powerful illustrations reveal the strength and vulnerability of Miss Crandall and her students.