This one educates about the Fugitive Slave Act, while showing the power of coming together with others to stand up for what's right.

On a night in January in 1856, John Price and his cousin and friend took 2 horses from their masters barn and rode to the Ohio River. They knew that if they could cross to the other side, they would be in Ohio where slavery was outlawed. While in Ohio, they met an elderly Quaker who took these 3 slaves into his house and sheltered them for 2 weeks. After the 2 weeks, the group of 3 split up and traveled separate ways. They gained help from Quakers by turning their homes into Underground Railroad "stations" that were located about every 10 miles.This is a suspenseful yet fascinating story about John Price and his want for freedom. ( )

There aren’t many aspects about slavery worth celebrating, but every once in a while there is a story that can redeem your faith in humanity. … well, a part of humanity, at any rate.

This book tells the true story of three slaves from Kentucky - John Price, his cousin Dinah, and his friend Frank - who crossed the Ohio River to freedom in Ohio, where slavery was outlawed. But they couldn’t rest easy: part of the compromise legislation of 1850 was a toughening of the Fugitive Slave Act, which allowed slave owners to capture and return runaways from anywhere in the U.S. Aiding slaves was made a federal crime. Aiding slave owners, on the other hand, was now a lucrative operation. The main hope slaves had was to make it to Canada, where slavery had been outlawed since 1834.

The trio of slaves split up, since slave hunters would be looking for three slaves traveling together, and John and Frank ended up in Oberlin, Ohio, where they decided to remain. Slave hunters soon followed; they had been promised $500 per slave, equivalent to $13,000 each in today’s money.

John was captured, but the citizens of Oberlin didn’t just turn their backs. Hundreds of Oberlinians worked together to rescue John. While they did reclaim him from the slave hunters, he vanished after a few days. No one knows what became of John, Dinah, and Frank.

The rescuers were considered heroes by some and criminals by others, including most Southerners. The U.S. Government under President James Buchanan sided with the slaveholders, and thirty-seven men in Oberlin were sent to jail for three months.

After their sentences were up, the town of Oberlin had a big celebration and pledged:

No fugitive slave shall ever be taken from Oberlin either with or without a warrant, if we have power to prevent it.”

Eric Velasquez employs lush, full-color oil paintings as well as mixed media to show the range of emotions and the drama of this episode in history. He also provides accurate representations of this time period.

The final image is a large reproduction of an 1859 photo of the actual rescuers taken in the courtyard of the jail.

Back matter includes an Author’s Note, bibliography, suggestions for further reading, and a list of relevant websites.

Evaluation: This inspiring story can introduce a number of issues to kids, such as divisions in the country prior to the Civil War, and the difference between rule of law and moral imperatives. ( )

Judith and Dennis Fradin showed the story of Ohio townspeople who worked together to helped a slave runaway, John Price, escape slave hunters. John and two other slaves risked their lives by running away from their owners in 1856. They hoped to reach Canada, where slavery had ended in 1834. Unfortunately, their escape was during the winter and waterways were frozen. The trio found Quaker’s who aided in their escape by the using the Underground Railroad. When John Price was kidnapped by the slave hunters that was when the town stood up for him and fought to get him back. This was one of many events that led to the Civil War. These people of Oberlin, stood up for equal rights of all races. ( )

Authors Judith Bloom Fradin and Dennis Brindell Fradin along with illustrator Eric Velasquez tell the story 'The Price of Freedom.' In this picture book Judith and Dennis Fradin brings the story of a slave, named John Price, who runs away to seek freedom. After escaping from his master's house in Kentucky in the winter of 1856, with two of his horse, John and his cousin, Dinah, and friend Frank, they go on a continuous journey to reach north by following the North Star. Their plan is to reach Canada; in 1856 Canada did not allow slavery. After reaching an Underground Railroad, where they stay for a few weeks, thanks to the kindness of a Quaker and the railroad's conductor, John's cousin parts ways with the two men. John and his friend continue north because congress decided to pass the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, allowing slave owners to catch their runaway slaves. After weeks of walking, they were being denied entrance into Canada because of ice blocks in the lake crossing into the land the John and Frank decided it's best to wait at the biggest Underground Railroad, Oberlin, Ohio. They find that the town was not just against slavery, but believed in a "higher law" above that of any government. The runaway slaves choose to stay in this town with people who treat them as equals. The Fradins show us that Oberlin are true to their words. Once it got out that the slave catcher, Anderson Jennings had captured John Price to take back to Kentucky, the townsfolk of Oberlin quickly sprang to action. Former slaves, store owners, professors, college students, sons and daughters, men and women, blacks and whites, many stopped what they were doing and rushed to the Wadsworth Hotel, in Wellington, Ohio. It was here Jennings and his men had taken John Price to wait for the next train to Kentucky to earn his reward fir his capture. During the formation of the Oberlinians heading to Wellington, the Fradins used this opportunity to name a few of the men who came to John's rescue: William Lincoln, Henry and Wilson Bruce Evans, James Fitch, John Scott, and Charles Langston. The Oberlinian folk surrounded the hotel and even gained a few supporters from Wellington, including the Underground Railroad conductor, Matthew Gillet. After a few hours of demanding they release John Price, the group split up and made their way up to the room where John Price was being held, fighting their way through, and came to his rescue. The townsfolk protected John Price up until he decided to leave town thanks to the caring people of Oberlin and Wellington. We learn that this event came to be known as the Oberlin-Wellington Rescue. The Fradins tell us those involved were arrested for their acts against the Fugitive Slave Act. These thirty-seven freedom fighters arrested by the U.S. government were released after three months. The folk pledged to never let a fugitive slave be taken if they had anything to say about it; law, or no law. The Fradins let us know that it was this event, and many more, that led to the 1861-1865 Civil War, resulting in the North's victory, who fought for the freedom of all slaves. ( )