The Colour Box

"How could the courageous perseverance of two sisters improve the lives of the island's 30,000 slaves? Born in the 1700s on the British island of Antigua in the Caribbean, sisters Anne and Elizabeth Hart struggle against the injustice of slavery and inequality marking their world. Their free mulatto father inherits a working sugar cane plantation and slaves, while his daughters become abolitionists and educators who face conflict and legal battles over their endeavors. The island does not know what to make of them--educated but black, strong-willed but compassionate, outspoken but God-fearing. Can their faith enable them to break social norms and follow their hearts when each of them discovers controversial love? The sisters' determination to educate the slaves eventually leads them to follow a pattern of teaching school on Sunday, a practice established by a well-known educator of the times, Robert Rakes. Set in St. John's and then the Dockyard in English Harbour, this inspirational story interweaves imagined vignettes with research about Anne and Elizabeth and actual events leading up to the 1834 Emancipation. This vibrant historical retelling reveals a color box of personalities and cultures."--Goodreads