I was not given the chance to read this one but it sounded like an amazing read. This is something that need to be continued to be written about.

“The daily threat posed by white and black kidnappers alike haunted their neighborhoods, a constant and existential reminder of the limits of African American freedom in post-revolutionary America.”

The author used letters, judicial records and newspaper articles to reconstruct the story of 5 free negro boys who were kidnapped in Philadelphia in August of 1825 and brought south to be sold into slavery. They ranged in age from 8 to 15. These were just 5 of many children who were either violently abducted or lured with the promise of work. They were then chained on ships and sent to one of the slave states. Some didn’t survive the trip south, most were sold but very few were lucky enough to find their way home. This wasn’t an adventure story; the rescue involved legal maneuvering. Since the kidnapper gangs were naturally pretty secretive, there isn’t much of a paper trail, but I thought the author did a very good job with his research. He was fortunate that a lawyer in Mississippi wrote a comprehensive memorandum about the boys and that newspapers reported on their testimony.

This was a compelling story. The book has a few pictures and almost 50% of the kindle file is comprised of endnotes. Of particular interest to me was the fact that one of the boys was an escaped slave from a New Jersey plantation. His family had at one time been owned by a man named John Kline. The author confirmed this from a history of 2 counties, in one of which I was born. That aspect of the story was a shocker to me. In fact, I lived on Kline’s Mill Road. Somehow this history of New Jersey never made it into classroom discussions.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

I'd read enough about the reverse underground railroad to understand, intellectually, the brutality and horror of it all. With Stolen, Richard Bell takes this backdrop and presents the true story of five free black boys who'd been kidnapped and swept up into slavery. By personalizing this piece of history, Bell makes us feel it. Imagine being a ten-year-old child yanked off the street, beaten, transported to another state, and sold, all because your skin is the right - or wrong - color. Then imagine being that child's parent and having absolutely no legal recourse because your skin is dark and no one cares. This is the truth Bell shares with us.

I'm not sure I can put into words how vital this book is. Schools teach us a sanitized version of history, which does, perhaps, more harm than good.

While the content is intense, the writing style is an easy to read, casual narrative. This isn't a long, time-consuming read requiring a huge commitment. Almost half of the book is the research notes at the end.

The book contains quite a few images. I read this in ebook format, which never really does justice to images. They're small and it's difficult to see detail. I highly recommend buying the print version.

Until I read this book, I was not aware of the Reverse Underground Railroad, and yet, given the opportunistic tendencies of men with no moral compass, I should have suspected, had I only thought about it.

This is a meticulously researched, well-written and important read. At the same time, it is very dark, and emotionally, a very difficult read, and I found myself needing to take frequent breaks from it.

There is no possible way, despite the author's efforts, to truly understand the horrors of that time. As with WWII, it is challenging to wrap my mind around the madness, inhumanity and pure evil occurring and the complicity of those who stood by afraid to become involved to stop it.

Honestly, I feel stunned. I don't know what to say, and anything I can say would be far too inadequate. This happened. Human trafficking is still happening. Slavery is still happening. Torture and inhumanity is still happening. Evil is alive and well. God help us all.

Many thanks to NetGalley and 37 Ink for allowing me to read a copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review. All opinions are my own.

I try to stay away from Slave narratives but there was something about this title that pulled me in. Stolen by Richard Bell is a well-researched account of four free Black boys that were lured off onto a boat where they were bound and gagged and sold in the south. This was a fascinating story of reverse underground railroad.

This book ended up being shorter than I expected because the last 75+ pages was all references and honestly, I wanted more on these stories. Either way I would still recommend this all. Its fast pace & and didn’t get super emotionally like I do when I tend to read these stories.

Thanks to Atsia Books and NetGalley for gifting me a copy of this book.

I think this book is definitely an important book to read, but be prepared to have your heart broken. It’s disturbing in many ways, but sadly this was reality. If you like learning about history, you should read this book. Have tissues and take lots of breaks, they will be needed.
Will make sure I recommend to those I feel can handle the topic.

What an interesting read. I really felt like I was in history class reading this book. I learned so much and I love how Richard Bell made sure to reference true detail throughout this book.

I did not know about the Reverse Underground until reading this. This is more research material than book, but it was still a good read and very informative. It was greatly disturbing as well.

What a story! I appreciated the Hugh quality of research and writing that went into this book. It felt solid and important, but also really carries the reader along with the story. Highly recommended.

Lost a star because nearly 40% of the content was references. I'm glad it was so heavily researched but, it made for a thin book.

This book chronicles the story of 4 free Black boys (and one runaway slave boy), lured off the streets of Philadelphia and onto a boat where they were bound and gagged and shipped off by a notorious gang of kidnappers. The kidnappers made their money by stealing free persons and selling them down south with forged papers, and sometimes not even bothering with papers.

One free Black woman who was kidnapped while getting firewood ended up with the boys in the lot for sale, and her story is told too (but not in as much detail as the boys).

Rarely were stolen children returned to their families. This tale had a happy ending.

I had never heard of the Reverse Underground Railroad before reading this book. Of course, it doesn't surprise me one bit. This country fought a war to try to keep Blacks from being treated as full humans in the eyes of the law, and even when the Civil War was over the disenfranchisement continued for another century +.

March 6, 1857, Chief Justice Roger B. Taney, of the United States Supreme Court wrote: "The negro has no rights which the white man is bound to respect." This country has plenty of folks that still agree with that statement, one-hundred and sixty two years later.

Recommended for history geeks.

“””even today, we confront the haunting legacies of the sins of the past””” ...... In all honesty I’ll have to get my hands on a finished copy to truly appreciate the illustrations that are included in this amazing book. We’re all painfully familiar with the Underground Railroad, but most of us know next to nothing about the Reverse Underground Railroad. In this book we follow five, young, free black boys who are savagely ripped from their homes and delivered to the south to be sold as slaves. An incredible story that will, at the very least, rip your heart out. Intensely written, fast paced and mind gripping.

History that reads like a novel. A great overview that brings the horror of slavery in the US to light in a new way. Compulsively readable.