Based on the diary of the author’s great-grandmother, this is a poignant and compelling picture book that looks at slavery through the eyes of a young girl. In a letter to her friend, Nettie remembers her trip to the pre-Civil War South. She remembers the sweet cedar smell in the air and the sun pressing on her head. But she also remembers Tabitha, the slave at the hotel who doesn’t have a last name, and she remembers the heaps of rags the slaves use for beds.

Most of all, though, she remembers the slave auction where people were bought and sold like sacks of flour. Nettie can’t forget these images, and she can’t help but wonder what life would be like if she were a slave.