Susie Wilde (Children's Literature)
Sharon Draper is one of young adults’ favorite authors of contemporary African American issues. Now she shows equally shining fiction in this her first historical novel. Amari lives in an idyllic African village where she is growing happily into young adulthood with adored parents and a handsome suitor. Suddenly her life is shattered when she sees her parents killed and is taken aboard a slave ship. She suffers a miserable journey only to endure a horrible fate--she is bought by a Carolina plantation owner as a birthday present for his sixteen-year-old son. Draper does not spare her devoted readers any of the sickening details. We suffer as Amari is beaten, raped, and as she observes cruelties that break her heart. Still she has the courage to escape and undertake a harrowing journey into the Spanish-owned Florida territories with a white indentured servant, Polly, who becomes her best friend. The chapters alternate in perspective as these two girls tell a stirring story sure to move young adult readers. 2006, Atheneum/Simon & Schuster, $16.95. Ages 12 up.

Claudia Mills, Ph.D. (Children's Literature)
When Amari's family is slaughtered, and she herself is sold from her African village into brutal slavery in America, given as a gift to the vicious son of an arrogant plantation owner, she feels that her life is over. Forced into the degradation of sharing Clay's bed at night, witnessing the horror of his using a young slave as bait for alligator hunting by day, she has no option but to try to escape to the safety of Fort Mose, Florida, which in the 1730s was a Spanish stronghold and refuge for runaway slaves. Draper's riveting tale weaves together Amari's desperate quest for freedom with the equally compelling narrative of Polly, a white indentured girl who initially scorns the black slaves who work beside her but comes to pity their sufferings as she grasps their fellow humanity. Draper succeeds in making Polly's initial racism understandable, given her deep and ignorant prejudice; Polly's transformation proceeds gradually in a way that helps readers to understand both how racism begins and how it can be overcome. While Clay and father are hideously cruel, other white characters are kind toward Amari and regretfully recognize their own complicity in the evil of slavery. Copper Sun is a gripping, suspenseful page-turner that provokes thoughtful discussion about how otherwise decent people could live in a world in which their fellow human beings were enslaved. 2006, Atheneum, $16.95. Ages 14 up.

Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, January 1, 2006 (Vol. 74, No. 1))
Poignant and harrowing, this narrative of early America alternates between the voices of enslaved Amari and indentured servant Polly, building a believable interracial friendship centered on the common goal of freedom. Amari is captured from her idyllic home in Africa, and sold into slavery in the New World. While accounts of the attack on the tribe and the Middle Passage are ephemeral, the story hits its stride upon Amari's arrival in colonial South Carolina. At the slave auction, the reader is introduced to Amari's new masters and Polly, who is a new servant in their household. Polly initially dislikes the African slaves, viewing them as strange competition for limited work, yet grows to sympathize with Amari's plight when she is repeatedly raped by the master's son, Clay. Polly's cynicism and realistic outlook on life provides a welcome contrast to the lost innocence of Amari, whose voice often disappears beneath the misery of her circumstances (save for in one unforgettable passage at the end, where she encounters her betrothed from her village, and mourns the loss of what might have been). Sobering, yet essential. 2006, Atheneum, 320p, $16.95. Category: Historical fiction. Ages 13 up. © 2006 Kirkus Reviews/VNU eMedia, Inc. All rights reserved.

KaaVonia Hinton, Ph.D. (KLIATT Review, January 2006 (Vol. 40, No. 1))
In the classic The Souls of Black Folk, W.E.B. Du Bois, speaking of the slaves' sorrow songs, writes, "Through all of the Sorrow Songs there breathes a hope--a faith in the ultimate justice of things." This premise is suggested in Copper Sun, the story of 15-year-old Amira's enslavement and journey to freedom. Purchased as a gift for Clay Derby, Amira's primary purpose is to satisfy him sexually by night and physically as a laborer by day. An excerpt from Harlem Renaissance poet Countee Cullen's poem, "Heritage," opens the novel, bringing to mind one of his earliest books of poetry, Copper Sun, while illuminating the book's theme: what is Africa to me? Quite graphic at times and perhaps a difficult read for some (as is Gary Paulsen's Nightjohn), the atrocities emphasized (e.g., rape, murder, torture) are necessary to convey key questions posed in the novel: How do we understand the resilience of American slaves? How was the treatment of slaves, white women, and poor whites similar, yet different? How does slavery impact contemporary America? Scholars of African American literature argue that authors of contemporary novels about slavery have certain literary freedoms that authors of actual slave narratives did not, as the former were encouraged to write stories that would be endorsed by abolitionists. Draper charters territory few traditional slave narratives dared when she explores a consenting sexual relationship between the Derby mistress and her "bodyguard" that results in the birth of a black daughter, depicts the cook as more than willing to poison her owners when they threaten to sell her only child, and troubles the assumption that all white women were "free." Already being compared to Roots, this novel is best suited for mature YA readers, and accompanied by discussions about early African culture and sensibility, acts of resistance executed by slaves (alone and in partnerships with indentured servants), and abolitionist efforts. Category: Hardcover Fiction. KLIATT Codes: S--Recommended for senior high school students. 2006, Simon & Schuster, 308p., $16.95. Ages 15 to 18.

Kathryn Childs (Library Media Connection, August/September 2006)
Sharon Draper, author of The Battle of Jericho (Atheneum (Simon & Schuster), 2003), offers young adult readers an exciting, yet sobering story of the slave trade and plantation life in the 18th Century. Amari, a fifteen-year-old African girl, survives the burning and looting of her village and the brutal murder of her family only to be dragged aboard a slave ship where miserable, unsanitary conditions and cruel treatment threaten her already fragile physical and emotional constitution. Arriving in America, she is auctioned off. Amari and an indentured white girl, Polly, find themselves unlikely friends when they are forced to live together in the slave quarters. Purchased as a birthday gift for the master's sixteen-year-old son, Amari's only hope is escape. The master's fury spurs Amari and Polly to escape toward a place of freedom they've only heard about, Fort Mose, a Spanish colony in Florida. This character-rich, moving story of two young women facing overwhelming odds will catch the interest of many readers who have a love of history. It is a great story that will increase students' knowledge of slavery and indentured servitude and its impact on the young people of that time period. Highly Recommended. 2006, Atheneum (Simon & Schuster), 320pp., $17 hc. Ages 12 to 16.

Jill Adams (The ALAN Review, Spring/Summer 2006 (Vol. 33, No. 3))
Some stories need to be told. Fifteen-year-old Amari’s story of slavery is told through Sharon Draper’s powerful new novel, Copper Sun. Amari’s tale begins in an African village, where she lives with her family. Foreign visitors are given a warm welcome before a blood bath ensues as the visitors kill many villagers or put them in shackles. The slaves’ journey to America is brutal, but Amari survives. She is later sold to a plantation owner, who buys her as a gift to his son for his 16th birthday. Life on the plantation is harsh, but Polly (an indentured white servant) helps Amari and later befriends her. After witnessing a brutal murder by the plantation owner, Amari, Polly, and Tidbit (a slave’s son) escape captivity and become runaways. Draper masterfully portrays the inhumane realities of slaves’ lives in America in this compelling read. Unimaginable horrors are graphically portrayed; there are scenes of rape and bloodshed, including a scene where slave owners use Tidbit as gator bait. These visions allow audiences to not only hear the story, but they enable us to feel the rage and injustices as well. Category: Historical Fiction/Survival/Slavery. YA--Young Adult. 2006, Atheneum, 302 pp., $16.95. Ages young adult.Denver, CO

Horn Book (The Horn Book Guide, Fall 2006)
Kidnapped from her village at fifteen and subjected to the horrific Middle Passage, Amari is sold to a South Carolina planter, along with Polly, a white indentured servant. Amari endures beatings and rape, but she finds a friend in Polly, who joins her escape. Some passages seem more told than shown, but Draper succeeds in dramatizing the slave experience. Category: Older Fiction. 2006, Atheneum, 306pp, 16.95. Ages 12 to 14. Rating: 4: Recommended, with minor flaws.

KaaVonia Hinton-Johnson (VOYA, February 2006 (Vol. 28, No. 6))
Despite the book's eighteenth-century setting, fifteen-year-old Amira is much like today's teenagers: She is in love, has an annoying sibling, and avoids her doting mother as much as possible. Reminiscent of Michael Dorris's Morning Girl (Hyperion, 1994), the opening chapters reveal Amira's loving community before "milk-faced" strangers ravage the village, killing the very young and old while kidnapping others. Readers follow along as Amira is taken to the Ivory Coast, survives the Middle Passage, and is sold in the Carolinas to serve as a birthday gift for young Clay Derby. Draper abruptly introduces another narrator, Polly, an ambitious white indentured servant purchased haphazardly by the Derbys. Forced to teach Amira English and appropriate ways to interact on the plantation, Polly become close with Amira-so close that they join together to protect their white mistress and her black newborn. When an opportunity to escape is presented, they take it, heading south to Fort Mose, Florida, a Spanish colony. Draper says that the book took several years to write because of the careful research that it required. A list of sources, along with a brief afterword aimed at teachers ends the book, but readers will also value the prefatory author's note expressing her personal interest in American slavery. Those who appreciated Gary Paulsen's Nightjohn (Delacorte, 1993), Jennifer Armstrong's Steal Away (Orchard, 1992/VOYA August 1992) or Mary E. Lyons' Letters from a Slave Girl: The Story of Harriet Jacobs (Scribner's, 1992/VOYA December 1992) will find a thoughtful book searching for answers about longevity, courage, friendship, and heritage. This reviewer believes it is Draper's best book to date. VOYA CODES: 4Q 4P J S (Better than most, marred only by occasional lapses; Broad general YA appeal; Junior High, defined as grades 7 to 9; Senior High, defined as grades 10 to 12). 2006, Atheneum/S & S, 320p., $16.95. Ages 12 to 18.