An 1800 insurrection planned by a literate slave known as "Prosser s Gabriel" inspires a historical novel following one extraordinary man s life. In a time of post-Revolutionary fervor in Richmond, Virginia, an imposing twenty-four-year-old slave named Gabriel, known for his courage and intellect, plotted a rebellion involving thousands of African- American freedom seekers armed with refashioned pitchforks and other implements of Gabriel s blacksmith trade. The revolt would be thwarted by a confluence of fierce weather and human betrayal, but Gabriel retained his dignity to the end. History knows little of Gabriel s early life. But here, author Gigi Amateau imagines a childhood shaped by a mother s devotion, a father s passion for liberation, and a friendship with a white master s son who later proved cowardly and cruel. She gives vibrant life to Gabriel s love for his wife-to-be, Nanny, a slave woman whose freedom he worked tirelessly, and futilely, to buy. Interwoven with original documents, this poignant, illuminating novel gives a personal face to a remarkable moment in history."
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