Book description
'I spy with my little eye, where the bird goes when he doesn't fly,'
Mama said one mid-day, her words floating on the Richmond heat as we
carried empty cookpots through the yard to the kitchen. Mama, your
little girl is all grown up, and still playing our best game. I am a
spy . . .
Based on the true story of Mary Bowser, this stirring and captivating
novel follows a slave who is freed by her owner's abolitionist daughter
and sent North to be educated. She is blessed with a photographic memory
and the passion and courage to involve herself fearlessly in the
Underground Railroad movement. As the Civil War rages she returns South
and winds up as a spy in the house of Jefferson Davis . . . This tale of
slavery, war, love and espionage is a stunning fictional retelling of an
extraordinary life. 'Deftly balancing history, romance and adventure,
Leveen honors the life and historical importance of a brave, resourceful
woman.' Lois Leveen holds an A. B. magna cum laude in History and
Literature from Harvard University, an M. A. in English from the
University of Southern California, and a Ph. D. in English with a
specialty in African American literature from UCLA. A former faculty
member at UCLA and Reed College, Lois has given talks about race at
conferences and universities throughout the world. Her poetry, creative
nonfiction, and critical essays have been published in a wide range of
magazines, literary journals, and book collections and her short films
have been shown at film festivals around the US.
