Crossing Bok Chitto (A Choctaw Tale of Friendship & Freedom)

American Indian Youth Literature Award Winner - American Indian Library Association

In this American Indian Youth Literature Award-winning story of cross-cultural friendship, a family of enslaved people and a Choctaw tribe work together on a daring escape.

There is a river called Bok Chitto that cuts through Mississippi. In the days before the War Between the States, in the days before the Trail of Tears, Bok Chitto was a boundary. On one side of the river lived the Choctaws. On the other side lived the plantation owners and their slaves. If a slave escaped and made his way across Bok Chitto, the slave was free.

Thus begins Crossing Bok Chitto, told by award-winning Choctaw storyteller Tim Tingle and brought to life with the rich illustrations of Jeanne Rorex Bridges.

Martha Tom, a young Choctaw girl, knows better than to cross Bok Chitto, but one day--in search of blackberries--she disobeys her mother and finds herself on the other side. When a tall enslaved man discovers Martha Tom, a friendship begins between Martha Tom and the man's family, most particularly his young son, Little Mo. Soon afterwards, Little Mo's mother finds out that she is going to be sold. The situation seems hopeless, until Martha Tom teaches Little Mo's family how to walk on water to their freedom.

This original story was inspired by tales passed down through spoken word. Author notes in the backmatter offer a brief overview of Choctaw history and storytelling traditions, as well as the roots of the tale. Older readers will also enjoy the author's Stone River Crossing, a novel-length expansion of this book.