A sneak peek at The Light Across the River, sequel to Across the Wide River

Coming in April!
Stephanie Reed's exciting sequel to her moving historical novel for young adults, Across the Wide River. Reed answers a few questions about these interesting books:

What was the inspiration for Across the Wide River?
When I was growing up, we used to drive from Dayton to my grandparents' farm in Kentucky. On the way we drove through Ripley, Ohio, where I read the historical marker about the Reverend John Rankin and his station of the Underground Railroad. The Rankins fought against slavery for forty years. Across the Wide River focuses on the eldest son Lowry Rankin and his battle against slavery, as well as his personal battle against God's calling to be an abolition minister.

Where does The Light Across the River pick up the story?

Johnny Rankin was one of a handful of people present the night that Eliza crossed the icy Ohio River with her baby, and he was the one who told her story to Harriet Beecher Stowe. When Eliza returns to Ripley, Ohio, three years later Johnny learns that she left family behind in Kentucky and she wants to free them, too. As their friendship deepens, Johnny realizes he must never divulge the details of Eliza's second quest. Mrs. Stowe eventually told the story of Eliza’s first trip across the river in Uncle Tom’s Cabin. The danger Johnny and Eliza faced as they tried to free Eliza's family on their second trip remained a secret—until now.

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A sample from The Light Across the River:

No one saw Johnny slip out the door.

He climbed the hedge apple tree and hunched alone in the chilly darkness. When would things ever change? Brothers and sisters crammed in edgewise, all of them taller, stronger, faster, or smarter than he was. Father and Mother frantically busy with the church, family, and a million other things. They never took any more notice of him than to say, “Johnny, do this,” or “Johnny, do that.”

The only person who’d ever paid him any mind was Mandy, and now she belonged to Lowry. That hurt, but what surprised him more was how much Lowry’s words hurt. He’d as good as called Johnny a traitor by implying that he would spill the family secret.

He could not deny that it was tempting to tell about the Underground. The older boys and Ibby told exciting stories about how the family helped fugitive slaves. What frustrated the life out of him was that he must never breathe a word to anyone else. Why couldn’t Father see how wrong it was to keep quiet? It seemed so simple to Johnny. If only people could know how horrible slavery was! If only they knew the great risks men took to be free!

A flicker caught his eye; somebody had placed the signal light in the upstairs window. The soft glow steadied. Further back than Johnny remembered, lights had burned in the two side windows and in the front. When a slave across the river in Kentucky wanted to know where John Rankin lived, he looked for the light.

The yard brightened and dimmed. Somebody had come out the front door. Sure enough, two dark shapes swished through the wet grass toward the hill; Cal and Sam were headed to town. They would pass the evening at Thomas McCague’s house on Front Street to watch for fugitive slaves. Father still refused to go to Kentucky to help the slaves, but whenever possible, he offered aid the minute they set foot on Ohio soil. As long as slave escapes continued thicker than raisins in a pie, that would remain the rule.

Johnny knew Father’s other rules, too: keep the fugitive ahead of the pursuer, use a different station each time, and never talk to anyone, not even his best friends, about the runaways. But had Father ever let him help a fugitive? No, and he was older than Lowry had been when he first helped a slave.

Lowry’s remark still burned. Perhaps if Johnny assured Father that he would never reveal the family business, he would make him a conductor.

He vaulted from the tree, bound and determined to set matters straight. Tomorrow night he would keep watch from Thomas McCague’s house or know the reason why.

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About the Author:

During her childhood, Stephanie Reed’s family would often pass through Ripley on their way to her grandparents’ home. The signs she read there about the Rankin house were what prompted her to write Across the Wide River and The Light Across the River. Stephanie is a Latchkey teacher and a volunteer spotter for the National Weather Service. She lives with her husband and two children in Dublin, Ohio.

For more information about Stephanie Reed and The Light Across the River, check out the Kregel Web site at www.kregelpublications.com.