Book Review: Across the Wide River by Stephanie Reed

About the Book:

The red brick home of Rev. John Rankin is a beacon--the first northern stop on the Underground Railroad. Across the Ohio River in Kentucky, every slave knows to look for it. They have heard that if they reach that house, they will never be captured. Across the Wide River tells the true story of the selfless sacrifices one Christian family made to help runaway slaves reach freedom.

My thoughts:

The story of Lowry and his family is a good one. I enjoyed reading about Lowry’s experiences as he and his family helped the escaped slaves find their way to freedom. The plot is believable and well-developed.


The 1830s must have been quite an exciting time to live through. Abolitionists risked their own lives to do what they believed was right. And slave owners were defending their “right” to own slaves. I’m sure that Christians like Lowry had many sleepless nights as they pondered on what God would have them do for the black people.

I think that Across the Wide River would be a great book for young adults to read. It gives them a character they can relate to and a cause that they can learn about through the eyes of someone their own age.

I give Across the Wide River 4 out of 5 stars.

(I received this book from Kregel for review purposes. I received no monetary compensation for this review. All opinions expressed are completely my own.)