New Children's Biography on Abolitionist Editor Elijah Lovejoy Released

Feb. 1, 2010 - PRLog -- A new biography on abolitionist newspaper editor Elijah Lovejoy is now available, authored by Illinois native Jennifer Phillips. The biography is most suitable for grades 5-8 and includes historical images from the archives of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum in Springfield.

Two decades before the Civil War, Elijah Lovejoy used his Midwestern newspapers, first in St. Louis and then in the Illinois river town of Alton, to call for an end to slavery. His beliefs were dangerous enough. Taking his cause public proved deadly. Angry mobs destroyed his printing equipment three times. Then, two days before he turned 35, a mob shot and killed Elijah as he defended a fourth press.

Both paperback and eBook versions of Elijah Lovejoy’s Fight for Freedom are available (Amazon for paperback and Kindle, outlets such as Smashwords for additional eBook formats).

Phillips grew up in Alton. A former newspaper reporter, she now lives in Shoreline, Washington and focuses primarily on children's literature.

“I realized a few years ago that a contemporary, kid-friendly biography about Lovejoy did not exist, so I decided to write one. There are biographies on many other important people from his era but Lovejoy feels like a bit of an unsung hero, especially outside the region,” Phillips said. “His story has so much to teach us about issues of freedom and courage, in addition to what was happening in the early 1800s about our expanding country, slavery, abolitionists and journalism.”

Schools can contact Phillips through her website, http://www.noseinabookpublishing.com, for more information or to explore having her participate in classroom discussions (in-person within Washington state, virtually elsewhere) about Lovejoy or her process of writing the book.