Sky Sash So Blue
By Libby Hathorn, illustrated by Benny Andrews
Simon and Schuster, 1998
ISBN 0-689-81090-3, 32 pages

"Blue sash, oh blue sash,
My sky blue, my true sash . . .
Blue sash, oh blue sash,
Oh, I love you true sash."

Description
A small girl keeps in a secret place "a small gift of fabric, so smooth and so brave, She scarcely believes that it's hers -- Such a sash for Susannah -- a slave!" This story is told in Suzannah's voice about her Mama and her Sissy and herself, slaves on a plantation. "Blue sash, oh blue sash, My sky blue, my true sash . . ." The action of the story involves Mama secretly sewing together from cloth fragments a wedding dress for Sissy ("a cast-off piece of petticoat . . . some muslin . . . a piece of linen . . . a patch of chamois") that they have been collecting for weeks in the Master's house. After the wedding Sissy's dress must be taken apart again. But Susannah knows that as she works around the house the rags she uses to dust and clean were once a wedding dress. And she labors in the hope that one day her sister's husband will buy their freedom -- her Mama's and her own. "Blue sash, oh blue sash, Oh, I love you true sash."

This blue sash is made of little pieces of sky and it is her little piece of hope. It is a powerful story by author Libby Hathorn expressing the energy of women who "laugh, talk and sew" and the courage of slaves who stitch together hope out of "next-to-nothing." The bright fabric collage illustrations by Benny Andrews are a dramatic part of this story. The text is a lyrical poem and the illustrations are simple, graceful artwork. And it is the sky blue sash that binds this family together in love and hope.

About the Author
Libby Hathorn is the author of numerous books for children and young adults including award-winning Way Home as well as The Wondering Thing and Grandma's Shoes. Although Sky Sash So Blue is for young children it has an appeal for people of all ages. Hathorn has been honored as a writer of novels and poetry in her native Australia and internationally. She makes her home in Sydney, Australia. Illustrator Benny Andrews received his B.F.A. from the School of the Art Institute in Chicago, IL. He is a teacher, a painter, and a multimedia artist. His works can be found in many private and public collections including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, Studio Museum of Harlem in New York City, the High Museum in Atlanta, GA, and the Hirschorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, DC.

Reflection and Discussion Questions

1. As you read this book or heard this story what feelings did you experience? Why?
2. What character do you identify with? Why?
3. Why does Susannah take her blue sash out of its secret box and play with it late at night? Do you have a "secret box" for your dreams and hopes? Explain.
4. What does the story convey to you about slave life, family ties, and reasons for hope?
5. What did you learn about slavery from this story?
6. What did you learn something about yourself from this story? Explain.
7. This book is for children and adults and families. If you were giving this book as a gift to a child, what would you want the child to learn? Why?
8. Did the artwork add to the meaning of the story? Explain.
9. What values does this story portray? Are these Unitarian Universalist values? Explain.