“In WHEN PEOPLE WERE THINGS, Lisa Waller Rogers gives us a magisterial treatment of the anti-slavery movement in America and its key players from roughly 1830 to the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863. At the center of the story are the colorful and influential Beecher family of New England, and in particular the religiously-inspired Harriet (Beecher) Stowe, as well as, of course, the Great Emancipator himself, Abraham Lincoln. But the book also includes captivating portraits of a host of abolitionists--some well-known, such as Lucretia Mott, Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, and the Grimke' sisters--and others less so (Gamaliel Bailey, James Birney, Theodore Weld)--all of whom traveled more or less in the same circles but took different paths toward abolitionism. The book is enlivened by descriptions of such bloody events as the slave insurrection led by Nat Turner, the murder spree of John Brown and his followers, and the brutal caning of Senator Charles Sumner on the Senate floor by a South Carolina congressman. The monstrous face of slavery is presented as vividly as in Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin itself.

“This is both a splendidly written group biography and thoroughly researched history of the anti-slavery movement that led to Lincoln's signing of the 1863 Proclamation. Highly recommended.”

 _ John Oller, author of American Queen, The Rise and Fall of Kate Chase Sprague

“In When People Were Things, Lisa Waller Rogers offers a fresh, bold look at the anti-slavery movement. Because abolitionists dared to confront slavery and its powerful defenders, they were scorned as crackpots. Even in the north, they were threatened, mobbed and jailed. Rogers skillfully weaves the stories of these lesser-known heroes into the larger saga portending Civil War. She also probes how famous Americans, like Abraham Lincoln and Harriet Beecher Stowe, developed their anti-slavery views and shaped the course of history.

“Readers may be surprised at how much humanity, wit and warmth runs through When People Were Things. Rogers’ vivid writing features real people who, whatever their failings and foibles, had moral courage and used it. But today, writes Rogers, “many people are trying with all their might to deny slavery’s horrible truths.” Educators are told to avoid making students uncomfortable. Visitors to national parks are told to report anything that seems critical of American history. In response, Rogers offers a truthful narrative of the American quest for liberty and justice for all. Her book is timely indeed.”

_Nancy Koester, author of Harriet Beecher Stowe: A Spiritual Life, and We Will Be Free: The Life and Faith of Sojourner Truth.

book available on Amazon, Ingram and any sites such as Walmart, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Baker & Taylor, that use Ingram as its distributor or you can ask local bookstore to order for you. Librarians and history educators may be interested in reading. Available in ebook, paperback, and hardbound copies.

Author, a history graduate from the University of Texas at Austin, has received awards and recognition for her five published books, and praise for her storytelling skills. She is a former educational consultant to educational publishers and a former classroom history teacher.