After Outcry, Scholastic Pulls Children’s Book About George Washington And His Happy Slaves

American publishing company Scholastic has agreed to stop selling a children’s book after outrage claiming that it depicts “happy slaves.”

The book, “A Birthday Cake for George Washington,” tells the story of the first president’s enslaved chef, Hercules, and his daughter Delia, who work through the dilemma of finding sugar to bake a birthday cake.

Black Lives Matter activists and other social justice organizations mostly took issue with the book’s illustrations, which show the protagonists smiling and enjoying their task. They were also bothered that the narrative didn’t include the fact that Hercules escaped from slavery which the book’s author says she mentioned in the front flap of the book.

“While we have great respect for the integrity and scholarship of the author, illustrator and editor, we believe that, without more historical background on the evils of slavery than this book for younger children can provide, the book may give a false impression of the reality of the lives of slaves and therefore should be withdrawn,” the children’s publisher said in a statement released to the AP.

The book, which depicts Hercules and Delia preparing a cake for Washington, has received more than 100 one-star reviews on Amazon.com. As of Sunday evening, only 12 reviews were positive.

While notes in “A Birthday Cake for George Washington” from author Ramin Ganeshram and illustrator Vanessa Brantley-Newton had pointed out the historical context of the 18th century story and that Hercules eventually escaped, some critics faulted Ganeshram and Brantley-Newton for leaving out those details from the main narrative.

“Oh, how George Washington loves his cake!” reads the publisher’s description of the story. “And, oh, how he depends on Hercules, his head chef, to make it for him. Hercules, a slave, takes great pride in baking the president’s cake. But this year there is one problem — they are out of sugar.”

The trade publication School Library Journal had called it “highly problematic” and recommended against its purchase. Another trade journal, Kirkus Reviews, had labeled the book “an incomplete, even dishonest treatment of slavery.”

In a Scholastic blog post from last week, Ganeshram wrote that the story was based on historical research and meant to honor the slaves’ skill and resourcefulness.

“How could they smile? How could they be anything but unrelentingly miserable?” Ganeshram wrote. “How could they be proud to bake a cake for George Washington? The answers to those questions are complex because human nature is complex. Bizarrely and yes, disturbingly, there were some enslaved people who had a better quality of life than others and ‘close’ relationships with those who enslaved them. But they were smart enough to use those ‘advantages’ to improve their lives.”

Source: After Outcry, Scholastic Pulls Children’s Book About George Washington And His Happy Slaves