The Land
Mildred Taylor
 "The Land" follows the life of Paul-Edward Logan. Paul is the child of a white man and a black woman. Paul has three entries from Paul's journal, after the main story ends. The dialogue uses the Southern dialect from the 1870s, and the ‘80s. The novel begins with Paul,when he is nine years old. It describes how his life has been different from that of most freed slaves. The book is narrated from Paul's perspective, and quickly introduces his three brothers, his sister, and Mitchell Thomas, a black boy whose father works for Paul's father and who becomes a vital member of the storyline. In the beginning, Mitchell continually bullies Paul for being bi-racial. Paul's father and brothers' only advice for Paul is to "use his head", and come up with a solution by himself. In "Childhood", Paul's parents are constant reminders of the trials and tribulations of being born biracial. After several months, Paul is able to strike a deal with Mitchell. If Paul teaches Mitchell to "read English, write English, and figure," then Mitchell will teach Paul how to fight and to fend for himself, but, as he reminded Paul, he "can't teach him how to win." Eventually Paul and Mitchell become sick of dealing with Paul's father. When Paul is fourteen, Paul and Mitchell find an opportunity to run away during a horse show in eastern Texas. Having gone against his father's word at the show by riding a man's horse and winning "four times a rider's pay," Paul has trouble collecting his pay. Mitchell uses violent force to ensure that the white man keeps his word and pays Paul the money he has earned. After this incident, the two flee. The novel later tells what happens during the eleven year gap between part one and two. egacy=== In the epilogue, Paul is older and has more children. Cassie sends him a letter saying that their father is very ill. When Paul goes to his father, he brings his children with him so his father can see the grandchildren. His father looks sick but happy and soon after dies in his sleep. *Daddy (Edward Logan): The father of Paul, Cassie, George, Hammond, and Robert. Paul and Cassie are half black because Edward had an affair with a slave he owned. *Cassie: Paul's older sister. Cassie moves and gets married to a man named Howard Millhouse. She helps Paul to cope with being multiracial. *Robert: One of Paul's brothers. Since they are about the same age, they spend their whole childhood playing together and learning from each other. Once Robert goes against Paul their relationship falls apart. *George: Paul's second oldest white brother. He doesn't have any racial bias towards Paul. He seems passionate and quick-tempered. *Hammond: Paul's eldest white brother. He doesn't have any racial bias towards Paul. He seems to be smart and gentle. He also stands up for his brother and appears at the end of the book to meet Paul. *Luke Sawyer: A shop owner. Paul builds furniture for him and, in return, learns many things. *Caroline: An attractive black woman that both Paul and Mitchell are attracted to. *J.T. Hollenbeck: A white landowner who is willing to sell land to Paul for a reasonable price. He is a yankee. *Ray Sutcliffe: A racist man who tries to take financial advantage of Paul. *Sam Perry: The father of Caroline. He is a father type figure to Paul. * Filmore Granger: A racist landowner who makes a written agreement with Paul to give him . * Harlan Granger: The racist son of Filmore Granger. * Wade Jamison: The son of Charles Jamison who is white and a friend of Nathans. Wade is willing to help Paul get the from Filmore Granger. *Rachel Perry: Caroline's mom and Sam's wife. She is an excellent cook, and does not like Paul at first because he looks white. *Nathan: Caroline's brother. Sam Perry sent him to help Paul clear out the of land, but without pay. Instead Paul is to teach him woodworking.