Because Thomas Bishop was born to a slave mother, he is condemned to a life of slavery even though he has a white father out there somewhere he has never met. But he has a dream-an impossible one. His dream to one day be free and prosperous enough to offer a secure future to the woman he loves, seems unlikely. Even after being whipped mercilessly for learning to read-which the law in Missouri prohibits-secreted away in the middle of the night, sold,...