In the late 1880s, signs went up all around America: land was free in the Oklahoma territory. And it was free to everyone: Whites, Blacks, men and women alike. All one needed to stake a claim was hope and courage, strength and perseverance. Thousands of pioneers, many of them African-Americans newly freed from being enslaved, headed west to carve out a new life in the Oklahoma soil.
Drawing on her own family history, National Book Award winner Joyce Carol Thomas has crafted an unforgettable anthem to these brave and determined people. I Have Heard of a Land is a glorious tribute to the African-American pioneer spirit.
| Author | Joyce Carol Thomas |
| Illustrator | Floyd Cooper |
| Date | 1998 |
| Publisher | HarperCollins Publishers |