The book 12 Years a Slave is an autobiography that chronicles the life of Solomon Northup. Northup was born free in New York State but at the age of 33 he was drugged, kidnapped and forced into slavery for 12 years. Northup was kidnapped during a time when the nation was divided over slavery. In the North, many African Americans were born free while in the South, African Americans were sold, kidnapped, or born into slavery. Northup was raised free but forced into slavery for 12 years during which he suffered brutal beatings and torture at the hands of a cruel slave owner. Northup's father was a slave to the Northup family but was freed when the Northup family moved to New York State where slavery had been abolished. As a child he worked on his father's farm and worked as a raftsman in upstate New York. When Northup was young he married Anne Hampton on Christmas Day and they had three children (Wilson, 1853). Northup was an excellent violinist, and when he was asked to join a band of traveling musicians for a good salary he eagerly accepted. The bait was a pay of one dollar a day and three...