Copper Sun - Historical fiction

Currently, I am reading Copper Sun by Sharon Draper, the book won this years' Coretta Scott King Award. It tells the story of fifteen year old Amari, who is kidnapped from Africa and brought to the American colonies in 1734 as a slave. It chronicles her passage over on a slave ship and her new life on an American plantation.

The book is horrifying and yet compelling, it gives the shocking realities of slave life. It is historical fiction at its best and does not sugar coat or glorify this chapter of American History.

I would like other opinions of Copper Sun and how it would fit into our curriculum.