“Despite Phillis Wheatley’s fame, we know surprisingly little about her early life. She was taken from her home in Africa when she was seven or eight, and sold to the Wheatley family in Boston. The family taught her to read and write, and encouraged her to write poetry as soon as they witnessed her talent for it. In 1773, Phillis published her first poem, making her the first African American to be published. She was only 12 at the time.”-BY JAY KHAOS