Secrets of American History Revolutionary War The Founding Fathers Were Spies

Ready to read has produced a leveled reader American History series, Secrets of American History.  I was pleased to see this because parents, teachers, and homeschooling families often are looking for independent reading material for children that engages and provides independent non-fiction reading opportunities for their students.

The Founding Fathers Were Spies!: Revolutionary War (Secrets of American History)is a Level 3 reader and while it gives a brief and not very interesting introduction to the war, the book's main purpose is to introduce students to the topic of Colonial spying during the Revolutionary War.

I think sometimes the author's feel compelled to do more than the book allows, which weakens the over all success of the book. The introduction to the war is terrible. However, the information the book was written to cover is well written and age appropriate. It covers a wide range of material that often isn't covered for elementary students about the importance of intelligence work in Washington's efforts to win the war.

The author challenges students to think about how communication occurred in a world before electronic communication and then proceeds to explain how those challenges were met in very creative ways. My two favorite stories were about how women participated in the spying because they were often around the British when their homes were occupied. One story discusses a woman using buttons as a means of communicating secret messages. Another discusses how hanging laundry became a communication system that could be used for a variety of alerts.

Recently more adult literature and movies have been discussing Washington's Culper Spy Ring. This book presents this bit of history in a very child friendly format. Many children are fascinated by secret codes, invisible ink, and spies who carry secret messages in their shoes. This book explains it was all part of the efforts to win the Revolutionary War. The back section of the book even includes a recipe for invisible ink.

This is an accessible independent reader for elementary students studying the American Revolution.

The Thrifty Guide to the American Revolution

What can be better than a book that makes children and adults laugh and provides accurate historical information? I stumbled across the Thrifty Guide to History series and decided to preview The Thrifty Guide to the American Revolution (The Thrifty Guides) as it fit a theme of books I've been searching for this past month.

The premise of the series is that in 2164 Time Corps is a vacation travel company that allows travelers to enjoy historic vacations without distorting the timeline because they come behind you to clean up. The reason we know about the Thrifty Guides is a time traveler carelessly lost several volumes and a New York publishing house decided to publish them without the permission of Time Corps. Now you too can discover the amazing Time Travel packages put together for you by Time Corps.

The Book has ten chapters with an Introduction on the basics of time travel. The chapters are titled the Boston Tea Party, The Battles of Lexington and Concord, The Siege of Boston, The Declaration of Independence, The Battle Of Brooklyn, The Crisis, Payback Time, The Battle of Cowpens, and Victory.

The book has helpful hints for surviving your trip and another feature for people to have lunch with and I liked the variety in that section. While some were major historical figures there were a variety of lesser known people introduced that generally get ignored in most books. There is also a section of historical pranks which I know will engage some and not others. The book clearly states all historical inaccuracies are cleared up by the Time Patrol. Don't skip the footnotes, these are not your typical dry entries but many are humorous commentaries from the Time Patrol.

There is something about the pace and descriptions that keep even the dryer material moving. I've always found Henry Knox's journey to be a fascinating one, but it the material written for kids can be dry and dull. This book manages to keep the pace moving while demonstrating what an amazing job Knox with a rather challenging job.

The writer never forgets the reader is on a vacation and reminds one of the dangers one will be facing as the next event begins. At the beginning of the section on Bunker Hill the writer gives a pep talk to the traveler on prepping for the battle as if one is going to be present to live through it.

I like history series that are fun, but they have to have historical value. Getting the facts right matters because many kids will read and remember more from the fun things they read than from any textbook on the subject. Along with being a fun read this is a good general introduction to the American Revolution. It isn't going to give your child everything, but because it engages, they will likely remember more than they may with other more traditional books on the topic.

At the Battle of Yorktown: An Interactive Battlefield Adventure

At the Battle of Yorktown: An Interactive Battlefield Adventure (You Choose: American Battles) is another very strong entry in the You Choose series, this one written by Eric Braun.

I came across this title while searching historical fiction books on a required reading list. This was not on the list, but as so often happens, it popped up under the also bought suggestions and I realized it was a new title in a series I previously reviewed and loved.

One of my challenges is to find books that present accurate but engaging history for children. The two require balance. You can write a very detailed factual account of history, but if kids find it dull and boring, it isn't terribly helpful in engaging them in wanting to learn more about history. The other side is a wonderful story that sadly misleads kids about events because the research is sloppy. This series is both engaging and factual.

The reader is presented with 3 characters to choose from to follow the events that unfold during the Battle of Yorktown, a French soldier, an African American slave hoping for freedom, and a woman following her husband's enlistment in the Continental Army.

I like the attempt to add diversity to the choices because it provides a more rounded look at the war. Too often we don't look beyond the big names we've all come to know from history to the actual people who lived during the time period.

I am on the fence about the French soldier, though. I understand the desire to help students realize the Americans had the assistance of French military during the war and to include that perspective in the story. However, to do that, they had to leave out what I thought was an important perspective and that was the British soldier who was to suffer the ultimate humiliation when the Battle of Yorktown was lost and they had to surrender to the Continental Army. I think that weighting the option of including the French soldier or getting the perspective of the losing side through a British soldier I would have chosen the British soldier.

All three stories were compelling. A reminder to teachers and parents, this is a story about war and not every path leads to a happy ending. There are deaths depending on the choices one makes, even when those choices seem compassionate. As always I suggest previewing a book before presenting it to a child to read and be prepared to handle the reactions to those outcomes.

George Washington's Spy

George Washington's Spy (Time Travel Adventures)is the time traveling sequel to George Washington's Socks (Time Travel Adventures)
which I reviewed earlier.

This sequel has the children returning to the Revolutionary War, but to a time before their previous visit. This time the boys have been assigned to read about Washington's fortifications at Dorchester Heights, but before they can complete the assignment, the boat arrives allowing them to live the assignment.

Perhaps the author realized the book needed more girls, because in this story while the boys are camping out, Katie is staying with a group of girls next door and when they don't believe her about having met George Washington, she becomes determined to show them where the boat is stored and the adventure begins.

The author wants to provide the reader with a chance to see life in Boston from a Tory or loyalist perspective and that of a Patriot or rebel one. To do this she splits up the boys and the girls. Katie's foot is hurt in the journey. While the boys head off to find help, Patriots capture them and the girls are taken in and cared for by a Tory family who mistakes them for the children of British aristocracy. This split allows the author to provide more insight and perhaps some balance in telling the story of the evacuation of Boston.

As I mentioned in my review of Woodruff's previous book, her novels provide great background knowledge for children with the added draw of fantasy. However, they can be graphic. In this novel, we see how the tensions between the Tories and the Patriots play out and it can be harsh. While many students may have heard of tar and feathering, the author personalizes it when the Tory father of the girls that rescue Matt's friends is tarred and feathered and dies in Matt's arms. As in the first book, Matt is led to question his belief that one side is good and the other evil in this conflict. In a similar situation, the same father is afraid to have his Patriot brother-in-law in his house for fear of what the British soldiers would do to his family, even though his personal loyalties are clear. He ultimately is killed for them. Through the character's eyes, we see that the situation is complicated.

I thought this was an important topic that is not often addressed, especially in children's literature. While the Sons of Liberty is given credit for getting the movement started, there was also a fear that without controls the mob could turn the Revolution into a mob action. Surviving Tories and Patriots would live to see what unchecked mob violence would accomplish during the French Revolution. The fears were not realized here, but many Tories and Patriots both had reasons to fear that the potential existed. While Hancock and other Boston merchants backed the cause of freedom, they also knew they had to restore order or chaos would destroy them, too.

Living in New England, I've always been aware of the story of Dorchester Heights and the evacuation of Boston. In fact while most people get confused, Boston does not have a city holiday for St. Patrick's Day, it is technically Evacuation Day in Boston. The city celebrates the day the troops left. What this book addresses that I never thought much about is who left. I knew the troops boarded ships and left, but they didn't just abandon Tory families to their fate, they helped them leave, too. I knew many families immigrated to Canada and some back to England after the Revolution. However, I never thought about it in relation to the evacuation of Boston. While some stayed, it was quite dangerous for those that did. Many Tories already facing mob attacks with British protection, feared death without any military protection. They left under British naval protection. Some settled in Canada, others moved to colonies still under British protection, and others who had the resources returned to England. To illustrate the rush to evacuate our characters almost end up immigrating to Halifax. They manage to get off the boat and once again, Katie saves the day when she spies the boat.

As always, I suggest parents or teachers review the book before using. However, I think this is a great resource for providing children with the historical background on the evacuation of Boston and a historical perspective on life for the Tories during this time.

George Washington's Sock's

I am always looking for titles that will engage children in learning more about history and I find titles that can combine fantasy or science fiction with history have a good chance at engaging reluctant readers to at least try reading them. George Washington's Socks (Time Travel Adventures)fills that need.

One challenge with this model is making the story believable. Fantasy requires the reader to suspend disbelief, but some children's fantasy requires children to ignore main parts of the story, to get to the parts of the story that they want to enjoy. In time travel stories, this is often the worst challenge. In this case, the author employs a very old oral tradition of boats disappearing into the mist and travelers being lost in the mists of time. Not only does it attach to a long oral tradition of stories, but the author also ties it the children discovering that there is a history of people disappearing in their town. They discover the answer to the mystery as part of their own time travel adventure. I was impressed with the smoothness of the time travel in this book.

In the author notes, a comment is made that one of the motivations for writing this book is that the author is a pacifist who had a son enamored with GI Joe. She wanted him to understand the realities of war. It states with her research she came away with an understanding of the strength and courage of those who fought. While this book looks like a slightly longer version of a Magic Tree House time travel book, it is a bit more realistic. Two soldiers, one American and one Hessian are killed and the author is graphic in describing some of the issues of dying most students likely don't encounter when thinking of death. If the author notes are accurate, this may have been done to help her son understand the realities of war.

Another strength of the book is it allows children to see a glimpse of life for soldiers on both sides of the war. At one point, the main character Matthew realizes that there is good and bad on both sides. There are no clean wars. As a modern child, he is the eyes for the reader showing them how the soldiers survived and died. As with all time travel stories, there are some stretches of the imagination, but for the most part they are handled well. In places the author does well simplifying complicated political and military situations and in other places, she over simplifies and complicates the story. However, it is the strongest book of this genre I have read. As always I suggest parents preview the book if they have any concerns.

I liked the book. It starts with a realistic premise, boys starting a club and camping out. While not every child has a fascination with American history, I am sure there are lots of kids who do have non-traditional interests who would love to have a group of friends to hang out with and discuss their interests. I like the idea that the book doesn't assume it is weird to have academic interests. I think that aspect could be a draw for some students.

Girls will be less than thrilled that the only female character is a nagging little sister. However, she does end up a hero. Without her help, they might never have made it home. That might excuse her earlier weaker role.

The Boston Massacre

While there are many children's books that cover the events of Lexington and Concord it is much harder to find accurate, age appropriate material that covers the Boston Massacre. The Boston Massacre (Graphic History)by Michael Burgan is another entry in the Graphic history series.

This book starts with the conflicts and issues leading up to the mob scene that resulted in the British Regulars firing on colonial citizens. It discusses the Stamp Acts and the reaction that arose after the colonists found out their long standing relationship with Great Britain and taxes had changed.

The book does something few on the topic do, it gives the reader a bit of perspective on how the loyalists felt by telling the story of a loyalist shopkeeper who was attacked by mobs determined not only to harm his business, but his person. Many textbooks fail to address that the mobs in Boston were not just a concern to the British, but to Colonial leaders as well. While they disagreed with the tax policies and the monopolies that the British government imposed, they were also aware of the danger uncontrolled mobs posed to their futures as well. While they proved useful in creating disturbances such as they Boston Tea Party that rallied public outrage, they were aware of the dangers that could occur should they lose control of the mob's focus, too.

The book does not address how the incident came to be known as the Boston Massacre when similar previous encounters did not reach this level of colonial outrage. That is something teachers and parents will have to seek other resources to discover.

It does however, address John Adam's involvement with the trial of the soldiers accused of murdering civilians in the incident. His actions in defending the soldiers created some animosity between Adams and certain colonial leaders. Adams felt that instead it created the legitimacy of the movement. It was not a mob movement, but one that respected the rule of law.

This book does a good job at trying to recreate the very hostile atmosphere of an occupied Boston. Loyalists had issues with those who sought more freedom. Tensions occurred as a distant Parliament sought more control and instead created more chaos. Orders like the Quartering Act which seemed reasonable to the British government, only created more anger and tension. This in turn gave more support to mobs, which in more reasonable times, people would have turned against.

The Boston Massacre an Interactive History

The Boston Massacre: An Interactive History Adventure (You Choose: History)is another book I borrowed from the library prior to purchasing for Christmas this year. Like the previous stories in this series, the reader is given a background of the events leading up to the event and three characters to choose from in following the story.

This story starts with the background information of the Stamp Act, the formation of the Sons of Liberty, the Stamp Act protests, and the arrival of British troops to keep the peace in Boston. Readers are provided with three character choices to follow the adventures through the book, a 13-year-old wig maker's apprentice, a British soldier, or the role of John Hancock's maid.

The story then walks the reader through the events of the Boston Massacre through each characters experience, giving the reader options to make choices and see how those choices alter the outcomes along the path. What I found interesting and an important lesson was in some cases you could not change the outcome. Despite your best intentions, bad things still happen. This is historically accurate, but also an important life lesson illustrated for kids in a practical setting. The British soldier's life provides another side to the story that is often missed in the retelling of the Boston Massacre. The author gives his character the temptation of deserting and the life the options that would come with that or staying loyal and all the choices that come for a soldier with that option.

The book ends with a summary of events that happened after the Boston Massacre.

I was pleased this topic was one the series decided to approach. The Boston Massacre is a great example of how choices have consequences. It also demonstrates that events sometimes do end up overtaking the ability of people to avoid them. Regardless of our own wishes and choices, sometimes other’s choices prevent us from changing our outcome.

I continue to be impressed with the possibilities for this series to engage and encourage children's interest in history.