Posts Tagged ‘history’
I cannot imagine the horror of being born and living free and then being kidnapped and sold into slavery for twelve years, but that horrifying fate is just what Solomon Northup survived. Judith and Dennis Fradin recount Solomon’s story in Stolen into Slavery: The True Story of Solomon Northup, Free Black Man (Scholastic 2012).
Solomon Northup was born free in New York state in the early 1800s. He was educated and worked as a carpenter. He also played the violin. He married and had three children. Then in 1841 he was drugged, kidnapped, and sold into slavery. He spent the next twelve years on cotton plantations deep in the Louisiana swamps. His name had been changed, so it was nearly impossible for his family to discover what had happened to him. Since his kidnappers had stolen his money and the papers proving he was free, it was impossible foa him to prove his identity and regain his freedom. For twelve long years, Solomon looked for a chance to escape and return to his family. Even though it was illegal to kidnap and sell a free black, the guilty parties were never brought to justice even though they were known.
Basing their research on Solomon’s own account of his years of slavery and on other records including bills of sale and court documents, the Fradins bring Solomon’s story to life in a gripping narrative.
I picked up these two books by Bill Doyle for the students in my classes. I know have readers who are looking for something short and quick to read. Many of those same readers are fascinated by war, danger, and adventure. I expect these books in the Behind Enemy Lines series will be a hit with them. What I didn’t expect was these books to be such a hit with me, but I found them hard to put down. I came away amazed and inspired by the courage shown by each soldier, sailor, or airman featured.
Behind Enemy Lines: True Stories of Amazing Courage (Scholastic 2009)
These stories highlight deeds of derring-d0 from wars throughout our history, from Nathan Hale in the American Revolution to Green Berets in the Iraq War. One of my favorites is the story of Emma Edmonds, who pretended to be Private Frank Thompson in the Civil War. Not only did she pull of her disguise as a man in the Union army, but she also created multiple other disguises in her work as a Union spy. I had also never hear of Moe Berg, a Major League Baseball player, who used his talent for learning languages as a spy during World War II. There are eight inspiring stories in this collection, each one more exciting than the one before.
Behind Enemy Lines: Under Fire in the Middle East (Scholastic 2011)
These stories focus on more recent conflicts in Iraq (both Desert Storm and more recently) Pakistan, and Afghanistan. In addition to the courageous acts of military personnel in these wars, “Caught in the Crossfire” illustrates the devastation that war creates for civilians. A group of orphans, including two brothers, must flee across the war-torn country to escape the fighting that has taken their parents. “Duke’s Dogs” highlights the lifesaving actions of a trio of strays that accompanied one platoon in Iraq. Again and again, the men and women in these true stories (some names and details were changed to protect those involved) show courage under fire and sometimes receive help from unexpected places.
I just finished reading two biographies of men born a century apart. Even though they were born into very different circumstances and faced different problems, both men were leaders who helped our country through difficult and violent times. I was struck by both the similarities and differences between Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King, Jr., in how they faced the turbulent times of their lives. I was also surprised by how much I still have to learn about both men. Even though I have studied both men in history classes, I was surprised by some of what I read, in particular the controversy and criticism that each faced.
Lincoln: A Photobiography by Russell Freedman (Scholastic 1987)
First off, I love the photographs that help tell this story. There are pictures of Lincoln, of course, but also of people, places, and even documents that surrounded and filled Lincoln’s life. We may never fully unravel the mystery and legend that have grown up around Lincoln, but Freedman gives us a glimpse of the man behind the public figure. Did you know that Lincoln’s in-laws tried to prevent their daughter’s marriage to Abe? They thought he was well beneath their station in life. In addition to showing how Lincoln’s early life led to his political career and his changing views of slavery, Freedman includes extra material at the back that I enjoyed. “A Lincoln Sampler” gives quotes from Lincoln’s speeches and writings, both famous and not so much. “In Lincoln’s Footsteps” describes historic sites related to Lincoln’s life that you can visit. Then Freedman also highlights some of the many books about Lincoln that readers might want to pursue for more information.
10 Days: Martin Luther King, Jr. by David Colbert (Scholastic 2012)
I wasn’t sure about the organization of this book at first. How could you give a sense of such a complex and dynamic individual as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in just 10 days? By focusing on 10 pivotal days in King’s life, Colbert weaves in many of the issues facing King and the history of the Civil Rights movement. Once again, I am shocked and horrified at the violence that met the protesters. I am impressed with the courage with which King met white bigotry and violence and with which he brought together people with very different philosophies.
I am now officially a Steve Sheinkin fan. I’ve read three of his books (all nonfiction!) this school year, and each one is better than the previous one. I wish all history was written like this. Lincoln’s Grave Robbers records one of the most bizarre incidents in US history that brings together counterfeiters, the Secret Service, and a plot to steal Abraham Lincoln’s body out from under his memorial monument.
The book is a little confusing at first because of the large cast of characters to keep up with. Fortunately, Sheinkin includes a list of important characters before the story begins that is helpful to refer to. The plot begins when the new Secret Service agent Patrick Tyrell takes down the best engraver of counterfeit plates, Benjamin Boyd. With Boyd in jail, the rest of the counterfeiting gangs saw their business plunge dramatically. James “Big Jim” Kennally was determined to do whatever it took to get Boyd out of jail and back in business again. His solution? Steal Lincoln’s body and hold it for ransom. One of the ransom demands (in addition to real cash) would be the release of Benjamin Boyd from federal prison.
Both the counterfeiters and the Secret Service (Did you know the Secret Service was founded to deal with counterfeiting, not to protect the President?) had elaborate networks of informants and coworkers. Kennally recruited Terrence Mullen, Jack Hughes, Bill “Billy Brown Neely, and Lewis Swegles to help steal the body. Unknown to him, two of his gang were also recruited as “ropers” or informants for the Secret Service. Patrick Tyrell recruited two ropers to bring down the counterfeiting gang and instead discovered the plot. Even though is supervisors didn’t take the threat seriously, he saw it through to the arrest and conviction of the gang of body snatchers.
There are even more characters and intrigue, but you will just have to discover the wacky, bizarre details on your own. I wish I had known this story before I went to visit Lincoln’s grave and memorial in Springfield, Illinois. I would have paid much more attention to the level of security today. This case proves once again that truth is stranger than fiction.
On the back flap of the book cover, Steve Sheinkin confesses that he once wrote history textbooks. He is now trying to make up “for his previous crimes by crafting gripping narratives of American history.” With Bomb: The Race to Build–and Steal–the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon, Sheinkin more than succeeds. This informational text reads like a spy thriller.
Sheinkin dramatically weaves together three strands of this history: the scientists who figured out how to build the bomb, the Soviet spies who were desperate to steal plans to buiild the bomb, and the military commandos who sabotaged Germany’s boomb building program. Sheinkin brings these three strands to life with vivid description of the action. Dialogue gleaned from primary sources bring the primary actors in this drama to life. Even though the text is not footnoted, Sheinken shares a list of secondary and primary sources he used in writng the book.
I have read a few other books–good ones like The Ultimate Weapon–on the race to build the atomic bomb, but I was amazed at how much I didn’t know. Here are some of the thingss I learned for the first time reading this book:
- The US and British blew up a German controlled factory in Norway that produced heavy water–used in splitting uranium atoms. They also sank a boat carrying heavy water and plotted to kidnap/assassinate German physicists.
- Scientists recruited to work on the bom at Los Alamos were told only that they would work on a top secret project for the war effort. They weren’t told what it was or even where they would be until they got there.
- One of the spies feeding information to the Soviets got away completely free even though everyone knew he was guilty.
There’s much more, but I don’t want to give away all the secrets. Trust me, once you pick up this book, you will not want to put it down. Oh yeah, did I forget to mention that this book racked up the awards from the ALA: 2013 Newbery Honor, 2013 Sibert Medal, 2013 YALSA Award.
Are you looking for an informational text that is guaranteed not to bore you? Trust me. There are plenty of them out there. I just finished one of them–How They Croaked: The Awful Ends of the Awfully Famous (Scholastic 2011) by Georgia Bragg. As I read I found myself alternately snorting with laughter and gagging over the gore.
Bragg gives an irreverent but information-packed look at the deathly ends of nineteen famous people, from King Tut to Albert Einstein. After finishing reading about these gruesome deaths, I’m glad to live in the era of modern medicine. Not only does she describe the grisly side effects of dangerous treatments such as bleeding and water cures, she lets us in on what happened to some of the bodies after death. Would you like some ground up mummy in your tea? Would you steal Einstein’s brain or eyeballs? Someone did.
Black and white illustrations by Kevin O’Malley add to the macabre fun as do side bars that tease you with tantalizing trivia. One of my favorites is the chart in the back that shows unexpected connections between these famous people.
I’ve had a lot of fun reading snippets from the book out loud to my classes, and have a long list of students who want to read it. I hope some of them buy their own copy at the book fair this week. It is a great text to illustrate voice and how much fun you can have with facts.
For the past year or so, I’be joined friends from The Nerdy Book Club in taking on the book-a-day challenge. I don’t always succeed in reading a book every day of break, but just accepting the challenge has helped me increase the number of books I read. This past week I wanted to read the stack of books I got from the last book order so I could release them to my classroom library. I have several students who are eagerly awaiting them.
I also talked with my students about setting their own Fall Break Reading Challenge. Some chose to read some evey day. Others had books they wanted to finish. Many rushed to the library to check out play-always to listen to during car trips. I can’t wait to hear how they did with their challenges Whe I get back tomorrow.
How did I do with my challenge this week? I didn’t read all the books in my stack, but I did finish nine books, one for each day of vacation. I didn’t keep up with writing book reviews for all of them, so here is the short version of what I thought of each. I also include a link to the author’s web page and Goodreads if you want to learn more.
Underworld by Meg Cabot (Point 2012): I loved this one even more than Abandon. Time is is compressed in this novel, which happens in just one day, but the action and danger is intensified. Piersin isn’t sure about being trapped in the Underworld with John, but she is desperate to escape when she learns that her cousin Alex may be in danger. Oh yeah, the Furies are still after her. I loved learning more of John’s history and meeting new characters like Frank and Henry.
Caught by Margaret Peterson Haddix (Scholastic 2012): once again Jonah and Katherine are headed to the past to try to restore a missing child and fix time. This time, though, Haddix throws in several unexpected twists And ups the danger with all of time freezing. Of course, Jonah shouldn’t expect things to be simple when returning Albert Einstein’s daughter. I loved learning more about Mileva, Einstein’s wife, who is as brilliant as he was. However, even though Jonah asks, we still don’t know which missing child from history he is.
Bar Code Prophecy by Suzanne Weyn (Scholastic 2012): I was very satisfied with the ending to The Bar Code Tattoo and The Bar Code Rebellion, but I was delighted to learn Weyn had added a third book to the story. Global-1 is back to their dirty work, but is anyone still listening to Decode? Grace works for Global-1 and believes their problems were isolated and past. But once she turns 17, her life falls apart. Can Eric, the guy she has a crush on, save her and lead her to answers? Once again after entering the world in this book, I have an urge to unplug and live off the grid.
The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith (Little, Brown and Company 2012): I had read good reviews of this title and was not disappointed. A missed flight brings together Hadley and Oliver on a flight to London. They end up sitting together and maybe falling in love, but different paths await them in London. Flashbacks fill in Hadley’s history with her parent’s divorce, but Oliver just hints at his family’s story. If you are looking For a contemporary love story, look no further.
Pinned by Alfred C. Martino, narrated by Mark Shanahan (Listen and Live Audio 2005, Houghton Mifflin 2005): I listened to this one from the Sync YA downloads offered this summer. It is the gripping story of two New Jersey wrestlers. Ivan Korski and Bobby Zane are both driven to become the state champion in the 129 pound weight class their senior year. They come from very different backgrounds and face different pressures on and off the mat, but they share a desire to win. The book alternates between their stories as they head to the final showdown. By the time I neared the end, I didn’t know which boy I wanted to come outmoded on top. It didn’t matter because the ending is a cop-out.
The Notorious Benedict Arnold: A True Story of Adventure, Heroism, and Treachery by Steve Sheinkin (Scholastic 2010): I keep telling you that your history textbook leaves out all the good stuff from history. Sheinkin fills in all the juicy details about Benedict Arnold. Arnold could have been the first comic book Hero or action figure if not for one choice which left him villain instead. I read this one on the edge of my seat.
Through Georgia’s Eyes by Rachel Victoria Rodriguez and Julie Paschkis (Henry Holt and Company 2006): We visited the Eiteljorg museum today and I head straight to their two Georgia O’Keefe paintings. I found this picture book biography in the bookstore. The illustrations evoke O’Keefe’s paintings while the text shows her independence and determination to see the world her way.
My Name Is Georgia: A Portrait by Jeannette Winter (Sandpiper 2003) If I ever move into another life where collecting art is a possibility, I would own at least one of Georgia O’Keefe’s paintings. The flowers are my favorites, but I also love the desert landscapes and the bones. This picture book biography hints at the beauty and power of an O’Keefe painting while giving the broad strokes of her life and vision.
Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life by James Patterson and Chris Tebbetts (Little, Brown and Company 2011): If you liked Diary of a Wimpy Kid (I sure did), you will want to add this title to you stack of books to read. Rafe has a plan. He is going to break every rule in the student handbook and earn points doing so. Who knows what the prize might be (survival?), but can he do it before he loses his three lives? I enjoyed the conversational tone as Rafe confesses all. Oh yes, Rafe is an artist, and the drawings are my favorite part of the book.
I had hoped to finish Between Shades of Gray (no, not THAT book) by Ruta Sepetys, but I’m writing this blog post instead. I’ll tell you more about this gripping historical fiction novel later. It wont’ take long to finish because it’s hard to put down. How did you do with your reading challenge?
Don’t know much ’bout history…At least I thought I knew a little something about history. Then I started reading books like The Crossing: How George Washington Saved the American Revolution (Scholastic Press 2010) and realized how much my history textbooks left out. Don’t worry. Jim Murphy has come through to fill you in on all the juicy details.
This side of history views George Washington as a great military leader, our first president, and the father of our country. The other side of history was not nearly as sure of Washington’s success. Washington wasn’t sure he was up for the job either since he had never commanded such a large military force. The first years of the war didn’t give anyone much reason to hope for victory as Washington and his army was outmaneuvered by the British army again and again. The Continental Congress was ready to replace Washington with someone else. In fact, they would have replaced him with General Charles Lee, but he had the misfortune of being captured by the British first.
The famous painting of Washington Crossing the Delaware by Emanuel Gottlieb Leutze may not be historically accurate, but it does dramatically portray one of the key turning points of the American Revolution. Somehow a ragtag army led by an inexperienced commander defeated the mightiest army in the world at that time. The rest, as they say, is history, and Jim Murphy brings it to life.
This is a replica of one of the boats that the Colonists would have sailed across the ocean to reach Roanoke Island. It is small!
Growing up in North Carolina, I was always fascinated by the story of Sir Walter Raleigh’s Lost Colony. How could over a hundred men, women, and children just disappear without anyone ever finding any sign of them later? No clues were left except the letters “CRO” carved on a tree and the word “CROATAN” carved on one of the fort’s posts. This summer, I vacationed on the North Carolina Outer Banks and got to revisit the Lost Colony on Roanoke Island. We visited the Roanoke Island Festival Park, saw the fort’s remains at the Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, and watched the outdoor drama at the Lost Colony Theater. Of course, I picked up several books about the Lost Colony while I was there.
Roanoke The Lost Colony: An Unsolved Mystery from History by Jane Yolen and Heidi Elisabet Yolen Stemple, illustrated by Roger Roth (Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers 2003)
When I saw Jane Yolen’s name on this picture book, I knew I had to have it. I was not disappointed. It invites you to become a detective to study the clues and develop your own theories about what happened to those missing colonists. Straightforward text presents the facts of the story, with a focus on the main characters involved: Sir Walter Raleigh, John White, Manteo, and Eleanor Dare. Sidebars give additional information and define key terms. I loved the illustrations, which which capture the flavor of Elizabethan England and show both the beauty and harshness of this new world. The end presents five of the most popular theories to explain the disappearance of the colonists. The best news of all? This book is just one of a series of books which explores unexplained mysteries from history!
Cate of the Lost Colony by Lisa Klein (Bloomsbury 2010)
Lady Catherine may be an entirely fictional character, but her story weaves through life at court as one of Queen Elizabeth’s ladies in waiting. I would not have wanted to find my way through the political intrigue at court, but Lady Catherine manages quite well. At least she does until she falls for the dashing Sir Walter Raleigh. When their forbidden romance is discovered, Cate is thrown into the Tower of London until the queen banishes her across the ocean as a member of the new colony on Roanoke Island. Cate is devastated to be torn from Sir Walter Raleigh, but she is excited to see this new world for herself. Once there, she faces incredible beauty and hardship. Unlike many of the colonists, she is eager to become friendly with the Croatan Indians who live nearby. As her homesickness for England–and Sir Walter Raleigh–fade, she becomes intrigued with Manteo. Might she find another love? Lisa Klein explains in a note in the back which parts of this story are true, and which are not.
Roanoke Island: The Beginning of English America by David Stick (University of North Carolina Press 1983)
David Stick’s book is the real history. It is a comprehensive summary of the events leading up to and following Sir Walter Raleigh’s Lost Colony. It is fairly readable for a more scholarly work, but it probably more than I really wanted to know. Stick presents all the facts that are known, including later hoaxes that claimed to solve the mystery. He stops short of drawing any firm conclusions as to what happened or why it happened beyond the implications for later English settlement of America. I just wish there was some way to know for certain what happened to those English men and women. I would like to think (and some evidence suggests) that at least some of them survived and lived with the Croatan Indians or other groups.
Even though new clues are tantalizing, we will probably never know exactly what happened. I did find it interesting that none of the bookstores/gift shops carried Lee Miller’s Roanoke: Solving the Mystery of the Lost Colony. I found her theories intriguing, though she definitely goes beyond stating the facts into a fascinating interpretation of those facts.
I read a lot of dystopian literature. I have heard the complaints that these imagined futures (that serve as a warning to excesses in our own present) are too dark and violent, but they have nothing on the real life horrors from our history. Even with as much as I have read, I still have trouble comprehending the atrocities committed by the Nazis during the Holocaust.
I knew that Dr. Mengele conducted experiments on twins who arrived at Auschwitz, but I am still shocked at the evil and cruelty he inflicted. Eva Mozes Kor (with Lisa Rojany Buccieri) shares her story in Surviving the Angel of Death: The True Story of a Mengele Twin in Auschwitz. It is in reading her story that I am able to glimpse what living through that horror felt like. Even more, I am in awe of the courage and grace with which Eva was able not just to survive, but to triumph over evil beyond imagination.
Eva grew up in a loving Jewish family in the village of Portz in Transylvania, Romania. All too soon the evil of the Nazis invaded their rural village until it was too late to escape. Eva and her sister Miriam are separated from the rest of their family on the train platform when they arrive at Auschwitz. They never see the rest of their family again, and must depend upon each other for their survival.
Every day they marched from their lice-infested barracks to the medical labs where doctors drew blood and injected them with multiple shots. They didn’t know it at the time, but some of the shots infected them with deadly diseases. Others were bizarre experiments dreamed up by Mengele to try to change the children’s gender or eye color. She still doesn’t know all of the things injected into her. On top of the medical experimets, Eva and Miriam had to survive the cold, hunger, and diseases while living under the cloud from the gas chambers and crematorium that killed the rest of their family. Life was still hard once the end of the war freed them from the camp and they returned to live with an aunt in Communist Romania. Eventually, they were able to leave for Israel, and finally, the United States.
Fifty years after their liberation from Auschwitz, Eva returned in January 1995 to commemorate the event. While there she presented one of the Nazi doctors, Dr. Münch, a letter of forgiveness. In forgiving not only Dr. Münch but also Dr. Mengele, her parents, and herself, Eva realized the power that forgiving gave her. She says, “I discovered once I made the decision was that forgiveness is not so much for the perpetrator, but for the victim. I had the power to forgive. No one could give me this power, and no one could take it away. That made me feel powerful. It made me feel good to have any power over my life as a survivor” (Kor 132). I don’t know if I could do it.
After the death of her sister Miriam, who suffered many health problems from Mengele’s injections, CANDLES Holocaust Museum and Education Center in Terre Haute, Indiana. I want to visit the museum sometime this year to learn more.
I’m glad the Young Hoosier Book Award list brought this book to my attention. Surviving the Angel of Death is a valuable addition to Holocaust literature for young adults.
I cannot imagine the horror of being born and living free and then being kidnapped and sold into slavery for twelve years, but that horrifying fate is just what Solomon Northup survived. Judith and Dennis Fradin recount Solomon’s story in Stolen into Slavery: The True Story of Solomon Northup, Free Black Man (Scholastic 2012).
