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ON THE HOME FRONT

Name: ON THE HOME FRONT
Author: Ann Stalcup
ISBN: 0-208-02482-4

GROWING UP IN WARTIME ENGLAND

by Ann Stalcup ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 1998

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A touching memoir from a former teacher, about her experiences in Lydney, England (120 miles west of London), as a young child during WW II. Born in 1935, and only four years old when England entered the war against Germany, Stalcup wonderfully recreates the voice of young child to recount the everyday incidents of a small family coping bravely with the war. She describes the issuing of gas masks, which “looked like pigs’ snouts and smelled foul,” her mother and father’s attempts to keep her from worrying, and the blacking out of windows with thick curtains. She describes the evacuation of women and children from London, rationing, and the rescue of Allied soldiers at Dunkirk by the “little ships.” One night, in a scene right out of the film Hope and Glory, when an 18-year-old German parachutist landed in the field next to her house, the author discovered that he was a nice lad and “realized that a great many of the German people were probably just like us.” This child’s view of WW II is certain to touch the hearts of readers. (glossary, further reading, index) (Memoir. 11-14)

Pub Date: May 1, 1998

ISBN: 0-208-02482-4

Page Count: 104

Publisher: N/A

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 1998

Categories:

TEENS & YOUNG ADULT HISTORY

- BOOK REVIEW
LEO POLITI
by Ann Stalcup & illustrated by Leo Politi

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TECUMSEH AND THE SHAWNEE CONFEDERATION

by Rebecca Stefoff ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 1, 1998

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This latest entry in the Library of American Indian History series chronicles the life of the courageous Shawnee leader, Tecumseh, a gifted, charismatic, and ``brilliant, spellbinding orator'' who attempted to unite the Native Americans into an intertribal confederacy and an independent nation against newcomers. Stefoff (Finding the Lost Cities, 1997, etc.) recounts with sympathy and empathy, how Tecumseh ``was determined to keep white settlers out of the Indian lands north of the Ohio River.'' Tecumseh's impressive, historic encounter with William Henry Harrison, the governor of the Indiana Territory, showed that he was not someone to be easily manipulated as were other native people who sold lands they did not own for trinkets and alcohol. One of the lessons of this compassionate biography is that essential differences regarding land-owning made it impossible for Native Americans and non-natives to understand one another. Tecumseh attempted ``to establish a principle that the lands should be considered common property and none sold without the consent of all.'' Despite Tecumseh's brilliant communication and negotiation skills, he was unsuccessful ultimately as a warrior and a leader and was mortally wounded during the Battle of the Thames in 1813. In Stefoff's work, his legend of integrity and courage, as well has his ``remarkable brilliance, dignity, and honor,'' lives on. (b&w photographs, maps, index, not seen, chronology, further reading, notes) (Biography. 11-13)

Pub Date: Jan. 1, 1998

ISBN: 0-8160-3648-9

Page Count: 144

Publisher: Facts On File

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1998

Categories:

TEENS & YOUNG ADULT HISTORY | TEENS & YOUNG ADULT NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE SIX—YOUNG READERS EDITION
by Loren Grush with Rebecca Stefoff

- BOOK REVIEW
A YOUNG PEOPLE'S HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES
by Howard Zinn ; adapted by Rebecca Stefoff with by Ed Morales

- BOOK REVIEW
HOW TO CHANGE EVERYTHING
by Naomi Klein ; adapted by Rebecca Stefoff

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COME ALL YOU BRAVE SOLDIERS

BLACKS IN THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR

by Clinton Cox ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 1, 1999

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In a solid, factual chronicle, Cox (Mark Twain, 1995, etc.) retells the story of the American Revolution; he doesn’t change or challenge what occurred but includes many of the details most history books have left out. Over 5,000 black men contributed to the country’s cause for independence, despite the slavery and racism the land offered them. The broad scope of the work allows for only brief portraits of the brave men who are highlighted, from Crispus Attucks, who was first to die at the Boston Massacre, to Prince Whipple, who accompanied Washington as he crossed the Delaware, to Pompey Lamb, who was instrumental in Mad Anthony Wayne’s capture of Stony Point. Cox astutely introduces the hypocrisy of a nation who fights for freedom while enslaving others; he also accurately presents the racial attitudes of the time through documents, letters, and speeches. In addition to paying tribute to some overlooked figures, this book also demonstrates why one historical account is never enough to establish the facts, and the surprises to be found in good research. (b&w photos, bibliography, index) (Nonfiction. 12-14)