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CHAINS

Name: CHAINS
Author: Laurie Halse Anderson
ISBN: 978-1-4169-0585-1

From the Seeds Of America series , Vol. 1

by Laurie Halse Anderson ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 21, 2008

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“ ‘Freedom and liberty’ has many meanings,” but enslaved Isabel knows that while Loyalists and Patriots battle for their own versions of freedom, she is “chained between two nations” that uphold slavery. She wonders, “If an entire nation could seek its freedom, why not a girl?” Anderson brilliantly recreates New York City in the summer of 1776, viewed through the eyes of a remarkable heroine. Taught to read by her previous owner, Isabel knows the Bible and has memorized poetry, and her eloquent first-person voice portrays her life as a slave even as she spies for the rebels, covertly delivers food to Bridewell Prison and plots her own escape. Readers will care deeply about Isabel and may feel frustrated by the abrupt ending to the novel, clearly poised for a sequel or two. While waiting, they can enjoy M.T. Anderson’s The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation: Volume II, The Kingdom on the Waves, another superb take on the subject. (author’s note) (Historical fiction. 10 & up)

Pub Date: Oct. 21, 2008

ISBN: 978-1-4169-0585-1

Page Count: 320

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2008

Categories:

CHILDREN'S HISTORICAL FICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
REBELLION 1776
by Laurie Halse Anderson

- BOOK REVIEW
WONDERFUL WOMEN OF THE WORLD
edited by Laurie Halse Anderson

- BOOK REVIEW
TEMPEST TOSSED
by Laurie Halse Anderson ; illustrated by Leila Del Duca

- AWARDS
Laurie Halse Anderson Wins Lindgren Memorial Award

- PERSPECTIVES
Book Banning Has Always Been With Us

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THE SEVENTH MOST IMPORTANT THING

by Shelley Pearsall ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 8, 2015

Luminescent, just like the artwork it celebrates. (Historical fiction. 10-14)

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Traumatized by his father’s recent death, a boy throws a brick at an old man who collects junk in his neighborhood and winds up on probation working for him.

Pearsall bases the book on a famed real work of folk art, the Throne of the Third Heaven, by James Hampton, a janitor who built his work in a garage in Washington, D.C., from bits of light bulbs, foil, mirrors, wood, bottles, coffee cans, and cardboard—the titular seven most important things. In late 1963, 13-year-old Arthur finds himself looking for junk for Mr. Hampton, who needs help with his artistic masterpiece, begun during World War II. The book focuses on redemption rather than art, as Hampton forgives the fictional Arthur for his crime, getting the boy to participate in his work at first reluctantly, later with love. Arthur struggles with his anger over his father’s death and his mother’s new boyfriend. Readers watch as Arthur transfers much of his love for his father to Mr. Hampton and accepts responsibility for saving the art when it becomes endangered. Written in a homespun style that reflects the simple components of the artwork, the story guides readers along with Arthur to an understanding of the most important things in life.

Luminescent, just like the artwork it celebrates. (Historical fiction. 10-14)