Chains

Finished January 20

Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson

This award-winning children's book is set from mid 1776 through to January 1777, and is told from the point of view of Isabel a black girl. She and her sister Ruth were owned by a woman, Mary, who had promised to free them on her death, but due to upheavals from the War of Independence, Mary's lawyer is away, and her heir quickly takes the girls and sells them to a loyalist couple, the Lockton's, from Charleston who are heading to their house in New York. 

Ruth is a bit simple, but a quiet and good girl, and Isabel is very protective of her. In New York, Isabel meets Curzon a young slave whose master Bellingham is in charge at the docks and suspects that they are loyalists, and will keep an eye on them. 

When Curzon asks Isabel to spy for them, she is at first wary, but pins her hopes on promises of freedom. Isabel is a smart girl, who can read and write, and knows how to keep her thoughts to herself, except in the case of her young sister. 

As we watch the changes in New York through her eyes as the war progresses, we see the bigger picture as well, and learn about the dealings of both the Americans who fight for freedom and the loyalists that want to remain king's subjects. Isabel struggles to understand the meaning of freedom to these men who use the word with such fervor, but still have slaves. 

As she continuously looks for ways to win her and Ruth's freedom, she finds herself torn between new loyalties and old. She undergoes cruelty and hardship as well as small kindnesses from a few. This is a tale that brings history to life as well as opening the young reader to human experiences foreign to them. It is the first book in a series.

Regulated for Murder

Finished May 19
Regulated for Murder by Suzanne Adair

This mystery thriller is set in 1781 in North Carolina. Michael Stoddard is a lieutenant for the king who has been asked to investigate a questionable land deal in Wilmington, the city he is stationed in. He finds traps and a missing man, but is quickly pulled off the case to courier an urgent message inland to Lord Cornwallis. He heads for the town of Hillsborough dressed as a civilian to meet his contact, but he arrives on the doorstep just after said contact has been murdered, in time to see the supposed perpetrator disappear into the woods. The law in town is a questionable bunch of men, that Stoddard himself suspects the origins of, and they insist on his staying and not only cooperating in the investigation, but doing some of the investigating. Michael is in luck that an acquaintance from Wilmington is also in town, and is willing to assist in passing him off as a civilian and giving him shelter. As he continues to investigate he finds himself more and more suspicious of the law in town and worried about his own safety and those who have helped him.
With a little romance, a lot of suspense, and interesting characters galore, this is a mystery that will keep you glued to the page. I liked the main character of Michael who comes off as an upright member of society, with a slightly secretive past back in England. The widow Kate Duncan is an intelligent business woman who had an unhappy marriage and may be interested in Michael. Her aunt Rachel is another intelligent business woman who has tried to hide her trials from her family, but recognizes when it is time to be forthright. The young man Noah, who everyone has dismissed an an idiot because of his deafness is a gem of a character with hidden depths. Definitely interested in reading more. Wondering how Michael will fare when the English retreat from the United States.

American Creation

Finished April 2
American Creation: Triumphs and Tragedies at the Founding of the Republic by Joseph J. Ellis

This book looks at U.S. history from the early days of the revolution to the Louisiana Purchase, ranging from 1775 to 1803, and analyzes six different component actions. First he has an overview of the founding overall, the bigger picture and the reasoning for covering the period he does here. Then each chapter looks at an event or time period, at who the different players were and what actions they took, even at what we know about what they were thinking from their papers and conversations. Included here is a discussion of the significance of each of these.
The first chapter covers the first year of the revolution, really a little more than a year, as it is the time period from April 1775 when shots were fired at Lexington and Concord, and the adoption of the Declaration of Independence in July of 1776. Here, you could really see how the actions of the British fed into the more radical plans of the revolutionaries, pushing them further towards a true revolt. The American petitions were not only not entertained by the British, but the British began to hire foreign mercenaries to quash the rebellion by their own people. Definitely not an action that would lead to a peaceful outcome.
The second chapter covers the first hard winter of the war, in which the British sat comfortably in the city, while the Americans sat in the rural breadbasket, freezing and starving. Ellis describes the poor planning on the American side, and the lessons they learned from this experience, as well as the complacency of the British and the mistake they made in not taking advantage of the situation.
The third chapter is entitled The Argument and covers the period from 1786 until 1788. This is really about the political beginnings, the struggle to define the political model for the United States. Washington and most of the officers in the Continental Army were nationalists, those who believed in a strong central government. The majority of people were confederationists who believed in state-centered government. Madison was the creative brains behind the nationalists. It came down to the Henry - Madison debate of 1788 where Patrick Henry's eloquence wasn't a match for Madison's convincing argument.
The fourth chapter is called The Treaty and deals with the issue of the Native Americans, setting the stage for the removal of the natives by sheer demography. Despite good intentions by Washington, the sheer volume of settlers pushing westward led to the failure of the legitimate rights of the Native Americans.
The fifth chapter deals with the creation of the two-party system with Jefferson and Madison defining the Republican opposition against Washington and Adams Federalists. It was interesting to see the opposition party reasoning that still exists now coming from Jefferson as he found himself taking actions later that he had earlier argued against when in opposition.
The last chapter is about the Louisiana Purchase and how it changed the plan of gradual westward expansion  to a sudden jump of increased land as part of the nation. It is about squandered opportunities and precedent setting, and about the racial issues that still haunt the country today.
A very interesting look at an interesting country.

The Fort

Finished January 22
The Fort by Bernard Cornwell, read by Robin Bowerman

This novel covers the real American Revolutionary battle over the settlement of Majabigwaduce on Penobscot Bay (in present-day Maine) in the summer of 1779. We follow characters on both sides. On the British side we see things from the point of view of Brigadier General McLean and Lieutenant John Moore (later a well-know British military leader). On the American side we see things from the viewpoint of General Wadsworth, a former schoolteacher.
The British have three warships and a couple of transport ships and a half-finished fort (the titular Fort George), a Scottish brigade of professional soldiers, and control of the harbour. The Americans have the largely untrained Massachusetts militia, a few Continental Navy ships with marines, and several Privateers. They outnumber the British in both ships and men.
General Saltenstall is in charge of the Warren and the American naval forces, but worries more about the safety of his ship than his responsibilities to attack the enemy when appropriate. The leader of the army is General Lovell, a former farmer and nervous in his role. Paul Revere is a Colonel in charge of the artillery and comes across very badly as vain, self-important, and a bad military leader. The bullheadedness of Generals Saltenstall and Lovell create a standoff in which Saltenstall refuses to attack the British ships until the fort is taken, and Lovell refuses to attack the fort until the ships are vanquished. The bad leadership of Revere leads to ineffective artillery, lost equipment, and captured men. The resultant siege allows the fort to be further fortified and the British Navy to send reinforcements. Wadsworth is angry and frustrated with all of them, rightly so, but lacks the authority to force the correct responses to the situation. Both Wadsworth and the Continental marines come across well here, as well as a few other American officers and men, but the amateur nature of the majority of the men on the American side is part of the problem that leads to the final outcome of the battle. Definitely a case where personalities and training, or lack thereof, showed.
It was interesting, historically enlightening, and an overall good read.

War Through the Generations Challenge for 2013

I will be joining the War Through the Generations Challenge again for 2013.

For 2013 the war is the American Revolution.

Site rules:
Books can take place before, during, or after the war, so long as the conflicts that led to the war or the war itself are important to the story. Books from other challenges count so long as they meet the above criteria.

I'm going for the Wade level, which is
Read 4-10 books in any genre with the American Revolution as a primary or secondary theme.

Not sure what I might have on the shelf for this period, but will take a look.