Title | Chains | |
Author | Laurie Halse Anderson | |
# of Pages | 316 | |
Best for Ages | 11-14 | |
# of Clovers | | |
# of Times Read |  | |
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Setting:
This book takes place in New York, and is the first book in the Seeds of America trilogy. The main character of this book is Isabel, a slave girl. This book takes place during the American Revolutionary War, and is told in first person. The genre of this book is historical fiction.
Plot:
Isabel and her sister Ruth are slaves in the late 1700's. Their master, Mary Finch has died recently and they are to be sold. Their new masters are the Locktons, rich Tories who have zero respect for their slaves. Isabel is sent to do chores, while Ruth becomes somewhat of a toy for Mrs. Lockton. While at the water pump, Isabel meets a slave boy named Curzon. He encourages Isabel to spy for the Americans, due to the fact that Mr. Lockton knows important things about the British army. This spying goes well, and Isabel begins to arrange for her and her sister to leave New York. However, when Mrs. Lockton finds out that Ruth has falling disease. Mrs. Lockton freaks out, and threatens to sell Ruth. Mrs. Lockton does not sell her instantly, but she does later. Isabel is devastated, but her world gets only worse. Isabel tries to run away, but she is caught and branded with the letter I for insolence. However, Isabel is not the only one being caught. Curzon, after he joined the Americans in the war, is captured with a bunch of other American soldiers. Isabel visits him everyday with scraps from the Lockton house. However, Curzon was shot in the leg, and is getting worse day by day. Soon, Isabel makes a plan to runaway and to take Curzon with her. But will it work? Or will she receive a crueler punishment then branding?
Recommendation:
This book was a good historical fiction book. It showed you what type of life a slave might have lived back during the American Revolutionary War. The problems Isabel dealt with were real problems back then. At the same time, there is a little action and zero adventure. However, if you are looking for a good historical fiction book, here is one for you.