Amity Middle School Orange Book Blog

Read reviews by an avid young adult book enthusiast.

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson

Chains is historical fiction at its best!

Thirteen-year-old Isabel and her much younger sister Ruthie have been slaves of an elderly woman in Rhode Island. Upon her death, the will states that both girls will be freed. Unfortunately for the two girls, her only living relative shows up and refuses to honor his deceased aunt’s commitment to free them. They are sold by the nephew to Elihu Lockton and his vicious wife Anne.

The Locktons are loyal to England. They are called loyalists or Tories while the people sympathetic to the revolution which is about to happen are referred to as rebels. Mr. Lockton is conspiring along with other Tories to kill General Washington.
The Locktons are both cruel to the girls. Isabel does all she can to protect five-year-old Ruthie from being whipped or mistreated.  She is desperate to make sure that they will always be together.

As the war begins to take shape, hundreds of British ships begin to line the harbor of New York. Before long everyone is fleeing the city to escape the inevitable bloodshed that will follow.

How can Isabel protect Ruthie from the Locktons’ inhumane treatment? Which side should the girls align themselves with for this conflict? Who can Isabel trust to help them? Will it be a Tory or will the rebel slave Curzon be the right choice?
 

 

1 comment:

  1. Great read! Perfect companion read for kids in history studies for Revolutionary War. It kept me wanting to know what happens next and I will definitely be reading the rest of the series.

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