Interest level: Grade 3-6 Reading level: Grade 5
This short biography would be perfect for older students who are reading at a lower level. It's short with large print, simple text and just enough information about Phillis Wheatley to be comprehensive for more in-depth reports.
The biography covers the life of Phillis from when she arrived in the Americas as a slave to her eventual death. It focuses on her life as a poet and gives some glimpses into the American Revolution through her life and how her poems were shaped by the Revolutionary spirit of the time. Phillis Wheatley stands out as a prominent figure for this time due to the fact that not only was she a slave, but she was also one of the first women to have a book of poetry published in America. She is considered the mother of Black Literature and had her poems about the Revolutionary war been published in her time, she would have been the first poet to have a book of poetry published about the subject. While the book included black and white illustrations, I would have preferred at least one full-length poem from Phillis Wheatley. I feel as though the publishers may not have been able to get the rights to one or thought that the reading level of the poems would be too high, but you can't have a biography about a poet without an example of a poem.
Because this book solely focuses on her life, you would need other resources to get a more comprehensive look at the Revolutionary War. Although, this title opens another view onto life during this time period especially for a glimpse at life outside the bounds of politicians and soldiers. This book includes a short bibliography for extra resources.
Extra Resource:
Poems of the American Revolution
A Farewell to America by Phillis Wheatley
Phillis Wheatley poetry
Intended Reading level: YA
While the reading level is listed as YA, this book does not have any content in it that would not be appropriate for Middle School or lower. The language is more enhanced than that used in the Wheatley biography, but it is in no means adult specific language either. I believe, for research purposes, this book would be a great choice from Grades 5 and up.
The structure of the book is divided by role not specific women. The chapters focus on: A Woman's Role, In the Army, In the Spying Business, Political Arena, Ladies Associations and Home Front. In this way, it gives a glimpse into a number of different women and their roles in the Revolutionay War. I liked this framing because it really used the war as a lense for what women were doing during that time period and how they shaped the war as well. The first chapter gives your a brief glimpse into what was expected of women in America and how they may have subverted these preconceived notions to help the cause. The book also talks about women on both sides, Patriots and Loyalists, which I think makes a great unbiased look at the War. I will say, there seems to be emphasis on white colonists. Slaves are mentioned in relation to the Patriots lives but not as single people with a stake in the war. Phillis Wheatley is mentioned, but even from what I learned in her biography, she was more an adopted daughter of the Wheatley's then an actual representation of the live of a slave during the war.
The book uses a number of primary sources including snippets from letters, paintings and illustrations from the time period, and newspaper articles. They also include sidebars about single women who stood out during the time. It has a comprehensive bibliography and suggestions for future reading as well as a timeline of events.
Again, I think this is a great book choice for people looking to get new perspectives from the time period.
Extra Resources:
Brief glimpse at other women in the American Revolution. Here as well.
George vs. George: The American Revolution as seen from Both Sides by Rosalyn Schanzer. Published 2004.
This is a fun book choice for the more reluctant researchers. The author is also the illustrator and she uses the pictures in a cartoon fashion to present more information through speech bubbles, charts, maps and comic-like action scenes. I also enjoyed that this book was meant to be about both sides of the war, therefore, covering both perspectives.
In the opening, each spread switches focus from George Washington to King George, giving a similar length look at both their lives. It then does the same for the countrymen and the way the government works. Once it gets into the actual events of the war, it seems to focus more on the Patriot side. I would have liked to truly see how people viewed the Revolution from both sides of the water without having a bent for the Patriots, but it seems its a book on the side of America for the most part. That being said, it does move back to a side by side comparison of the different soldiers and ends with what King George did after the war and what George Washington did. She tries to point out that King George was not the horrible person that he was painted to be in America, but I still would have liked more information about what was happening in Britain during this time period and what the English thought of the war efforts. For example, there are no actual examples from primary sources, but the book does include a bibliography and a quote source for all the speech bubbles.
Overall, I think this is a good resources for students to get to know a little more about both sides of the conflict and general details about the events that unfolded, but they will need more resources to find out more specific things about certain events. I do like that this book points out that King George was the last King of America and George Washington was the First President.
Extra Resources:
Thinkquest about the Revolution created by students.
Royal Family history.
America's Black Founders: Revolutionary Heroes and Early Leaders by Nancy I. Sanders. Published 2010.
This is a great resource not just for the Revolutionary War but for information that includes the founding of the Nation as well. I loved this book for so many different reasons.
To begin with the obvious, this book addresses the role of African Americans in America during the Revolution and beyond and it is by no means just a simple statement of "and then there were slaves who fought for the war" like so many other books, even ones previously mentioned, have included.
This book moves chronologically by event listing different slaves and free men and women who contributed to the war effort if a variety of ways. It highlights certain individuals in the text but also in sidebar boxes. There are primary sources included not only in quotes in the text but also copied letters and petitions and other artifacts from the past. There is examples of poetry and song lyrics. There are photos, illustrations and paintings. On top of that, there are 21 activities that students can do to learn about events from the time even further. I think the lessons are an added bonus, but actually one of the most lacking things in this book if there were to be something lacking.
I like that the book shows and points out different times in history where African Americans were key figures, but also where they were present when often there is not mention, such as along side George Washington in battle, fighting at Bunker Hill and riding through town warning of the British like Paul Revere. There is history there and it does not need to be ignored or glossed over. It existed. I really appreciate how they show the connection between the sentiments of freedom that were stirred up during this time and how this effected slaves and their own fight for freedom.
The book does not stop at the end of the war, but continues on to show how Black Leaders help found the nation by creating key churches, societies and even the layout and shaping of the Capital.
At the end there is not only a bibliography and more resources for students, but also a list of web links. You can see some of them below.
Extra Resources:
The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed
Africans in America
Fight for Freedom: The American Revolutionary War by Benson Bobrick. Published 2004.
If you want a book about the war aspect of the War, this is the book for you. For the most part, each two page spread is about a different battle. The layout has information about the event on one page with a small side bar of "Quick Facts" in the corner and the next page is a large color painting of the event. This layout has two great things going for it, its colorful and therefore more likely to draw student's attention and the one page text format with quick facts makes it easy to get bytes of information about different subjects without being overwhelming. In the world of Google and Wikipedia, sometimes its nice to know there is a book to direct kids to that will be in small doses of information, yet information that can be useful for them.
There are maps of battles, a timeline, bibliography, list of web resources and even a glossary. While most of the chapters are divided by battles there are also stand out chapters on "The Women of the Revolution," "Flags of Liberty," and sections on key figures and groupings of soldiers. Sadly, besides the one chapter on women, there is no major mention of other minority groups such as African Americans or Native Americans other than reference to them in some massacres.
If students are looking for key details about specific events, this book would definitely be a welcome resource.
Extra Resources:
USHistory.org
Liberty! The American Revolution
Here is a book talk I created for America's Black Founders:
