Language: G (0 swears 0 'f'); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG (scary people, peril; descriptions of smallpox);
BUYING ADVISORY:MS, HS - ESSENTIAL
APPEALS TO: SEVERAL
13yo Elsbeth is a maid for Judge Bellingham, a member of the Royal Governor's Council and a loyalist. It's 1776, and the siege of Boston gave patriots control of the city. Loyalists left Boston and Judge Bellingham with them. Elsbeth's father is missing and she is desperate to find him, she has no secure employment and may end up in an orphanage. Then a wealthy family, the Pikes arrive, and Elsbeth becomes their maid-of-all-things. They have a housekeeper who quickly shows her distaste for Elsbeth, so she doubles down and works even harder. But when smallpox starts spreading, and inoculation is the answer to getting a light case, Elsbeth, who survived smallpox as a child, becomes even more valuable to the family. But her father has some sketchy acquaintances, and his past threatens her future.
I love Laurie Halse Anderson's histories so very much. On the shelf it seems a huge book, and page wise, yes, but the story is so engaging! I thought it would be about battles and the revolutionary war, but it was more about the lives of the people trapped in Boston, first by the seige, and then by the smallpox. Readers of historical fiction will like this one, it reminded me of Ann Rinaldi's books I read in the 80s. Highly recommended, but I have trouble getting kids to read fat books and historical fiction, I hope the tide turns soon. The characters are white.
Lisa Librarian
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