Chains

By Laurie Halse Anderson

Book Overview

From acclaimed author Laurie Halse Anderson comes this compelling first novel in the historical middle grade The Seeds of America trilogy that shows the lengths we can go to cast off our chains, both physical and spiritual.

As the Revolutionary War begins, thirteen-year-old Isabel wages her own fight...for freedom. Promised freedom upon the death of their owner, she and her sister, Ruth, in a cruel twist of fate become the property of a malicious New York City couple, the Locktons, who have no sympathy for the American Revolution and even less for Ruth and Isabel.

When Isabel meets Curzon, a slave with ties to the Patriots, he encourages her to spy on her owners, who know details of British plans for invasion. She is reluctant at first, but when the unthinkable happens to Ruth, Isabel realizes her loyalty is available to the bidder who can provide her with freedom.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1416905863
• ISBN13: 9781416905868
• Release Date: January 2010
• Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 0.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.1" x 7.6"
• Age Range: 10 to 14 years
• Grade Range: Grades 5 to 9

Customer Reviews

Very nice!

I got one from a library, I wasn't sure how it would turn out, but it looks great! I am very surprised on how nice it truly is! This was the first time from ordering here, and I'm definitely doing it again!

Powerful perseverance

The heroine in Laurie Halse Anderson's gripping new middle level children's book, "Chains" is a thirteen year old slave named Isabel, headstrong, fierce in her determination to keep her epileptic sister Ruth with her, intuitive, and strong. What might fell the mightiest of people only serves to strengthen Isabel, time and time again, proving that determination was much needed during this turbulent time in our nation's history...

Richie's Picks: CHAINS

"Two black butterflies danced through a cloud of bugs and disappeared." In the late spring of 1776, at the crudely-marked grave where her mother is buried, a girl named Isabel seeks divine, motherly, guidance. She is here this day because, in the adjoining, whites-only cemetery, they are in the process of burying Miss Mary Finch who has owned Isabel, her little sister Ruth, and their deceased mother. And serious treachery...

Touching Historical Fiction

For ages 10+ this is an intense account of slavery in pre-Independence times of the USA. Too often we think that slavery only got bad in the 19th century or that it was limited to southern plantations. That is not the truth. Nor is it the truth that every slave owner was evil or every slave an innocent suffering. Laurie Halse Anderson does an excellent job of showing the complexities of slavery in the life of one young...

Anderson Is A Masterful Storyteller

I scooped up Anderson's newest novel, Chains, when our school librarian received it as an ARC a couple of weeks ago. I don't think I've ever been disappointed in a book by Anderson, and this one is no exception. Set during the Revolutionary War, we meet Isabel, an 11 year old (I think) slave who has hopes that she and her younger sister Ruth will be set free as promised upon the death of their mistress. Instead, the mistress's...