S. D. Jones

Excellent trade book to be used in a unit on westward expansion. Although the reading level is 4.5, the subject matter is absolutely perfect for middle school students. This fast-paced, exciting novel shows a boy becoming a man on his quest for gold and the truth about what it means for American Indians. The characterization of the escaped slave gives us a little insight into slavery. I highly recommend this book to 7th & 8th graders.

Update: I may have my 4th grader read this, too, as he's so interested in Native American culture due to it being a major unit in his 4th grade classrooom. But......is that cruel? Is there a reason to have him wait until he's in middle school to know this part of the story? Still thinking about it.… (plus d'informations)

I can't believe I actually liked this, but it had some excellent moments. This is another one of those really easy, really short historical fiction texts that our Social Studies teacher recommends to his 7th or 8th grade students as a quick extra credit read. I have to admit that I didn't really know much about the "splendid little war" with Spain in Cuba, but now I do, because this time I experienced it with a story. These little books are not developed enough that you cry or care about the characters, but this one had several moments that made me react out loud, wishing I had someone there with whom I could discuss the ideas presented. Themes: writing as a source of income vs. writing what you believe, manipulation of American sentiment via journalism, romanticizing war (reality vs. idealization of it), coming of age (main character evolves from seeing things in black and white to shades of gray). There are a few parts that deal with our treatment of Native Americans and stereotyping, which I guess connects to the manipulation of public sentiment in the Cuba/Spain conflict, but it's really 2 chapters that seem out of place and could've been left out. However, then this book would take about 20 minutes to read instead of 30. A quick easy read to enjoy discussing with your students who are not reading on grade level but are ready for this kind of content.

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