The final installment of Laurie Halse Anderson's trilogy on the American Revolution, Ashes, will be out late this year. Anderson is a highly acclaimed and popular writer of historical fiction for youth. The two earlier books in the trilogy, Chains and Ashes, have been extensively used in middle schools, especially, as they are engaging reads on one of the two big events in U.S. history.
The books are unusual in that their young protagonists are both black, and the author doesn't seem to feel much obligated to make white patriots seem progressive. The fact that many more slaves won their freedom fighting for rather than against the British has long been a discomfiting fact for many Americans. Historical fiction for children on the American Revolution has been much truer to the historical record than the highly popular film "Patriot" on issues of race and racism, but most of the novels have either pretty much ignored black people (Johnny Tremain is an obvious example) or suggested that the Revolution was ushering in--if fitfully--an era of freedom for all.
Anderson's books are much more realistic and depressing; she seldom lets the reader forget that the protagonists well realize that fighting for their own freedom and the young nation's freedom are two very different enterprises. It will be interesting to see if she maintains this cheerless historical accuracy through this final book. Balancing the requirements of patriotism and historical honesty is often a difficult proposition--though at least Anderson is making a good living at it.
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