Reviewing - Currents by Jane Petrlik Smolik

My latest review is of the book Currents by Jane Petrlik Smolik. If you haven't seen the video, you can go HERE for the shorter preview video and HERE for the longer, more in depth video. I decided to start making previews for the videos for those who want to see what the book is about without dedicating 6-8 minutes.

I didn't find any extra material associated with Currents, but I decided to see if I could find some more historical fiction books about the civil war. I enjoyed reading Civil War books as a kid and I think most kids tend to go through a phase where they enjoy reading historical fiction.

Below is a short list of some books that I found. I haven't read all of them, but I will put a short description by each and if I have read it or not.

Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt - about a young boy's experiences on his family farm during the Civil War. He has brothers who go to war on both sides and there's a murder mystery involving his sister, as well as some correspondence with Abraham Lincoln. I read this in high school and it is on my book shelf. I would recommend maybe 11 and up reading this. There are no battle scenes, but the murder mystery is a little suspenseful. A good boy book, though I enjoyed it as a girl.

Soldier's Heart by Gary Paulsen - I haven't read this but I like Gary Paulsen books. He writes great books for boys. This is the description I found from Education.com, " Charley Goddard, at age 15, enlists in the First Minnesota Volunteers in 1861. Four years later, he returns home, feeling much older and sadder, if no wiser, as he realizes there may have been little point to the sacrifices made by his fallen comrades. This book can be a wrenching read, but older readers will appreciate Charley's attempts to make sense of the nightmarish experience." Because of that description, I would recommend 13 and up reading this.

Bull Run by Paul Fleischman - I don't think I have read this, but it's on my list. This is the description from Education.com, Sixteen different voices narrate this story: soldier and civilian, slave and free, male and female, young and old, Yankee and Confederate. All tell the tale of how their lives were changed by the First Battle of Bull Run, the first major conflict of the Civil War. This book won the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction and made many 1993 and 1994 best books lists." I am familiar with some of Paul Fleischman's picture books, but not his YA or middle grade fiction.

Girl in Blue by Ann Rinaldi - I have read this and really enjoyed it, though it is heart wrenching. It is about a sixteen year old girl who disguises herself as a boy and joins the Union Army. Ann Rinaldi has written a lot of civil war fiction, mostly from the view point of young women and girls. If you have a daughter who enjoys historical fiction and specifically civil war fiction, I would suggest looking up Ann Rinaldi's books. I would suggest this book for ages 16-18, mostly because of the age of the protagonist and there is a little romance in it (nothing inappropriate). But 13-15 could enjoy it too.

I also have a suggestion for 16-18 year old girls or for moms. I recently read the Refiner's Fire series by Lynn Austin. I don't read a lot of christian fiction, but I really enjoyed this series, especially the first two novels: Candle in the Darkness and Fire by Night. They are a little slow moving at times, but they kept me interested and have lots of positive moral messages and some romance as well! Since they are told from female perspectives, there isn't a lot of blood and gore, but there is some because one of the characters is a woman who dresses as a man and enlists in the army. I cried when reading them, but I am a crier. haha. :-)

Anyway, I hope you find these suggestions useful! Let me know if you or your child read any of these and what they thought of them!

Happy reading!

Shelby - The Conservative Bookworm

#civilwar #historicalfiction