Boys Rule Boys Read!: I Knew It!

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

I Knew It!

Yep, I knew Darth Bill wold give all the Jedi an in-your-face taunting. Oh, well, don't let that stop you. The big thing is to keep on reading. Maybe we could all create a galaxy in which Sith and Jedi sit down and read together in peace.

Or maybe not.

Anyway, last weekend I went to this totally cool place, Colonial Williamsburg, and got to see some fascinating sights. One of them was the Public Goal (Jail). Here's a picture:

These two cells are from the original jail, built over 300 years ago! Their big claim to fame is that they once held 15 of Blackbeard's pirates!

Speaking of colonial times, here are two really great books about the American Revolution. The first is George vs. George: The American Revolution as Seen From Both Sides

by Rosalyn Schanzer. This book tells the story of the Revolutionary War by giving us biographies of George Washington and King George III. Each man believed firmly that he was right and had an iron determination to fight it out to the end. We know who won, of course, but it was a long and bitter struggle and it looked like the war might have gone to King George instead of George Washington. What a great story! Read it and see if I'm right when I say that history is exciting and not boring! (PS--This book has a drawing of King George and his wife Charlotte in it. Our city of Charlotte is named after her.)

The other one is King's Mountain by G. Clifton Wisler. 14-year-old Francis Livingstone is an

ordinary boy living in the Watauga Settlements of North Carolina. The Revolutionary War has been going badly for the Patriots, those fighting for independence from England, but it has not affected the lives of the families in this remote settlement. Then he and his sister have to go to Camden, South Carolina to help their grandmother run her tavern. They arrive just in time to see the English army occupy the town. It's a dangerous time for Patriots like Francis and his sister. Can they escape and get back home? And will the English army make good its threat to burn all the Patriot homes in North and South Carolina? You've got to read this terrific book. I was holding my breath the whole time, wondering what would happen to young Francis.

This book is especially interesting to those in the Charlotte area because the battle of King's Mountain took place only 40 miles from here! If you want to see the battlefield, click on the King's Mountain National Park site here. Since the battle happened on October 7, 1780, they're going to hold special events the weekend of October 6 and 7. Click here to find out what they will be. I'd like to go--maybe I'll see you there!

AND-----since Bill's challenge went uncompleted, wait until October 1, when I will issue my own challenge to all you readers! I will raise the stakes on his challenge. Are you up to it?

Carl

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