The Storm Before Atlanta by Karen Schwabach.
Random House Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: December 2010
List Price: $16.99
ISBN-13: 9780375858666
Review: Suspense, courage, and dedication are three words that describe The Storm Before Atlanta by Karen Schwabach. It is 1863, and eleven year old Jeremy has one goal. He wants to be a drummer boy for the union army, so he can die a glorious death. His plans are off to a great start, but the closer he gets to dying while fighting the wars, the more he wants to live. As the campaign to take Atlanta rages on, Jeremy meets many new friends. One friend is Dulcie, a slave that has run away from her owner and joined the union army. They are faced with many threats of being killed or enslaved, and they are pushed to survive dozens of life or death situations. After surviving many battles, they arrive at the battle to take the confederate headquarters, Atlanta.
The Storm Before Atlanta captures issues of race, class, and courage. The story especially captures thoughts and emotions on slavery from both sides of the war. The author is so descriptive, which makes it easy to put yourself in the situations. For example, the story tells of the whoosh of cannon balls and the hot smoke of blazing rifles as Jeremy enters his first battle. The characters in the book have well developed personalities that change as the book progresses. For instance, Dulcie, who hates white people at the start of the book, had become great friends with a white boy named Jeremy. The Storm Before Atlanta is full of action that will keep you interested. In almost every chapter, something surprising happens. The story is so captivating that it made me wish it had an epilogue. The Storm Before Atlanta deserves five out of five stars.
Review written by Zach (6th grade student).
We would like to thank Random House for providing a copy of The Storm Before Atlanta for this review.
Have you read The Storm Before Atlanta? How would you rate it?
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