Review of Rebellion 1776

​Rebellion 1776
Written by Laurie Halse Anderson
Age Level: 10 - 14
Grade Level: 5 –9

I was expecting a book about the Revolution, but not one starring a 13 year old main character, Elsbeth. I didn’t expect that smallpox would have a starring role in this story either.
 
It begins as the Siege of Boston ends. General Knox dragged in cannons and begins firing on the British. Within days they leave, and so does Elsbeth’s father. He fixes the sails on ships, and his daughter doesn’t know what happened to him. As for the rest of her family, they all died from the smallpox. Elsbeth is the only survivor. Her father already had it so he has immunity.
 
Elsbeth is working as a maid-of-all-work for a Loyalist, then a jailed Patriot. She survives at age 13 by working hard and making good decisions. As the story develops, she finds herself working for a large family of Patriots. Smallpox epidemics raged in those days, but Boston invites doctors in to inoculate anyone who wants it done.
 
The How—Doctors  used something like a knife, a thread, a bandage, and fresh pus from a wound. (I know, gross, but this was 1776.) Then you waited for the infection to take hold. That’s where Elsbeth comes in again. With immunity, she can care for the whole family without fearing for her own health. If you’d like to know how this story turns out, you’ll have to read it for yourself.

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