Rebellion 1776, Laurie Halse Anderson
Rebellion 1776, Laurie Halse Anderson
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Rebellion 1776

Author: Laurie Halse Anderson

Narrator: Phoebe Strole

Unabridged: 10 hr

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 04/01/2025


Synopsis

From New York Times bestselling author Laurie Halse Anderson comes an eerily timely historical fiction middle grade adventure about a girl struggling to survive amid a smallpox epidemic, the public’s fear of inoculation, and the seething Revolutionary War.

In the spring of 1776, thirteen-year-old Elspeth Culpepper wakes to the sound of cannons. It’s the Siege of Boston, the Patriots’ massive drive to push the Loyalists out that turns the city into a chaotic war zone. Elspeth’s father—her only living relative—has gone missing, leaving her alone and adrift in a broken town while desperately seeking employment to avoid the orphanage.

Just when things couldn’t feel worse, the smallpox epidemic sweeps across Boston. Now, Bostonians must fight for their lives against an invisible enemy in addition to the visible one. While a treatment is being frantically fine-tuned, thousands of people rush in from the countryside begging for inoculation. At the same time, others refuse protection, for the treatment is crude at best and at times more dangerous than the disease itself.

Elspeth, who had smallpox as a small child and is now immune, finds work taking care a large, wealthy family with discord of their own, as they await a turn at inoculation, but as the epidemic and the revolution rage on, will she find her father?

About The Author

Laurie Halse Anderson is a New York Times bestselling author known for tackling tough subjects with humor and sensitivity. She’s twice been a National Book Award finalist, for Chains and Speak; Chains also received the 2009 Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction. Laurie was chosen for the 2009 Margaret A. Edwards Award and received the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award in 2023, presented to her by the Crown Princess of Sweden. She lives in Pennsylvania, and you can follow her adventures on Twitter @HalseAnderson or visit her at MadWomanintheForest.com.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Sarah on April 19, 2025

So terribly disappointed in this one. How can Anderson write historical fiction for young readers SO brilliantly in Fever, 1793 and The Seeds of America trilogy and completely miss the mark on this one?! I didn’t develop any care toward Elsbeth and the narrative style of having her sometimes talk di......more

Goodreads review by Melanie on January 11, 2025

Stellar historical fiction for grades 5 and up, set in Boston, Massachusetts just prior to the writing of the Declaration of Independence. Focus is on the survival and culture of families and individuals during this tumultuous time with a bit of wartime weaponry and tactics and the effect of the Dec......more

Goodreads review by Max on May 30, 2025

3.5 stars [URL not allowed] An interesting and insightful read that taught me a lot about what life was like in Boston in 1776 as the tide turned in favor of the Patriots in the Revolutionary War and the smallpox epidemic swept the city. I really enjoyed following Elsbeth and th......more

Goodreads review by Skip on May 22, 2025

Elspeth Culpepper is a 13-year-old girl living in Boston during the Revolutionary War, who survived the smallpox epidemic that killed her mother and siblings. Her father, a sailmaker, wants to send her to overseas relatives, but mysteriously disappears, leaving Elspeth to survive on her own. She man......more

Goodreads review by Jessica on May 07, 2025

I love Laurie Halse Anderson so much! This read was a different journey for me as I don’t typically gravitate towards historical fiction but I carried on. I think the story paced ok and I liked Elspeth as a main voice for the story. The chapter starter pages with the title, date and a quote was love......more