American Adventures: Joseph's Choice: 1861

My fifth grade students just finished reading "Joseph's Choice" by Bonnie Pryor. They previously read, "Joseph: 1861-A Rumble of War". My students read these books as part of an ELA unit on the Civil War. As a wrap-up for this unit, I asked the students in question and answer format to review "Joseph's Choice". For classroom teachers, I think it is interesting to read book reviews from the students' perspective. Below I have written a summary of my student's reviews. This book is full of action and suspense. It begins with a bridge explosion and a train crash adverted with seconds to spare. Mr. Byers, Joseph's stepfather, is an abolitionist in a town where the majority is on the Confederate's side. Joseph and his family are affected by Mr. Byers beliefs. Mr. Byers's business is set on fire and he is kidnapped. As the war draws closer, the reader will see how the town and Joseph change. As my students read "Joseph's Choice" they learned important information about the Civil War. They learned the Civil War was not only about slavery, but state's rights. Some masters treated their slaves cruelly (cutting off their toes and separating families as they are sold at auctions). They learned about Kentucky and its division within the state and towns causing brothers and neighbors to fight against each other. Kentucky was neutral at the beginning of the war, but eventually joined the Union. The students felt there were many important themes that emerged in this book. These included racial inequality, violence, peer pressure and standing up for what you believe is right. The students all rated the book 5 stars. Their favorite parts included Hannah and Joseph stopping the train before it crashed, the Vengeance Committee tarring and feathering Mr. Byers, the town working together to put out the fire, and Joseph standing up to the Vengeance Committee. They recommend this book to other students because there is a lot of action and it keeps you interest throughout the book. "It is an adventure every chapter and it is hard to put down." In addition, you learn information about the Civil War in a fun way.

I love all of Mrs.Pryor's books, but this one is my favorite !!! You see our teacher read it to the class and when we finished our 2 chapters for the day, everybody would ask for one more chapter . This book is really fun to read because Mrs. Pryor really reasearched and her editor checked well. Overall, the book is beautifully written and I highly reccomend it !!

I read the book Joseph's Choice by Bonnie Pryor. In the beginning of the book The civil war is starting and Kentucky is still a neutral state. It seems that this statement is not true because people in Branson Mills start siding and friends turn against friends and people start to harm each other. Mainly Joseph's dad is getting hurt because he is an abolitionist and works to stop slavery while almost everyone else in town is for slavery. Now that all this is happening Joseph thinks it is now impossible to keep Branson Mills neutral. Now Joseph is stuck because he can't decide which side to be on. He doesn't like slavery but he knows the south can have things he is for as well. Joseph will have to decide for his own good. I liked how the book started because there was a ton of suspense like when the two men blew up the bridge and the train almost crashed. I also liked how Matt would always have something very exciting happening to him like when the Vengeneance Comittee took his dad and he fought to get him back, and then finally the police got him back. The books theme is a story of a war that caused a lot of problems to the people in the U.S. The lesson the author is trying to teach you is that you should always stick up for what you believe in and to never give up.

At the start of the Civil War, Joseph's loyalties are torn between the North and the South. His abolitionist stepfather has persuaded him that slavery is wrong, and among his friends are a freed black girl and a Quaker boy. Yet his family are treated as outcasts in their small Kentucky town, and Joseph feels tempted to support the Southern cause just to shake their contempt. It's that longing to be accepted that makes him want to hide his friendship with Hannah, the free black girl. As he watches the hatred spread among his friends and neighbors as they turn against each other, Joseph will have to make a choice which side he truly supports. This was an excellant novel about the hardships of living on a border state during the Civil War, where people turned against their friends and neighbors.