A generation away from liberty’s extinction

Part two of my series on 10+ kids’ books on America’s origins. Find part one here.

6. Let It Begin Here! Lexington & Concord: First Battles of the American Revolution by Dennis Brindell Fradin

Rather better history than Longfellow, and still inspiring. My sons have encouraged their grandfathers to be like Samuel Whittemore, the 80 year old minute man who, alone, ambushed a British relief column, taking down one redcoat with his musket, another two with dueling pistols, and then drew his sword before being overcome, bayoneted 14 times, and left for dead… but recovering and living until 98. And if you want to naturally follow what happens next when militia from all over New England besiege Boston but don’t have the artillery to dislodge the British, check out the story of bookseller Henry Knox. My son Knox spontaneously cut up a cardboard box recently and enlisted me in trying to get artillery across a frozen lake (we were on rafts, trying to dodge ice chunks).

7. When Washington Crossed the Delaware A Wintertime Story for Young Patriots by Lynne Cheney

Like Die Hard, really a Christmas story. Or perhaps a rift on It’s a Wonderful Life: George shows up, and a few hundred Hessians find out what the world looks like without them in it. The D’Aulaires also have a charming biography of the indispensable man (and another on Ben Franklin).

8. The Story of Valley Forge by Conrad Stein

Ex-Marine Conrad Stein’s books in the Cornerstones of Freedom series are consistently good - he also has ones on the Boston Tea Party, Lexington & Concord, and lots more. They are, alas, out of print but relatively easy to track down.

9. ABC Book of Early Americana by Eric Sloane

This book gives you a wonderful sense of what life really looked like back then - and is especially interesting to little boys who like tools (I know a couple). If you like this one, Sloane has plenty more.

10. A More Perfect Union: the Story of Our Constitution by Betsy and Giulio Maestro

The Constitution, of course, is the culmination of the Revolution and I won’t say that there’s one definitive good children’s book on it, but this one is a nice intro that correctly incorporates some of the insights of the anti-Federalists (perhaps you should add a Picture Book of Patrick Henry). The Maestros also have a nice broader American history series.

As Ronald Reagan observed, “Freedom is a fragile thing and it’s never more than one generation away from extinction. It is not ours by way of inheritance; it must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation, for it comes only once to a people.” Make sure you are raising your children - and grandchildren - to fight for it once more!