People of the American Revolution: Books (Secondary Leaders)

Betsy Ross, King George, Crispus Attucks, Dan Morgan, Francis Marian, George Rogers Clark, Henry Knox, John Paul Jones, John Hancock, John Peter Zenger, Nathanael Greene, Nathan Hale, Simon Kenton, and Thomas Paine.

Note: For more about the Revolution, I will have those on a separate page. This is for the overflow of books, since those categories are already overcrowded.

Betsy Ross and the American Flag Graphic Novel. Looks at the life of Betsy Ross from her Quaker childhood to her days as an independent businesswoman. Also examines the legend of the Betsy Ross flag. Level 3.7. Younger to Middle students. New Jersey.

Betsy Ross: Girl of Old Philadelphia,(Also sold under the title of Betsy Ross: Designer of Our Flag) a Childhood of Famous Americans book. “Recreates the childhood of the woman traditionally remembered as the maker of the first American flag, which was secretly presented to General George Washington in Philadelphia in 1776.” Middle students. Pennsylvania. 

Can’t You Make Them Behave, King George? a lighthearted look into the life of King George III of England and his decisions that led to the American Revolution, Jean Fritz, level 5.6

Crispus Attucks: Black Leader of Colonial Patriots Crispus Attucks was born into slavery around 1723, the son of an African American enslaved person and a Natick Indian. After years of forced labor in the Boston area, Crispus escaped and began working on trading ships and whaling vessels until he died in the Boston Massacre. A Childhood of Famous Americans biography. Middle students. Massachusetts. 

Crispus Attucks and the Boston Massacre (Jr. Graphic African-American History) Readers will discover that, even as a free man, Attucks fought for the equality of others. Uses the graphic format to show readers how this man lived out his heroic life and how he came to be a key figure in our struggle for independence in this graphic novel. Level 4.2. Middle students. 

Dan Morgan: Wilderness Boy, a Childhood of Famous American series, the story of the childhood of Daniel Morgan an American pioneer, soldier, and United States Representative from Virginia. Read-aloud style. Middle students. 

Francis Marion: Young Swamp Fox, Childhood of Young Americans series about a boy who grew up to be a famous military leader in the French and Indian War as well as the Revolutionary War. South Carolina. Middle Students. 

George Rogers Clark: Boy of the Old Northwest Childhood of Famous Americans book. George Rogers Clark was a goo-humored, likable, resourceful bou filed with a zest for wildlife life. Follow his childhood before he grew up to be a great Revolutionary War officer. Middle students. 

Guns for General Washington A tale of courage and bravery—the daring and dangerous trek that gave young America its first real victory, paving the way for the future of a great democratic nation. This exciting middle-grade novel is the true story of Will Knox, a nineteen-year-old young man who transported 183 cannons from New York’s Fort Ticonderoga to Boston—in the dead of winter—to help George Washington win an important battle. Middle to Older students. New York, Massachusetts.

Henry and the Cannons Picture Book. George Washington needs cannons in Boston, but the nearest cannons are at Fort Ticonderoga, where Benedict Arnold had snatched them and the fort away from the British. Can Henry Knox accomplish the impossible and drag 59 heavy cannons over 300 miles in the dead of winter? level 4.3

Henry Knox: Bookseller, Soldier, Patriot Picture book. A hearty eater, dapper dresser, bookseller to Loyalists and Patriots alike, and married into a staunch Loyalist family, Henry Knox may seem an unlikely hero. But his fascination with warfare and strategy and his support of the Patriot cause prepared him to do what no one else thought was possible: transport heavy artillery from Fort Ticonderoga, up and down snow-covered hills and across frozen lakes, to relieve the siege of Boston. Level 6.8. Younger to Middle students. Massachusetts. 

Hero of the High Seas: John Paul Jones and the American Revolution Veteran children’s writer Michael Cooper takes a fresh look at one of the most colorful characters of the Revolutionary War period. The war is viewed from Jones’s perspective and the reader lives out all the uncertainties, the risks, and the dangers faced by Jones with each dramatic battle at sea. Middle to Older students.

John Hancock: Independent Boy The life of John Hancock, a contemporary of Samuel Adams and Paul Revere and the first to sign the Declaration of Independence is featured in this volume of the Young Patriots series. Detailing Hancock’s early years, this work focuses on his relationship with his boyhood friend John Adams, and his academic struggles with what he would later become most famous for—his writings. Hancock’s famous achievements later in life are also chronicled, from attending the Boston Tea Party to becoming president of the Continental Congress. The entirety of his life is colorfully illustrated with renderings that convey the drama of the birth of the United States. Middle students. Massachusetts. 

John Paul Jones: Salt-Water Boy Childhood of Famous American series. Middle students. 

John Peter Zenger: Young Defender of a Free Press Childhood of Famous Americans about a man who fought for the freedom of the presses. New York. 

King George: What Was His Problem?: Everything Your Schoolbooks Didn’t Tell You About the American Revolution What do the most famous traitor in history, hundreds of naked soldiers, and a salmon lunch have in common? They’re all part of the amazing story of the American Revolution. Entire books have been written about the causes of the American Revolution. This isn’t one of them. What it is, instead, is utterly interesting, anecdotes (John Hancock fixates on salmon), from the inside out (at the Battle of Eutaw Springs, hundreds of soldiers plunged into battle “naked as they were born”) close-up narratives filled with little-known details, lots of quotes that capture the spirit and voices of the principals (“If need be, I will raise one thousand men, subsist them at my own expense, and march myself at their head for the relief of Boston” –George Washington), and action. It’s the story of the birth of our nation, complete with soldiers, spies, salmon sandwiches, and real facts you can’t help but want to tell to everyone you know. Level 6.7. Middle to Older students. England. 

Maggie’s Dare: The Great Awakening explores both the Great Awakening and the early stirrings of the abolition movement while showing young readers that they, too, can serve God by serving others, A Sisters in Time book from a Christian perspective. Massachusetts. Middle to Older students. 

Nathanael Greene: Independent Boy a Childhood of Famous Americans book, a look at the boyhood of a famous Revolutionary War officer. Middle students. 

Nathan Hale: Puritan Boy Childhood of Famous Americans series. Explore the biography of a soldier and spy for the American Revolution. Middle students. Connecticut. 

Simon Kenton: Young Trail Blazer Childhood of Famous Americans series. Simon Kenton was a born frontiersman. The woods and slopes of Bull Run Mountain were his only school. There he developed the strength that later helped him to endure hardships and torture at the hands of Indians. He was happier hunting or roaming the woods than he was farming. He was happier camping out with his blacksmith friend, Paul Long, than he was staying at home in the warm, snug cabin. It was Paul who made Simon his first hunting weapons, a bow and arrows, and who taught him how to use them. It was also Paul who showed him how to make a lean-to when they were caught in a storm one night. Simon made his first attempt to reach Kentucky. How they failed, how Simon finally succeeded in reaching Kentucky, and what befell him there, make up a large part of this swiftly moving and exciting story. Although Simon Kenton is less well known today than his friends George Rogers Clark and Daniel Boone, he was just as important in Kentucky’s history. He served both as a guide for newcomers and as a watchdog against the Indians. Without him, the Kentucky settlements might well have been wiped out. Middle students.  Virginia/Kentucky. 

Story of the Bonhomme Richard Cornerstones of Freedom series. A brief biography of John Paul Jones describing that part of his naval career spent as captain of the Revolutionary War battleship, the Bonhomme Richard. Younger to Middle students.

Thomas Paine: Common Sense Boy Childhood of Famous Americans series. Presents an account of the childhood of the author of “Common Sense,” a tract that influenced many colonists during the American Revolution. Middle students.