The Night I Freed John Brown | TheBookSeekers

The Night I Freed John Brown


School year: Year 10, Year 8, Year 9

No. of pages 252

Published: 2016

Great for age 12-18 years

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In this novel for young adults, Josh knows there is something about the tall Victorian House on the Harpers Ferry Hill, the one his father grew up in, that he cant quite put his finger on. And his impossible father wont give him any clues. Hes hiding something.And then theres the famous John Brown. The one who all the tourists come to hear about. The one whose statue looms over Joshs house. Why does he seem to haunt Josh and his whole family? When the fancy Richmonds come to town and move right next door, their presence forces Josh to find the answers and stand up to the secrets of the House, to his fatherand to John Brown, too.The historic village of Harpers Ferry comes alive in this young boys brave search for answers and a place of his own in this brilliant first novel by John Michael Cummings.

 

 

This book is aimed at children at US 7th grade+.

This book has been graded for interest at 10-13 years.

There are 252 pages in this book.

It is aimed at Young Adult readers. The term Young Adult (YA) is used for books which have the following characteristics: (1) aimed at ages 12-18 years, US grades 7-12, UK school years 8-15, (2) around 50-75k words long, (3) main character is aged 12-18 years, (4) topics include self-reflection, internal conflict vs external, analyzing life and its meaning, (5) point of view is often in the first person, and (6) swearing, violence, romance and sexuality are allowed.

This book was published in 2016 by West Virginia University Press .

John Michael Cummings 's short stories have appeared in more than seventy-five literary journals, including The Iowa Review, North American Review, The Chattahoochee Review, Alaska Quarterly Review , and The Kenyon Review . Twice he has been nominated for The Pushcart Prize. His short story ""The Scratchboard Project"" received an honorable mention in The Best American Short Stories 2007. He is the author of Ugly to Start With and Don't Forget Me, Bro .

 

This book features the following character:

John Brown
This book features John Brown.

"Thoughtful and compelling . . . This moody, almost Gothic, novel will offer you a pleasant few hours to be sure."

 

--The Orange County Register

 

"Characterizations are sharp, the setting eerily evoked and the story satisfying. A highly original meditation on how the past can haunt the present."

 

--Kirkus Reviews

 

"There are marvelous plot twists and surprises right to the very end . . . and his prose can be pure poetry."

 

--The Boston Globe

 

 

"It tells us to make our own happy endings, and that life goes on, whether we like it or not."

 

--BookPage

 

"Cummings has a special talent for description, painting vividly clear pictures with his animated words."

 

--Teenreads.com

 

"It is a fast-paced story that addresses themes like: familial relationships, identity development and brotherhood."

 

--The ALAN Review

 

"A compelling narrative of a troubled family and a dark secret of past grudges and grievances."

 

--The Buffalo News

 

". . . Lively characters whose voices ring true. Josh is every young boy who ever resented his own culture and family."

 

--The Baton Rouge Advocate