A Young Patriot - by Jim Murphy (Paperback)

About the Book

In the summer of 1776, Joseph Plumb Martin was a fifteen-year-old Connecticut farm boy who considered himself as warm a patriot as the best of them. He enlisted that July and stayed in the revolutionary army until hostilities ended in 1783. Martin fought under Washington, Lafayette, and Steuben. He took part in major battles in New York, Monmouth, and Yorktown. He wintered at Valley Forge and then at Morristown, considered even more severe. He wrote of his war years in a memoir that brings the American Revolution alive with telling details, drama, and a country boy's humor. Jim Murphy lets Joseph Plumb Martin speak for himself throughout the text, weaving in historical backfround details wherever necessary, giving voice to a teenager who was an eyewitness to the fight that set America free from the British Empire.

Book Synopsis

The story of the American Revolution as experienced by a Connecticut farm boy who enlisted in the army in 1776. A Young Patriot skillfully weaves together excerpts from the boy's wartime account with the author's explanatory text to create a fascinating and factual history of the American Revolution.

Only fifteen when he enlisted, Joseph Plumb Martin spent the rest of his teen and young adult years marching, working, fighting, foraging, and starving while serving under the likes of Washington and Lafayette.

Through the mix of Martin's observations and experiences, the historical context that Murphy provides, and maps and archival prints, the book vividly reveals the grit and drama of war--and a teenager who was eyewitness to a Revolution.

A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year

From the Back Cover

Jim Murphy lets Joseph Plumb Martin speak for himself throughout the text, weaving in historical background details wherever necessary, giving voice to a teenager who was an eyewitness to the fight that set America free from the British Empire.

Review Quotes

"An outstanding example of history brought to life through the experience of one individual." -- School Library Journal (starred review)