Customer Reviews

Assassin

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I read this book myself after my ten year old brought it home to read as a reading assignment. I am glad I chose to screen it, because I did not find it appropriate for her age group.

The book was so good, though, that I could not put it down. I was intrigued by the historical detail intertwined with Arabella's fictional character. My heart pounded and I tried to imagine if these were indeed Booth's thoughts, or if his were more evil. A real page-turner.

"He noticed me then. I could feel his eyes on my burning face, but I looked only at the hem of the coat I held in my lap. My heart pounded as I heard his steps on the floor..." The book Assassin written by Anna Myers is about the story of Arabella Getchel and John Wilkes Booth. They tell their stories of what happened during the Civil War in the U.S. I liked this book because it has the views of two very different people telling about how they felt towards the war and their own lives. This book wasn't that good since it was a historical fiction book.

The book didn't spark my interest that much with the historical fiction part of the book, but it did spark me with the cause and effect action of Arabella. Cause and effect happened in most cases, such as, when Wilkes, as John Wilkes Booth liked to be called, tried to persuade Bella, as Arabella liked to be called, into helping him kidnap President Abraham Lincoln. At her part in the book, which switches off every chapter starting with Bella, she felt she had to decide between her father and Mr. Lincoln. While I was reading I was thinking on how she acted for the Union throughout the whole book unto this point, and so I thought she was going go with what she knew was right.

Another thing that kind of got a spark going was what I learned about Wilkes in this book. I know it's not accurate but it does say he felt strongly for the South I didn't know he was that distinct about what he calls his "beloved South," even though he was born and from Maryland which was in the North.

This book seemed like it was written for someone who likes books like Across Five Aprils or any other books that have to do with the Civil War and fictional people. I didn't like the book that much because it was historical fiction. I like present day books made for teens.

I recommend this book for someone in 5th or 6th grade that like historical fiction. Its interesting turns in its plot would make these people keep reading the book.

T. Shepard

Anna Myers has long been considered a shining star in the world of young adult fiction and her light does not diminish any in this book. It is the on-going, intertwining story of John Wilkes Booth (a real character who killed President Lincoln and Arabella "Bella" Getchel (a fictional character)who fell victim to Booth's charm. Myers has obviously done her homework in the case of Booth and the progression toward his final, terrible act. The facts are accurate, the story intriguing, our identification with Bella complete. A terrible event in history is portrayed in a way that holds the attention of the reader. Little more can be asked of a writer.

Bella is an assistant seamstress to Mary Todd Lincoln, and her involvement with one Wilkes Booth leads him to persuade her to betray his president. Bella may know right from wrong, but will she try to save her President? And will Wilkes hurt her to get at his goal. A fine history story.

Could you keep a life-threatening secret?
Arabella, an employee of Mr. Lincoln, loves a man named John Wilkes Booth, a famous actor from Virginia. Wilkes hates President Lincoln and decides to kidnap him. Arabella helps Booth. When she learns too much, Wilkes leaves her for dead. The kidnapping fails, so he kills the president. This is good historical fiction.








Assassin is a good book. I say "good" because it wasn't great, but it also wasn't horrible. It was suspenseful, but not until towards the end of the book. It wasn't a true page-turner; I felt like I could take it or leave it. My mind would wander sometimes. I could get focused again, but still it wandered. The story line was very interesting, though. It gave me more than one point of view of the story. Neither of the viewpoints were how I interpreted the assassination of Mr. Lincoln. This makes me really think and question my opinions of what happened.
Arabella would be the one character I connected to the most. She must carry the awful knowing that something bad will happen to the president. I have had to keep many secrets before. It is really hard not to tell, but I don't. This is what Arabella is going through.
I enjoyed the realness of the plot. I don't usually like historical fiction, but this one was tolerable. The plot was believable because it was about a real event. When I read this book I could relate some of the things I've learned about the assassination of Lincoln to the book. Consequently, I could pay more attention to the book. I liked being able to pay closer attention.
A thing that did bother me was the lack of surprises. At the end of the story there was one surprise. That was all though. At the end, Wilkes leaves Arabella for dead. During the book I thought that he began to care about her. I thought that maybe given time, he would love her. He didn't love her at all; he was simply using her. This threw me off. It made me sad. I still did not like Wilkes, but I wanted to believe that he had some good in him. He truly did not. There were not many cliffhangers. The story was suspenseful, but the writing was not. The story line was very exciting, while the author really did not write in a way that kept me interested. The author did give me two points of view, as I mentioned. That I did like.
Assassin was a good historical fiction book that made me question my opinions, allowed me to connect with the character, had a believable plot, had two points of view, yet wasn't fantastic.
I think that if you are a person who is thirteen or older, and loves history, you would probably like Assassin more than I did. I would recommend the book to people, but only those who love history.

This book is about a girl named Arabella who comes face to face with John Wilkes Booth and his plan. The book is pretty good. It switches from Wilkes and Bella's point of view, which makes it more interesting. One thing I think if your younger and reading this that you need to know is that Bella is made up, and that nobody like her existed (atleast I don't think so), so don't think Bella and her story are true. But that didn't ruin the story for me one bit, its pretty fast-paced and you definitely learn the background of both of them.
The book may only be from two views but I think you learn some about Wilkes AND Lincoln and, of course, the fictional character of Bella.
Even if you don't like historical fiction I think you should read this book, if you know about John Wilkes Booth or you're interested in learning more about him I'd suggest this book, even if you don't really read historical fiction.