Betsy Ross's Star (Blast to the Past) [Paperback]

Stacia Deutsch (Author), Rhody Cohon (Author), Guy Francis (Illustrator)

Book Description

Series: Blast to the Past

What do you really know about the Stars and Stripes?

When Mr. C tells the class they'll be learning about Betsy Ross, Abigail is confused. What could the "what-if" question be?

Turns out that no one knows for sure if Betsy Ross sewed the first American flag! But whether she did or not, the kids have a job to do -- Babs Magee is up to her old tricks and plans to take credit for sewing the flag. Abigail and the boys see this as their chance not only to stop Babs, but also to set history straight.

But once they start trying to figure out the truth, what they discover surprises them all....

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Stacia Deutsch and her writing partner, Rhody Cohon, have written more than twenty-one books in the past four years. In addition to their award winning creative chapter book series entitled, BLAST TO THE PAST, Stacia and Rhody have also ghost written for a popular girl's mystery series, published two non-fiction texts, and a young adult romantic comedy called IN THE STARS. They have also written junior movie tie in novels for summer blockbuster films, including BATMAN, THE DARK KNIGHT. Stacia lives in Irvine, California with her three children. Visit her at www.blasttothepastbooks.com.

Rhody Cohon does all the research and editing for the series. She has a

master's degree in computer engineering. Rhody has three children as

well; they live in Tucson, Arizona.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

PROLOGUE

TIME TRAVEL

If you said to me, "Hey, Abigail! What's your favorite thing in the whole world?" I would have to answer, "History Club."

History Club is way better than art projects. Better than mini golf. Even better than eating pizza with sausage and extra cheese.

After school on Mondays, our third-grade social studies teacher, Mr. Caruthers, sends three of my friends and me on a mission back in time. Jacob, his twin brother Zack, Bo, and I call our top secret time-travel adventures "History Club."

And our teacher, Mr. Caruthers, is so super cool, we call him "Mr. C." One day a woman named Babs Magee stole a time-travel computer that Mr. C invented in his laboratory under the school gym. Now she's popping around history, visiting important people on a list of names that Mr. C made.

Babs Magee wants to be famous. But she doesn't want to work for it. She'd rather steal other people's inventions or ideas.

It's a lame way to get famous. When Mr. C discovered what Babs Magee was doing, he knew he needed to keep history straight. Since he is too busy working on a new invention, he asked Bo, Jacob, Zack, and me to help him out. It's our job to go back in time and convince those famous Americans not to give up their dreams.

Mr. C gave us a brand-new time-travel computer. It looks like a hand-held video game with a larger screen and extra buttons. When we put a special cartridge in the back, a glowing green hole opens and we jump through time. Taking the cartridge out brings us home again.

We have two hours to get the task done. So far we've been really lucky. On all our adventures, Jacob, Zack, Bo, and I have managed to keep history on track. We've foiled Babs Magee's schemes, and landed back at school with seconds to spare.

Today is Monday. I can hardly wait for school to end and History Club to begin.

Text copyright © 2007 by Stacia Deutsch and Rhody Cohon

Product Details

• Paperback: 80 pages
• Publisher: Aladdin; Original edition (May 22, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416933883
• ISBN-13: 978-1416933885
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #840,845 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Unique teaching of history for children, May 14, 2007

By 

Armchair Interviews (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Betsy Ross's Star (Blast to the Past) (Paperback)

What do you really know about the Stars and Stripes?

(Eighth in Blast to the Past series)

Abigail loves history, thanks to her creative teacher, Mr. Caruthers (otherwise known as Mr. C.) He always starts class with a question: "What if..." But this time, Mr. C. didn't start with a question. He calmly stated that they'll be learning about Betsy Ross. Abigail is confused. What is wrong with Mr. C? The class is even more confused when another student bursts out that Betsy Ross is just a myth. Did Betsy Ross design the flag or not?

After school, the History Club meets in Mr. Caruthers' class. And they travel back in time to check out the truth. Betsy Ross's grandson is due to give a speech proving that his grandmother designed the first flag. But Babs Magee is up to her old tricks and plans to take credit for sewing the flag! Can Abigail and her friends stop her in time, and find out the truth about the flag?

Betsy Ross's Star is the first book I've read in the Blast to the Past series, even though it is the eighth book. It easily stands alone, but I was a bit confused by some references at first. The story is an easy-to-read beginning chapter book for young readers. It was fun to read a bit of history, and I especially appreciated that the authors took the time to tell the truth about the parts they fictionalized, and give the real story. This makes Betsy Ross's Star invaluable for homeschool history class, or even public school students who want to learn a little more about history. There are pictures of the first flags included at the end of the book too. There is also a link to check out the Blast to the Past website.

If you've read the earlier books in this series you will definitely not want to miss Betsy Ross's Star. If you haven't, but think this book sounds interesting, pick it up. You won't be disappointed. My daughter enjoyed reading it and looking at the pictures.

Armchair Interviews says: This book is perfect for boys and girls 7-10. (Parents and grandparents might enjoy it too.)