Drums (Scribner's Illustrated Classics) [Hardcover]

James Boyd (Author), N. C. Wyeth (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up | Series: Scribner Illustrated Classic

North Carolina-born Johnny Fraser is torn between his lifelong loyalty to the British Crown and the exciting talk of independence passing among his neighbors, and he joins the fight for freedom aboard the Bonhomme Richard.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Hardcover: 430 pages
• Publisher: Atheneum; 1 edition (October 30, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0689801769
• ISBN-13: 978-0689801761
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.4 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #920,087 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

61 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Tory Gentleman Finds Peace in Time of War, August 16, 2000

By 

W. J. Wilkening "awilken" (North East, MD USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Drums (Scribner's Illustrated Classics) (Hardcover)

Drums by Boyd has been called the best novel ever written about the Revolutionary War. Narrated from the viewpoint of a North Carolina Tory gentleman's adolescent son, it's unique outlook soon draws the reader into the drama of colonial unrest and the emotional battle men fought within themselves whether to cede from England or not. However, this is no psychological melodrama. Some of the most superb scenes in the novel are the depictions of a local horse race and a John Paul Jones sea battle. So why isn't Drums read more widely? It would seem Boyd's own excellent writing has gotten him into trouble for today's reader. Not only are his fight scenes realistic, but his cooly penetrating description of the early entrenchment of southern slavery, with all crudities of language and social class structure, is too graphic for our modern tastes. In short, he uses the "N" word too liberally. Reading this novel reminded me of reading HUCKLEBERRY FINN. It also reminded me of Olasky's FIGHTING FOR LIBERTY AND VIRTUE. Personally, I think it should be put back on high school reading lists. I think it would help in revealing why slavery was not addressed at the time of the Revolution as well as why it took a war to settle the matter.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Scribner's Illustrated Calssics, June 30, 2008

By 

Donald Vail (Connecticut) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Drums (Scribner's Illustrated Classics) (Hardcover)

I first saw the Scribner Illustrated Classics series in a Museum in Chicago. I believe Treasure Island was the first that I purchased. The Wyeth paintings were reproduced for this book and many others. The artwork is fabulous. I visited the Brandywine River Museum in Chadds Ford, PA to see many of the original Wyeth illustrations. The titles in this series are still classics and every bit as riviting as when I first read them. I have read some to children and they are great fun for all. I have collected the whole series, they will be passed on to children and grandchldren.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Drums", a Scribner classics republished book, February 2, 2010

By 

Bill Berry (Memphis, TN USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Drums (Scribner's Illustrated Classics) (Hardcover)

The book arrived in very good time and was in the condition as shown by the seller. I'm very satisfied with my purchase. I have the full collectlion of these classics illustrated by N. C. Wyeth, and needed this one to complete the set. All of the others I purchased new when they were published. This one is in as good a condition as my other books.