Customer Reviews

Or Give Me Death: A Novel of Patrick Henry's Family

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

As a guide at Scotchtown, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and felt that Ms. Rinaldi brought the house to life with the voices of Mr. Henry's children. The Henry family dealt with complicated issues in growing up 200 years ago just as young people must deal with difficult issues today.

Just to clarify a point, however--Sarah was not kept in the dry well. Scotchtown has a summer bedroom in the English basement, which is very typical for any 18th century Virginia home, and it is there that Sarah stayed during her tragic illness. It has windows for sunlight and a fireplace for heat in winter. Given the options that Mr. Henry had for her care and that we believe he loved Sarah very much, it was the best he could do at the time. The dry well is a completely separate structure used only for food storage. [...]

Patrick Henry is known for his fiery cry of "Give me liberty or give me death"...but few realize the insanity of his wife or the breakdown of his family that may have set the scene for this historic remark.

In "Or Give Me Death," Rinaldi decides to have Patrick Henry's daughters, Patsy and Anne, narrate the story of their mother Sarah's decline into madness. Through the voices of these girls-dutiful older sister Patsy and rebelliously clever middle daughter Anne-readers are completely drawn into the complex issues that plagued the Henry family. The hopeless life of the mentally ill in Colonial times is vividly shown, but this novel also adeptly shows something more striking. Indeed, what readers will remember most from this novel is the timeless story of what holds a family together and what tears them apart.

Patsy and Anne both fascinatingly narrate the story. Rinaldi captures Patsy's sense of duty and stability, and convincingly portrays the pressure that she felt from her father to be the "glue" that held the family together. But even as one sympathizes with Patsy's dilemma, they will also feel for Anne. Through her eyes, Rinaldi shows how perhaps the entire Henry family went mad along with their mother and wife. Tensions resulting from secrets and grudges within the family are thoughtfully shown.

"Or Give Me Death" seems even more impressive when Rinaldi says in her author's note that although the entire story is not true, there are powerful "threads" of truth in it-enough truth that Rinaldi's interpretation could seem quite probable.

It is refreshing to find a new angle in the life of an almost-tired historical figure. "Or Give Me Death" generally makes this new view into the life of Patrick Henry's family a riveting one and one that is also filled with deftly included pieces of colonial history. Other than the seeming improbability of Sarah Henry's ability to predict the future, "Or Give Me Death" will please fans of historical fiction who want in a glimpse into a lesser-known chapter of history.

Or Give Me Death is an awesome book. It gives you the perspective of Patrick Henry's two daughters, Patsy and Anne. They give their opinions on their mother who hs gone crazy and is being kept in the cellar of their home and each other. Patsy takes over as "head of the household" when their mother Sarah Henry goes "crazy" and tries to drown her son Edward. She gains an overwhelming amount of power very quickly. Patsy feels Anne has been turned against her and when she realizes that one of them might have their mother's madness she becomes very worried. Anne finds out who has inherited it but she doesn't want any of her family members to know who it is. Anne talks about how hard Patsy is on her. All around it is a very interesting book that history lovers and non-history lovers alike will love.

Or Give Me Death: A Novel of Patrick Henry's Family is one of the BEST books that I have ever read.

The first half of the novel starts out through the eyes of Patsy (whose real name is Martha) the oldest of Patrick Henry's children. She tells about the struggles in which her family faces while her father is away. Of all of the hardships, the most difficult one to deal with is her mother's behavior. After Sarah (Patrick's wife) almost drowns baby Edward on purpose, the family is forced to choose what to do with her, and how to break the news to Patrick Henry that is wife is going insane. These descions begin to slowly break the family apart. As they keep secrets, take sides, and dislike one another. At the end of the chapter, Mrs. Henry tells one of the children who is going to inherit the "bad blood" (her illness).

The next half of the book is told through the eyes of Anne, the second daughter of the Henry family. Anne, a bit of a tomboy, longs to take part in activities that Patsy would call "unladylike". This and a few other issues cuase a fued between the sisters. With a war on the rise and Patrick Henry not at home the house is quiet and full of secrets and lies. Anne becomes plagued with the constant question to herself:

"When do you tell the truth and when do you lie? Do you lie to protect someone? Is it wrong to keep a seceret, when, if you tell, someone gets hurt?"

This superb book has history, romance, lies, secerets, mystery, and something for everyone. A must read for anyone over thirteen looking for a good book! Enjoy!

**Make sure that when you read the book that you take notes of suspicious things. It will help you solve the mystery better. Also READ the author's note at the end of the book when you are finished. It explains soooooo much!**

I got this historical novel because my son was reading it in school and wanted to discuss it with me. I am very glad I did. This is the story of Patrick Henry's family during the time of the American Revolution; during a time of great stress for them. It's told from the viewpoint of the two oldest girls and is a fascinating read. The author has taken meager records and historical facts and woven them into in gripping story.

What is liberty? Is it a right or always a longing never completely fulfilled? Patrick Henry, one of America's favorite fore-fathers longed for liberty and his longing became the mother's milk of early America. His famous "Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death" speech first delivered on March 23, 1775 is often credited with turning the passions of colonial Virginians towards American Revolution and the pursuit of Independence. In the crowd the day he gave that famous speech were none less than Thomas Jefferson and George Washington! In the face of such illustrious personages it is hard to imagine these giants of history as people like you and I, who struggled with what liberty meant for them, their families and their country.
In Or Give Me Death Ann Rinaldi masterfully weaves a fascinating blend of fact and fiction to tell us the story of Patrick Henry the statesman, the defender against religious persecution, the fearful husband and the stern father. She tells the story of mental illness, explores the lack of treatment options and the havoc it can wreak in a family. It is a story of children trying to raise themselves when the adults are too busy or incapable. Or Give Me Death is a story of learning the difference between truth and lies, and the ultimate duty of loyalty while one is longing for liberty.
Against the longing for liberty is the reality of slavery, but the reader is made aware that there are many different ways to be enslaved. Personal stories of African slaves are brought to life, as are the fears of those who said slavery was evil but contrarily owned slaves. One woman will die in pursuit of liberty and another will plead "Patrick, Patrick, please, I beg of you, give me my freedom, or let me go to my death."
Did these struggles with slavery and liberty in his home life inspire Patrick Henry's famous speech, which inspired the Virginians to arms, which led to a Revolution which gave us the freedom to pursue our own vision of liberty? Read Or Give Me Death and decide for yourself. It is, after all a free country.

This book I do not even remember buying but getting a book you don't remember buying is just like Christmas. And it was in great condition

I read this book when I was 13 and I really liked it! I haven't read it since then but I would still recomend it.

Sixteen year old Patsy and young Anne live in a huge house in Scotchtown with their mom, dad, and siblings. Patsy discovers that someone in her family is going mad, but she doesn't want to tell anyone. When they discover secrets that might hurt someone, they don't know what to do. Many things worry them and if they say anything they could turn everythng upside down. Patsy and Anne make the reader laugh, be happy, and sometimes even sad.
This a great book that is full of secrets, rumors, and historical information. This book is recommended for all people that like good books.

Or Give Me Death - Ann Rinaldi
Frances

Or Give Me Death was a great book. The book was not a true story, but the author Ann Rinaldi made it seem very realistic and interesting. She made this book seem realistic by using actual clothing that they wore back then, and phrases that most families do not use today. She enjoys writing very much, and she puts some of her past into her books as well. She said herself "Real life, as I know it, as I've learned it to be from my newspaper experience and own past, goes into my books." Ann Rinaldi was born in New York City on August twenty-seventh. She lives in New Jersey with her husband Ron Rinaldi. They got married in the year of 1960. She use to write articles in the newspaper, and then she began with her own books. She worked on her first books for many years. She said "My experience in the newspaper business and as a parent gave me so much more to bring to my fiction."Since then Ann Rinaldi wrote many other books and won many awards for them. Before becoming an author of young adult novels, she won an award for being an award winning journalist. She also got a New Jersey Press Association First Place Award in 1978 and 1989. The book I read Or Give Me Death was all about a woman who was going crazy, and one of her children was going to inherit the bad blood and go crazy as well. One of her daughters got married, and in the end of the book they got a doctor to put her to sleep. The title of this book comes from the phrase the mother was screaming "Give me liberty, Or give me death." She was saying this because she did not like having her mind all messed up, and wasting her life in bed. She wanted liberty, to be free, or to die peacefully. A few other books she wrote are A Break With Charity, and In My Father's House. There is many more where that came from. There were a few types of clothing I did not know if they were actually invented back then such as bonnets, ginghams, and spectacles, I researched them and found out that they were. To be honest, I usually do not enjoy reading historical fiction books, but when I read this one I actually got into it, and kept wanting to read on. The reason I wanted to read on was because the mother was getting worse everyday, and I really wanted to know what happened to her. I had a neighbor once who got amnesia, and started to lose her mind, she was sort of like the mother in Or Give Me Death. I would recommend this book to people who like reading historical fiction books, and even those who don't, because it was very interesting and catchy. I always wanted to keep on reading. I would definitely consider reading another one of Ann Rinaldi's books.