Customer Reviews

The Last Brother: A Civil War Tale (Tale of Young Americans)

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Set at the battle of Gettysburg this is story that does not glorify war. Instead, it gets children thinking about the fact that war often involves senseless death. Questions to ask after reading this book: Does the young Union bugle boy make the right decision? Is he a hero or a traitor? Ask young readers to look at his decision to halt the charge from the points of view of the different players in the war - his brother, his parents, his Conferderate counterpart, the generals, and even President Lincoln. Although this is a picture book, its message is one that can be debated even by high school students.

I read this book with my 4yo who has been asking about the Civil War, which is a lot harder to explain than other wars. I was afraid that it would be above her head, as there is a lot of unfamiliar vocabulary (much of it military-related). But she waded through it, asking me what the words meant. It is hard to tell how much she understood, but it gave us the chance to talk about topics like honesty, loyalty, friends and enemies, obedience, responsibility, etc.

Part of American history has to do with Abraham Lincoln, slavery and The Civil War. In the past, I have found it to be difficult to teach these themes to third and fourth graders in an understandable way. A couple of years ago, I found "Pink and Say" -a story about two very different boys at the time of the Civil War. Now, there is "The Last Brother" - also about two boys. The difference here is that in "The Last Brother", both boys are on different sides of the war, both are buglers for their regiments, and both could easily die on the battlefield - at the age of 12. You can hear a pin drop when I read aloud - I would suppose that the whole story is too close to home to ignore. There are extraordinary illustrations that are deserving of a Caldecutt medal. I allow unlimited time after reading for lively discussions.

We have all read the....tales of opposing soldiers who find a moment of peace with each other. This book tells the same tale. Two buglers from a Civil War battle, fishing together in a secret spot, while all around them doom is planned. The pictures are beautiful. The story is timeless. You will not be disappointed. Every classroom should have this book in it's library.

It was so refreshing to be able to read such a uniquely smart book to my upper-elementary/ middle-school kids. It was very age-appropriate on a topic that boys enjoy - the civil war. And the story is about an 11 year old, so the kids could try to put themselves in the main character's shoes. The entire story was interesting, but what made this book so special was the thought-provoking ending. It gave me chills. How nice it was to read a book that genuinely had a great story line. And the pictures on each page were fabulous. This is one that sticks with you!