A Young Patriot: The American Revolution as Experienced by One Boy

The story of the American Revolution as experienced by a Connecticut farm boy who enlisted in the army in 1776. A Young Patriot skillfully weaves together excerpts from the boy’s wartime account with the author’s explanatory text to create a fascinating and factual history of the American Revolution. Only fifteen when he enlisted, Joseph Plumb Martin spent the rest of his teen and young adult years marching, working, fighting, foraging, and starving while serving under the likes of Washington and Lafayette. Through the mix of Martin’s observations and experiences, the historical context that Murphy provides, and maps and archival prints, the book vividly reveals the grit and drama of war—and a teenager who was eyewitness to a Revolution. A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year