Caesar Rodney's Ride - Hardcover

Cheripko, Jan

  • 3.74 out of 5 stars
    19 ratings by Goodreads
 
9781590780657: Caesar Rodney's Ride

Synopsis

On the afternoon of July 1, 1776, Caesar Rodney received a letter from a fellow Delaware delegate urging him to return to Philadelphia at once. The congress was on the verge of casting the vote for independence. Battling bad weather and physical handicaps, Caesar Rodney embarked on a journey that would change the course of history. Here is the dramatic story of that ride, set against the extraordinary events of July 1776, with the remarkable men who shaped them, including John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, John Dickinson, Benjamin Franklin, John Hancock, and Caesar Rodney. With exquisitely detailed watercolors by Gary Lippincott, Jan Cheripko presents the burning issues of that time, the men who fought for them, and the story of the great patriot whose breakneck ride for freedom served to ensure the birth of the United States.

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About the Author

Jan Cheripko is the author of the award-winning novels Imitate the Tiger and Rat, which received a Carolyn Field Honor Award, and IRA Children's Choice Award, and a New York Public Library Best Books for the Teen Age. He lives in Bethany, Pennsylvania.

Gary Lippincott has illustrated a number of books, including The Bookstore Mouse by Peggy Christian, and With Love, at Christmas by Mem Fox. He lives in Spencer, Massachusetts.

Reviews

Grade 3-6–Rodney, one of Delaware's representatives to the Second Continental Congress, who suffered from asthma and a cancer that was slowly destroying his face, made a grueling 80-mile carriage and horseback ride to cast his crucial vote for independence. Beginning with a period map of the Philadelphia area, this book discusses his torturous journey and the significance of his vote. Unfortunately, few facts about Rodney's life are presented, aside from a description of his cancerous wound and the surgery he underwent. The main text and sidebars tell about some events leading to the Revolutionary War, with an emphasis on the colonists' objections to the various taxes imposed by England. The detailed, muted-tone watercolor paintings are descriptive of the clothing and furniture of the period, but the blank stares on many of the faces are somewhat disconcerting. This title is interesting for its focus on the heroism, tenacity, and self-sacrifice of one of America's founders, but its narrow scope and lack of biographical detail limit its usefulness for reports as well as for general reading. Dennis Brindell Fradin's The Signers (Walker, 2002), which gives personal data for each Declaration signer as well as general background and salient anecdotes, is a more worthwhile purchase.–Lynda Ritterman, Atco Elementary School, Waterford, NJ
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