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Commentary On The Book 'Chains' By Laurie Halse Anderson

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I choose the book “Chains” by Laurie Halse Anderson. This book was recommended to be by Ms. Walker and Mrs. Horne. The book has great reviews and has won two awards, so I assumed it would be worth reading. My immediate thought was about the title and how it reminded me of Nick Jonas and his song “Chains”. However, the book had nothing to do with Nick and was based on a slightly different time period. Isabelle and her sister Ruth have lost both of their parents and Ms. Finch, the master they worked for. Ruth and Isabel now have to be sold to a new master, Mr. and Mrs. Lockton. Life with the Locktons is hard but bearable for isabel. That is until Mrs. Lockton takes ruth away from her. This is when Isabell decided that she has lost everything …show more content…

Slavery has been around since the beginning of civilization. Ancient Greeks even had slaves, called Helots, in the BC era. "You are a slave, not a person". As you can see from this quote, slaves in this time period were not seen as real people but as worthless servants. Masters could force their slaves to do anything and everything. The slaves had no rights and would be beaten or killed if they tried to rebel. “A scar is a sign of strength. . .the sign of a survivor.” This quote is referring to a scar ISabelle got for disobeying her master. I choose this quote because it is an example of the attitudes the slaves had to have to survive. Slavery wasn't the only battle going on during this time. There was the battle between the loyalist and the rebels. All of England was under the rule of King George III, but some didn't want to be. These people were called Rebels and they wanted their independence and freedom from the British. In the book you will find information on battles during the war and what it was like to fight in these battles. ‘’Just because their owners don't give them credit to act on the information they hear doesn't mean that slaves can't do something with it.’’ I liked this quote because it taught me something I had never even thought about. Masters would say anything in front of their slaves and not give it a second thought because they didn't consider them …show more content…

For example, I knew slavery was harsh but it is completely different when you read about their daily life and how extreme things were. The book also allowed me to feel connected to Isabelle and to the time period. I liked Isabelle and her determination, so whenever she was hurt I took it personally and felt like it was my friend hurting. The book gave a realistic account of being alive during the Revolutionary War, which I liked. Many people think of the Revolutionary War as being glorious, but it wasn't, People were shot and killed and if you weren't killed immediately you were taken to a prison and starved.
The soldiers were dedicated to their army and gave everything to be victorious. In conclusion, I thought it was a very well written book and I enjoyed reading it. I would definitely recommend this book to a friend. The book is very helpful in giving a relatable version of life during this time. Although you don't need to be obsessed with this topic, the book would be more enjoyable for people who are interested in the Revolutionary

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