American Revolution Fiction

The image of the Baron de Steuben training Washington's ragged, demoralized troops in the snow at Valley Forge is part of the iconography of our Revolutionary heritage, but most history fans know little more about this fascinating figure.

Now is an extraordinary time. Across the country, people are losing their loved ones, their livelihoods, their homes, and even their own lives to COVID-19. Despite the pandemic, countless protests erupted this summer over the recurring loss of Black lives. Reverberations of shock and outrage remain with us all. There's a Revolution Outside, My Love captures and articulates all of these roiling sentiments unleashed by a profound national reckoning.

1776. The early days of the Revolutionary War. It supposedly began with Thomas Hickey, a private in the Continental Army, and New York governor William Tryon. In an astonishing power grab, they plotted to kill Hickey's boss: a man by the name of George Washington. In the end, Hickey was caught, brought to trial, and found guilty. It would seem he became the first person in the new nation to be executed for treason.

Voices of Liberty is a play for a single actor that was performed at Lincoln Center and Faneuil Hall in Boston and in tours across the country. A narrator introduces people from both sides of the American Revolution, and we learn what Liberty meant to them. Before the first shots were fired, Patrick Henry passionately defends the colonists' right to stand against British tyranny. Then we share the first battle of the war with a British soldier as he yearns for something more valuable in his life.

It was May of 1777, the beginning of the third year of the American War for Independence, on territory controlled by the British. In the back of a general store, Tim (age 17) had just found the body, when the proprietor burst in, accusing him of murder. Tim got away, went to a judge, and claimed the dead man was a rebel spy.

Tim Euston was willing to risk his life for his nation’s independence, and his opportunity came when a murder involved him with smugglers and spies. It was 1777, the third year of the War for Independence, and the town of Yonkers was at the south end of the Neutral Ground - a no man's land that separated the British on Manhattan Island from the Americans to the north. On a cold January night, Tim was thrown in jail - accused of robbery by the man who had hold of Tim’s 14-year-old sister. Two days later, a witness who could testify to Tim’s innocence was found dead.

It was June 1777, the beginning of the third year of the American War for Independence, in Morristown, New Jersey. Lieutenant Hugh Hampton met the lovely wife of a local merchant at the door to a small barn behind a vacant house. Shortly afterward, Tim Euston (age 17) came into the barn with his violin to practice a tune requested by the wife of Colonel Olney (a historical character).

He was the greatest spy of the American Revolution - so much so, that at times, it was hard to tell if he was working for the British or the Americans.

During the American Revolutionary War, allies proved to be very important. The fighting factions were bonded together by common enemies and goals. The Native Americans allied with the British while the colonists fought alongside the French. This is what happened during the Battles of Kaskaskia, Cahokia, and Vincennes. Listen to this book to understand what came with allegiance on each side and who won during the aforementioned battles.

Deborah Sampson longs to break free. To be much more than a girl is allowed to be. Caught up in her country’s fight for independence, 18-year-old Deborah declares her own independence. She soon enlists in George Washington’s Continental Army, signing on as Robert Shurtliff. A young lady can’t battle the British—a man can! But being a soldier is hard, dangerous work. Can she keep her identity a secret? Can she prove herself in combat? Will she win her battle to choose her own path?

It may seem odd that Mark Twain delivered a 4th of July speech in London in 1907. Aside from poking fun at the American obsession with fireworks and drunken revelry, however, the brilliant Twain knew just how to tie the topic of American independence with his British audience. He recounts how the Revolutionary War was fought between Brits over a Declaration of Independence written by Brits before the United States officially formed as a nation.