Module 10: Fever 1793

Book Summary:

This book is set in Philadelphia in 1793, during an epidemic of yellow fever. The main character, Mattie, is a teenage girl living with her mother and grandfather in a coffee house. Shortly after the beginning of the story, the epidemic starts and people Mattie knows begin falling ill.  Eventually her mother gets sick, and then Mattie and her grandfather head out for friends in the country, hoping that by getting out of the city they will be able to avoid getting sick. Before they make it to their destination, her grandfather starts having difficulty with his heart, and then Mattie herself falls ill. When she wakes she is being taken care of, and she eventually recovers. In the rest of the story, Mattie experiences many other trials. Her grandfather dies, their house is robbed, and she doesn’t know where her mother is or if she is even alive. She takes in a small child who has lost all of her family to fever, and somehow finds ways to take care of everyone. In the end, she is reunited with her mother and helps to restore their business to what it used to be.

APA reference:

Anderson, L. H. (2000). Fever 1793. New York: Scholastic Books.

My Impressions:

This was an excellent book. The author had obviously carefully researched her time frame and the subject matter, and tried to stay true to actual details as much as possible. Included in the story were anecdotes about life as it was at that time; the author gave a good idea of what people wore, the way they acted, how they ate, and how they made their living. She described things with enough detail and authenticity that the reader can immerse completely into the story and really feel like they are there. The scenes with the death cart and the looters give the reader a better understanding of the true magnitude of the epidemic.

The main character, Mattie, is an easy character to relate to. Like any teenager, she is beginning to feel like she would like to be able to have more control over her own life. When the crisis hits, however, her true strength shows, and she rises to the task of helping as much as she can and taking control of a very difficult situation. Even though nothing will ever be the same again, Mattie will be fine and able to handle whatever comes her way.

One of the things that I really liked about this book was how the author put actual events into it, such as the launching of the hot air balloon and George Washington’s travel through Philadelphia, as well as the mass graves. These things gave the book even more credibility. This book felt like a look back in time, and was very thought-provoking. It opened the reader’s eyes to what a situation like this would feel like. For teenagers, it is also a good example of how strong people their age can be and what a difference they can make.

Professional Reviews:

Isaacs, K. (2000, August). [Review of the book Fever 1793, by L. H. Anderson]. School Library Journal 46(8), p. 177. Retrieved from http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/

Gr 6-10-The sights, sounds, and smells of Philadelphia when it was still the nation's capital are vividly re-created in this well-told tale of a girl's coming-of-age, hastened by the outbreak of yellow fever. As this novel opens, Matilda Cook, 14, wakes up grudgingly to face another hot August day filled with the chores appropriate to the daughter of a coffeehouse owner. At its close, four months later, she is running the coffeehouse, poised to move forward with her dreams. Ambitious, resentful of the ordinary tedium of her life, and romantically imaginative, Matilda is a believable teenager, so immersed in her own problems that she can describe the freed and widowed slave who works for her family as the "luckiest" person she knows. Ironically, it is Mattie who is lucky in the loyalty of Eliza. The woman finds medical help when Mattie's mother falls ill, takes charge while the girl is sent away to the countryside, and works with the Free African Society. She takes Mattie in after her grandfather dies, and helps her reestablish the coffeehouse. Eliza's story is part of an important chapter in African-American history, but it is just one of many facets of this story of an epidemic. Mattie's friend Nathaniel, apprentice to the painter Master Peale, emerges as a clear partner in her future. There are numerous eyewitness accounts of the devastation by Dr. Benjamin Rush and other prominent Philadelphians of the day. Readers will be drawn in by the characters and will emerge with a sharp and graphic picture of another world.-Kathleen Isaacs, Edmund Burke School, Washington, DC

Bush, E. (2000, Oct.) [Review of the book Fever 1793 by L. H. Anderson]. Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books 54(2), p. 51-52. Retrived from http://bccb.lis.illinois.edu/

As yellow fever invades the young nation's capital at Philadelphia, Mattie Cook and her family soon discover that their coffeehouse's distance from the city dock is no protection from the disease. Widow Cook is stricken, and although Mattie and her grandfather try their best to nurse her, they realize it is best to leave her to the dubious care of the doctor and make their way to the healthful countryside. They never reach safety, though; Mattie falls to the fever along the way, and after the girl recovers in a makeshift hospital (well-administered by French doctors who understand the disease better than the famed Dr. Rush and his colleagues), they return home to find the premises deserted and the city in chaos. Determined not only to survive but also to rebuild the family business, Mattie faces food shortages, looters, the death of her beloved grandfather, and anxiety over her mother's fate. Readers may detect a trace of glibness, resonant of an era closer to their own, in narrator Mattie's voice, but they will likely forgive and forget this small gaffe as they follow the teenager's travails in a devastated city. Those who have worked their way through Ann Rinaldi's offerings will welcome Anderson's take on a gripping episode of American history.

Library uses: This book would be an excellent book club book for teenagers, or would also be good to suggest to a history club. Because this book has such accurate detail, it would definitely be of interest to history buffs. If the library were to host a history event, this book would be a good one to suggest to pair with that event.