Flags
  
for Young People  
  
           
 
 
 
 
 
 
Explore and Learn
Learn how the Civil War experiences of my ancestors inspired me to write My Brothers' Keeper, take a Virtual Tour of the sites in my book and learn fascinating information about the Civil War. Students and teachers will find a wealth of historical information about this nation-changing war.
 
My Brothers' Keeper
Joshua Parrish, a farm boy from New York state, goes off to the Civil War when he is just thirteen. He serves as a drummer, a messanger, and a medic. After the ambush at Chancellorsville, he believes he is a failure until he is befriended by the men of the 20th Maine Infantry and their commander, Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. The moral leadership and inspiration of the colonel help Josh build a place for himself in the army and do his part.
Based on the lives and letters of real people, My Brothers' Keeper details a soldier's experiences on the march from Northern Virginia to Gettysburg and back to Appomattox.
 
The Trilogy

When I finished writing My Brothers' Keeper, I realized it told only part of the story of the Civil War. There were other perspectives for my readers to consider—the contribution of African Americans in the war, the strong beliefs of the Confederacy, and the divisive feelings in the Shenandoah Valley and the country as a whole in the mid–1800s. And so I decided to write a trilogy of Civil War stories for young people.
My love of history has made research a joy. When travelling to the settings of my stories, my husband and I have searched for books in small shops where dust covered volumes line the shelves. We have tramped in the swamps of northern Florida, coming within ten feet of a dozing alligator. By accident, we happened to be in Lexington, Virginia, on May 15, 1997, the day the cadets at VMI honor those cadets killed in the Battle of New Market in 1864.

As a teacher I realized there was a need for historical fiction about the Civil War. I believe many of the issues which divided our country during the Civil War still touch us today.

--Nancy Johnson
 
 
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