Reviews

Ashes by Laurie Halse Anderson

jenmangler's review against another edition

4.0

I love the Seeds of America trilogy. The intertwining stories of Isabel and Curzon, both searching for their own kind of freedom, told within the context of America's fight for its own freedom, never ceased to surprise me and move me. I'm really going to miss Isabel and Curzon. And I loved the last line of the book:

Spoiler

"A new day was dawning and there was work to be done."

It filled me with hope that their story goes on and, while I'm sure it will be full of obstacles and setbacks, that it will end happily. It is also a call to arms for us in these uncertain times. Perfect.

brandon_1800's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

reikista's review against another edition

5.0

Isabel and Curzon find her sister, Ruth, unexpectedly, but she does not behave warmly. They are forced to leave quickly and find themselves in the midst of the fighting between Patriots and Loyalists at Yorktown.

jaij7's review against another edition

5.0

Fantastic. Absolutely loved the questions and answers at the end.

jazzrj's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

ash_bees's review

adventurous challenging emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

kaylinmoss's review

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

jwinchell's review against another edition

5.0

This series is important and so well crafted. I love the primary source quotes at the beginning of each chapter. Hamilton lovers will go bonkers for this one--it was cool to get another perspective on the Battle of Yorktown. ("Cool," of course in the revisionist sense: this history is complicated and so many marginalized voices were lost and are still lost and those in positions of power will never voluntarily abdicate).

I especially appreciated moments like "say her name" - "I wished that I knew their names. I would speak them out loud in quiet moments, in beautiful places, and in so doing, keep a part of them alive. Your true name was one of the few things they could not take away from you, hard though they tried."

I also appreciated Isabel's unrelenting and well-founded skepticism of power: the British gave up African American turncoats and Washington put them back into slavery. Isabel knew and young readers must understand: We are our own liberators.

You could read book 3 without reading the others; enough references are planted to help you along with any gaps you missed in prior novels.

thatchickengirl23's review against another edition

5.0

4.5. ⭐️

shanellewrites's review against another edition

4.0

I absolutely adore this series. It seems hard sometimes to find high-quality historical fiction, but when I find a series like this, it completely restores my faith in the genre!