Arundel, Kenneth Roberts

Arundel, by Kenneth Roberts is a great work of historical fiction set in the town of Arundel, a few miles south of Portland. In the book, Arundel resident Steve Nason accompanies Benedict Arnold, Aaron Burr and several other local characters on a ill-fated attempt to take the city of Quebec from Britain. Nason runs a small inn with his father and is eager to visit Quebec after his crush, Mary, is kidnapped by antagonist Henri Guerlac. As an adult, Benedict Arnold invites him to attempt to take Quebec as the war is starting down in Boston. He accepts, and the rest of the book traces his route from General Washington's camp in Cambridge to the walled city of Quebec. With him goes Cap Huff, a blustery Hippocratic thief, and Phoebe Martin, a feminist soldier who had a hostile relationship with Nason when they were Kids. The book follows their struggles up the road to Quebec, filled with spies, trials and other sources of intrigue.

Note: The book was written in the 1920s and is not an easy read. I would mostly recommend it for 8th graders, but 6th or 7th graders could enjoy it if someone else read it to them.

-Chris, 8th Grade, CSCL


-Librarian Amanda's Note: I read this book too, when I was about Chris's age, and loved it!