ReviewsThe New York Times Book Review A gripping story about living morally under the shadow of rampant death., The New York Times Book ReviewA gripping story about living morally under the shadow of rampant death., School Library Journal starred review Readers will be drawn in by the characters and will emerge with a sharp and graphic picture of another world., School Library Journal starred reviewReaders will be drawn in by the characters and will emerge with a sharp and graphic picture of another world., School Library Journalstarred reviewReaders will be drawn in by the characters and will emerge with a sharp and graphic picture of another world.
Grade FromFifth Grade
SynopsisDuring the summer of 1793, Mattie Cook lives above the family coffee shop with her widowed mother and grandfather. Mattie spends her days avoiding chores and making plans to turn the family business into the finest Philadelphia has ever seen. But then the fever breaks out.Disease sweeps the streets, destroying everything in its path and turning Mattie's world upside down. At her feverish mother's insistence, Mattie flees the city with her grandfather. But she soon discovers that the sickness is everywhere, and Mattie must learn quickly how to survive in a city turned frantic with disease., An epidemic of fever sweeps through the streets of 1793 Philadelphia in this novel from Laurie Halse Anderson where "the plot rages like the epidemic itself" ( The New York Times Book Review ). During the summer of 1793, Mattie Cook lives above the family coffee shop with her widowed mother and grandfather. Mattie spends her days avoiding chores and making plans to turn the family business into the finest Philadelphia has ever seen. But then the fever breaks out. Disease sweeps the streets, destroying everything in its path and turning Mattie's world upside down. At her feverish mother's insistence, Mattie flees the city with her grandfather. But she soon discovers that the sickness is everywhere, and Mattie must learn quickly how to survive in a city turned frantic with disease.