Fever 1793

Fever 1793 immerses readers in the harrowing summer when yellow fever ravaged Philadelphia. Fourteen-year-old Mattie Cook begins the story working above her family’s coffeehouse—but as the fever spreads, she becomes responsible for her ill mother, an aging grandfather, and even herself. The tight pacing, vivid historical detail, and Mattie’s resilient voice make it deeply engaging. Students connect with her growth from a carefree teen to a courageous young adult learning the value of community, perseverance, and empathy.

Anderson is rapidly becoming one of my favorite authors. She has an incredible talent for seamlessly combining history with fiction (resulting in characters that readers deeply care for).
-Reading about early medicinal practices (e.g., bleeding out) was eye-opening. In such a time of despair, people surely turned to doctors but exposure to and treatment of yellow fever was controversial.
-Following Matilda's story was incredible. She transforms from a girl irritated by household chores to a determined young woman who works day and night. I think she recognizes her own strength and realizes that it is less about doing things in a timely manner than it is about doing all one can.

A twenty year old book written about a 230 year old epidemic and never more timely. What has changed? Pandemics still bring out the best and worst in people, and how you fare is largely to do with your race and economic status. When you read the historical facts in the appendix you realize how skillfully the characters were created out of real people’s lived experiences. A shout out to the archivists who kept all this information safe and accessible, and to Laurie Halse Anderson for shedding light on this chapter of history.

For the love of all that's holy - stop passing this on to students who will think, by way of their teacher's recommendation, that this is a piece of quality historical fiction. What better way to turn them off of reading, while negating the efforts of their history teachers at the same time?

The single most painful piece of poor writing I've ever seen prescribed to students. My poor 6th grader is reading this along with her class, but the opportunity came up for us to listen to the audio on a long car trip and I thought it could both get her ahead in Language Arts, and provide for a good story for the whole family.

The protagonist's voice could hardly be more modern, and is supposed to be the voice of a girl from 220 years in the past. show more There isn't even an attempt made to use period language (no, leaving references to cell phones out does not count). Laura Ingalls Wilder writes of a time 100 years after this book takes place, and yet portrays the periods language, voice, and mores a thousand times better.

The set-up is exciting, and banks on a slow build dystopian trend - it also tries to hitch a ride on even more specific trends like the day to day plodding that appeals to a fan of The Walking Dead (for example) - but if a modern sensibility is to be given to a plague outbreak story, there are unlimited better books and productions to choose from.

The treatment of girls, blacks, and other minorities in this book could hardly be less period-accurate. In the best case this was done out of ignorance and simple-minded writing, but the fact that it is assigned reading for some students, and that it has been given awards, leads me to suspect a more sinister motive: white-washing history to portray the treatment of women and minorities as all-but equal citizens 220 years ago in America - with the bonus factor (in the eyes of people with the motive to push this narrative in schools) of preaching a white-washed version of the period's Christianity in the bargain (in school - under the auspices of historical accuracy).

Completely irresponsible if not downright conspiratorial with those seeking to create a false history for the US. This would be a great book to let go out of print ASAP - or to dissect for its blatant use of misrepresentation. It certainly doesn't help that it's boring as can be for an interesting subject, in an interesting time period. You may well find yourself, as I did, rooting for the fever to do away with these insipid characters. show less

It's late summer 1793, and the streets of Philadelphia are abuzz with mosquitoes and rumors of fever. Down near the docks, many have taken ill, and the fatalities are mounting. Now they include Polly, the serving girl at the Cook Coffeehouse. But fourteen-year-old Mattie Cook doesn't get a moment to mourn the passing of her childhood playmate. New customers have overrun her family's coffee shop, located far from the mosquito-infested river, and Mattie's concerns of fever are all but overshadowed by dreams of growing her family's small business into a thriving enterprise. But when the fever begins to strike closer to home, Mattie's struggle to build a new life must give way to a new fight—the fight to stay alive.

This young adult book focuses on a historical tragedy that is otherwise ignored - the yellow fever epidemic that crippled Philadelphia in the blistering summer of 1793. The story is told through the eyes of Mattie, a 14-year-old girl who works in her family's coffee shop. The first sign of tragedy is the death of a serving girl, but things only worsen from there. When Mattie's mother becomes ill and Mattie is forced to go to the countryside to safety, her entire world collapses. She has to be stronger than she ever thought possible to survive this ordeal.

Fever 1793 is a excellent piece of historical fiction for any age. If I found this when I was about ten, I would have read it ragged. I especially love the details that Anderson wove show more into the story, such as the vital role the Free African Society played in the recovery efforts and the clashing treatments of various doctors. show less

It's not often I pick up a YA novel and plow through it like black forest cake smothered in death by chocolate ice cream...but I did with this book. Fever 1793 is extremely well written with characters that linger with you long after you close the book. If you want to see how to keep a reader engrossed in your novel without sex, violence, or evil villains; read this. I guess the villain is the fever, but you know what I mean.

I highly recommend for kids, my 12 year old polished it off in a day. She talked about it for some time afterward too, which I loved. Not only did she get a great story by a talented writer, but she learned a little history without knowing it. To me, that's awesome.