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Chains (Seeds of America #1)

by Laurie Halse Anderson (Goodreads Author)

4.10 · rating details · 6,581 ratings · 1,651 reviews

Set in 1776, against the backdrop of the American struggle for independence, this powerful novel is also an incredible adventure about one girl’s struggle for freedom in a society in which she is considered someone else’s property.

Isabel and her sister, Ruth, are slaves. Sold from one owner to the next, they arrive in New York as the Americans are fighting for ...more

Paperback, 320 pages

Published February 4th 2010 by Bloomsbury Publishing PLC (first published October 21st 2008)

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Mar 25, 2011

karen rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: and-so-this-is-grad-school, why-yes-i-ya

oh, i like l.h.a. much better when she is writing historical fiction than when she is writing her girls-with-problems books. not that this girl doesn't have problems - she is a slave which trumps anorexia as far as problems go**, but overall isabel is a more winsome character than les autres, one that you actually would like to see successful at the end of it all.

however, since this is the FIRST book of some larger undertaking (which they do NOT tell you on the cover, thanks) no one ...moreoh, i like l.h.a. much better when she is writing historical fiction than when she is writing her girls-with-problems books. not that this girl doesn't have problems - she is a slave which trumps anorexia as far as problems go**, but overall isabel is a more winsome character than les autres, one that you actually would like to see successful at the end of it all.

however, since this is the FIRST book of some larger undertaking (which they do NOT tell you on the cover, thanks) no one knows when "the end of it all" is.

this book would be appropriate for younger readers, i think - it seems less focused on the atrocities of slavery and more reduced to the experiences of one plucky girl having a little adventure with espionage and some incidental revolution going on all around her. the situation seems a little whitewashed, if you will excuse the word-choice, but it does seem pretty tidy and not as emotionally overwrought as the teen fiction i have been reading so far for this class.

(yeah, genius just looked at the back of the book to find it says "ages 10 and up", so let's pretend i just had an original idea and move along.)

it is very much like one day in the life of ivan denisovich in this way - you know there are terrible things happening to other people in this situation, but overall, considering the circumstances, ivan had a pretty good day - little extra food, little light labor - not as bad as it could have been. still shitty - you are still imprisoned and cold, you are still a slave to an awful woman, but at least there were some who showed kindnesses.

i got nothing else, except to note that the main character started out her enslavement in rhode island and then moved on to new york, just like someone else we all know and love. or know, at least...

**anorexia is totally a problem, i am just talking scale here. it is then way people in third-world situations view anorexia as a "luxury disease" because at least you have food to deny yourself. in this case, slaves are denied personhood, which must have a more profound psychological toll. it is an outside force saying "you are nothing", rather than an internal struggle. am i making it worse?? i might be. i mean no disrespect.

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Oct 02, 2008

Elizabeth rated it

· review of another edition

My discovery of Laurie Halse Anderson’s Chains came at the best possible time. I had recently read and reviewed Steve Sheinkin’s, King George, What Was His Problem?, a book that looks at the stories behind the American Revolution that they don’t teach you in school. I enjoyed the title thoroughly, but one point had me baffled. Why on earth did American slaves fight or aid the Revolution when Britain was anti-slavery? It just didn’t make any sense. It reminded me of that black character on ...more

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Jan 06, 2009

Kaye rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: youngadult

When their former owner dies, two girls should be free. The heir, however, decides to sell them to a cruel Loyalist couple in New York. There, Isobel (the older and responsible sister) struggles to protect her younger epileptic sister. This book does a good job of explaining the confusion surrounding slavery during the American Revolution, and ties historical events to a character that we grow to care about.

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Jan 06, 2009

Janni added it · review of another edition

Halfway through: Wow, this is a painful book (in all the best ways). I'm wondering whether the story is going to manage to pull off some hope by the end, and if so, how it's going to do so without cheating. So far, a powerful book, and one that's hard to put down.

After finishing: A disconcerting look at New York City during the Revolutionary War from the point of view of Isabel, a black girl living there, hearing talk of freedom, and being reminded over and over again by both sides t...more

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Jan 30, 2009

Lars Guthrie rated it

· review of another edition

Perhaps I can't be fair in my evaluation of 'Chains' because it pales in comparison to the two volumes of 'The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing,' another piece of young adult fiction by M.T. Anderson, which I recently completed. That work is extraordinary. Both Andersons (no relation, I think) touch on the same themes: African-American history, slavery, the Revolutionary War. 'Chains' doesn't really get rolling, though, until a violent act occurs halfway through the novel. Too much stage...more

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Dec 20, 2008

Jamie rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: 12-14, historical

Caveat: I don't like historical fiction, generally. Have I said that before? Anyway this book is a perfect example of why. I felt like the story was structured around the research, rather than rising organically from something. I felt like there were cool historical facts she wanted to impart, and she structured the story around the facts. The chapter headings, which are primary source quotes from history, only exaggerated this fact. And even with short chapters, which I usually love, it took me...more

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Dec 03, 2008

Jennifer rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: nationalbookhonor, historicalfiction, kids, strongfemalecharacters, youngadult, survival, scottodellaward, caudill2011

How many times can one person be betrayed? Within the pages of Chains, Isabel finds out. It is 1776 and the American people have begun their long fight for freedom just as Isabel begins the fight for hers - for Isabel is a slave. Meant to be freed on the death of her Rhode Island owner, Isabel and her epileptic younger sister Ruth are instead unscrupulously sold by their previous owner's nephew to Loyalists, the Locktons from New York. At first, Isabel thinks they'll be able to get by with t...more

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Dec 12, 2008

Brooke Shirts rated it

· review of another edition

It's taken me forever to getting around to writing a review of this book -- I read it about six weeks ago. I suppose this is because it's getting near-universal acclaim, while I found it rather ho-hum. Perhaps reading all the positive reviews of this book got my expectations up too high.

My main complaint is that the protagonist, Isabel, doesn't come off as a believable 18th-century character to me. It's the same problem I had with Catherine Called Birdy -- a girl in that time and...moreIt's taken me forever to getting around to writing a review of this book -- I read it about six weeks ago. I suppose this is because it's getting near-universal acclaim, while I found it rather ho-hum. Perhaps reading all the positive reviews of this book got my expectations up too high.

My main complaint is that the protagonist, Isabel, doesn't come off as a believable 18th-century character to me. It's the same problem I had with Catherine Called Birdy -- a girl in that time and place may have had those thoughts, but would she have said them? To people who have power over her? It also seems odd that Isabel can read so well -- she secretly pours through Robinson Crusoe and later stumbles through "Common Sense," which would, I think, require a lot of practice in the act of reading. How likely is it that a slave girl raised in rural Rhode Island in the 1770s would have been given such an opportunit? But Anderson gives us little information regarding Isabel's life before the Locktons, so I can only guess that her previous owner spent an unusual amount of time educating her, which seems unlikely, especially since we are told that her former owner spent her last years in dottering senility.

This is just one example of how strange a character Isabel seemed to me -- more like a 21st century girl in costume than a believable person from her time and place.

To me, being able to correctly portray not just the events and details of a historical period, but its attitudes and ways of thinking is the most important aspect of historical fiction (and probably the most difficult to portray). It's often the gold standard by which I judge historical fiction. Want examples of this, well done? Check out Katherine Paterson's Lyddie (in which the protagonist is forced to do backbreaking work under horrible conditions, and when her superiors treat her poorly, her reaction is to work all the harder to prove herself to them) or Joan M. Blos' A Gathering of Days (in which the protagonist concludes that it was unwise to give a homemade quilt to a starving runaway slave).

There, I said it. Now let me just get ready to duck the rotten tomatoes . . . (less)

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Nov 02, 2008

Angela rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, new-york, young-adult, war

Laurie Halse Anderson is such a diversely talented writer. She not only can craft beautiful narratives filled with great characters, but she can deftly weave in historical facts as well. So often in historical fiction the author tries to shoehorn in historical facts in what feels like a desperate attempt to prove that they have done exhaustive research and don't want any of it to go to waste. Anderson's novel is brimming with historical facts, but rarely do they feel out of place.

And...more

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Nov 02, 2008

Newengland rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: ya, finished-in-2008

A real writer's writer, Laurie Halse Anderson struts her stuff in the historical fiction aisle as she serves up the story of two young black sisters promised their freedom upon their Rhode Island mistress' deat; instead the young girls get sold to an unscrupulous Tory couple living in that 1776 hotbed of British sympathizers, New York City. Characterization and writing style carry the day in this novel, and it more than compensates for a plot which, like its principal, young Isabel, is bound by...more

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Oct 03, 2008

Eva Mitnick rated it

· review of another edition

Freedom is snatched away from 13-year-old Isabel and her 5-year-old sister Ruth before they have a chance to experience it – after their gentle owner Miss Finch dies, having filled out paperwork with a lawyer to set the girls free, her nephew simply sells them off to the Locktons, a Loyalist couple who live in New York City. As it is 1776, this puts Isabel right in the middle of the beginning of the Revolutionary War.

Madam Lockton, a nasty piece of work, mistreats Isobel and gives h...moreFreedom is snatched away from 13-year-old Isabel and her 5-year-old sister Ruth before they have a chance to experience it – after their gentle owner Miss Finch dies, having filled out paperwork with a lawyer to set the girls free, her nephew simply sells them off to the Locktons, a Loyalist couple who live in New York City. As it is 1776, this puts Isabel right in the middle of the beginning of the Revolutionary War.

Madam Lockton, a nasty piece of work, mistreats Isobel and gives her endless work, while she makes the sweet and pliable Ruth a sort of pet. Unfortunately, Ruth suffers from occasional “spells,” and they so unnerve Madam that she sells her, devastating Isabel.

The chaos and fervor swirling through New York City eventually pull Isabel from her dark despair. Although she had served as a spy for the Patriots after they promised her freedom, she becomes disenchanted with them when it becomes clear they only want freedom for white people; Isabel even briefly helps the Royalist cause when she hears that they offer freedom to slaves who escape and join the army. However, it seems that if a slave escapes from a Loyalist household, that’s a whole different matter.

When the only person in New York whom she might call a friend, a slave and Patriot named Curzon, is captured and held under terrible conditions by the British, Isabel shakes off her torpor and fear and smuggles in food. Once again, she is drawn reluctantly into the Patriot cause, carrying messages from prison to captured officers and back.
When Madam Lockton finds out, she promises to sell her immediately, and so Isabel escapes the household, ending part 1 of this saga. Will Isabel escape to freedom? How will she find Ruth? We’ll have to wait for part 2 to find out.

Anderson captures the milieu of 18th century New York City with a completeness, immediacy, and (I am guessing, though I am no expert) accuracy that set the reader right down at street level. It isn’t so much the sensory descriptions that set the tone as the certainty that this is how it must have been for a slave like Isabel. Anderson achieves this through Isabel’s voice, which has a truly authentic ring to it without sounding either stilted or too modern. A masterful use of period turns of phrase and a touch of dialect (not much, though – Isabel is a reader who was brought up by a loving mother and an educated mistress) give Isabel a narrative voice that conveys a convincing picture of her times.

Being a slave, Isabel’s world is quite circumscribed. She can’t describe what she hasn’t seen, and so the reader gets to know the few places and routes that she – the Lockton’s house, the market, the route to the water pump, the prison. Her knowledge of and opinions on the political situation are gained by the conversations she hears around her and by the ways she and Ruth are affected, which gives all events, whether small or historic, a very personal immediacy. For the reader, learning about life in New York City during the Revolution could not be any more enthralling or effortless than this. Well-written, impeccably researched, exciting, and heart-clenching, this is a fabulous read and a definite contender for the Newbery.

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Nov 19, 2008

Julie rated it

· review of another edition

This book turned out to be really interesting, it focuses on a young girl name Isabel that was born to become a slave with her entire family. Her mother soon passes away and she is left with her sister, Ruth. Sold to a family with cruelty, it is up to Isabel to learn how to save herself and her loving sister, Ruth. Should she just run off with her sister or listen to a young boy and become a spy in the house, revealing the hidden secrets about her master's life?

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Jan 10, 2009

Jen Smith-hardy rated it

· review of another edition

Laurie Halse Anderson is a truly gifted writer and this book is beautifully written. I so enjoyed it! I also knew nothing of the Revolutionary war period in New York. My only criticism is that this is one of those books where you read the last page and go, crap! Rather then a series, it is a novel that has been cut in half, or in 3, and published separately. I would wait until the next book is out and just read them together.

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Dec 07, 2008

Charity rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult

Laurie Halse Anderson does it again! This was a real page turner for me and it sparked my interest in a topics that I have not really chosen to read about before. This would be a great historical fiction title to use in high school history class when studying the American Revolution. Each chapter begins with a snippet from an actual letter, book, newspaper article, or advertisement that was written during the time period. Wonderful character development and story. The horrible and outrageous tr...more

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Jan 04, 2009

Jeanette rated it

· review of another edition

Recommended to Jeanette by: Kristine B

Shelves: all-fiction, historical-fiction, young-adult-books, five-star-fiction, america

Just a thoroughly enjoyable read. Young adults are the target audience, but the only way you can tell is that there is perhaps a narrower focus than you might find in an adult book. Thirteen-year-old Isabel tells her story from her limited situation, but brings in important events taking place in the larger arena at the start of our Revolutionary War.

This is a very well-told, well-researched story that just flows so nicely. There's a lot of skillful descriptive writing that made me ...more

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Jan 13, 2009

Deanna rated it

· review of another edition

Historical fiction. Takes place during the time of the revolutionary war. Themes include: slavery, family. The cruel punishment of slaves during this time period were eye opening. Plus I didn't realize that the British occupied New York city during most of the revolutionary war and how badly they took care of captive rebel soldiers (Patriot). The story of Isabel and how she took notes to rebel soldiers was interesting (similar to a spy). I cried when she was branded and treated so poorly. I look...more

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Nov 25, 2008

Staci rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: anyone!!

This book was so many things; riveting, thought-provoking, horrifying, hopeful, joyous. I want to thank Laurie Halse Anderson for writing about a time period that I "thought" I knew about. Her book clearly shows me that I have much to learn. The story is based around Isabel, a young slave girl, who is sold to a very cruel Tory family. Everything takes place in New York. You will find yourself crying one minute and then totally outraged the next. If you enjoy historical fiction then I b...more

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Feb 20, 2009

Karlan rated it

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Shelves: ya

The story of two sisters, slaves, living in NYC during the American Revolution is gripping and upsetting. It richly deserves the many awards it has received. I thought the subject was too difficult for most children and would recommend it to teens and adults.

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Jan 10, 2009

Tamora Pierce rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: ya-yr, historical

Laurie Halse Anderson always writes well. My heart was in my mouth all the way. Sal is wonderful and feisty, trying to find a way out of a situation that appears to have no way out. My only objection is that there's a sequel and I don't have it!

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Jun 12, 2011

Matthew rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: genre-teen, ysu-english-festival, 2011

I feel as if the whole issue on slavery is written about so much it's to the point where every story sounds the same. This one was sort of different. It takes place during the revolution, which is different, I usually don't think of the revolution when I think of slaves.
The plot plays out quite nicely, and the characters are believable. However, it is a YA novel, and these are usually not quite as deep or profound as a normal, adult-level book is. This book is very good for the age group ...more

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Sep 12, 2011

Gabbrielle tanner rated it

· review of another edition

this is a very good book about a girl who is a slave with her sister ruth and its very sad

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Nov 20, 2008

Chrissy rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: ya

Honestly, I think I'm a bigger fan of Laurie Halse Anderson's blog (whose feed I subscribe to) than I am of her books. That being said, this is truly an excellent book: well-researched, engaging (especially because I usually don't enjoy historical fiction), and heartbreaking. I didn't want the story to end...I was pretty upset with the last page of the book!

I also love the cover and the way each chapter employs primary documents to advance the plot. Even the typeface is spot-on. ...more

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Jun 15, 2008

Lynn rated it

· review of another edition

Anderson returns to historical fiction and gives us another excellent book. I especially enjoyed the unusual setting - New York during the Revolutionary War. One of the strengths of Anderson's historical fiction is the seamless inclusion of the histoical information into the story without intruding into the narrative. It took me a chapter or two to adjust to the voice of the main character, Isabel, but her determined spirit and her vivid story have stayed with me and I read this several month...more

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Jan 03, 2012

Busy added it · review of another edition

What do you do when you are in the middle of a war being fought for freedom and independence? Which side do you take? How do you go on when you learn that the freedom and independence doesn't apply to you?

Part Copper Sun (Sharon Draper), part The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing (M.T. Anderson), and entirely Laurie Halse Anderson's amazing ability to relate serious issues to teens, Chains was (as expected) another educational, thought-provoking, and powerful young adult novel that can be use...more

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May 08, 2009

Melanie added it · review of another edition

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Feb 04, 2009

Cornmaven rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: ms-hs

Great historical fiction novel. Girls would like it more than boys, I think, because the main character is a slave girl transported to New York during the American Revolution. I learned A LOT about this period of history from this book. Boys would like the descriptions of prisoner treatment, slave treatment, etc. No battles, though.

The sentence structure is meant to replicate 18th century America, but it is not so pure that MS-HS kids would get turned off by it. In fact, Isabel's...more

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Jan 26, 2009

Megan rated it

· review of another edition

A great read about slavery during the American Revolution. At the beginning of the book, I remember thinking that things were bad but not too terrible for Isabel, the story's heroine. However, things quickly go from bad to worse for the character. It was very interesting to hear about the Revolution from the viewpoint of a slave. There aren't too many kids books out there that deal with slavery during the Revolutionary War. You mainly see it addressed as a Civil War topic. I thought it was...more

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Jan 26, 2009

Sara rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, 2009, historical-fiction

This book has received so much acclaim and so many awards (or at least been nominated for them) that I expected to like it a lot more than I did. I liked the premise of this book a lot - the Revolutionary War through the yes of a 13-year-old slave - but I thought that it could have been so much better. Isabel/Sal (the slave) is sold to a new, cruel family, the Locktons, who are fierce supporters of the king, and Isabel is recruited by another slave, Curzon, into spying on her masters to help t...moreThis book has received so much acclaim and so many awards (or at least been nominated for them) that I expected to like it a lot more than I did. I liked the premise of this book a lot - the Revolutionary War through the yes of a 13-year-old slave - but I thought that it could have been so much better. Isabel/Sal (the slave) is sold to a new, cruel family, the Locktons, who are fierce supporters of the king, and Isabel is recruited by another slave, Curzon, into spying on her masters to help the Patriots. Isabel and her younger sister, Ruth, are not only mistreated by the Locktons, but they had been promised their freedom by their old master upon her death, though her will was never found, so Isabel wants to do whatever she can to be free.

For me, the problems stemmed not from the setting, as the book is definitely well researched and thought-out, but from the characters themselves. I didn't honestly believe that Isabel, who's lived her whole life as a slave, is brave or stupid enough to talk back to her masters the way she did, and I also couldn't believe that she was so well educated as to be able to read Robinson Crusoe and Common Sense, even if it was mentioned that her previous owner did teach her to read. I also found it silly that Isabel got so angry that Mrs. Lockton had her younger sister dressed in finery and being like a maid to her inside; instead of being grateful that her sister is not doing backbreaking work and is dressed properly, Isabel only gets angry by the fact that her sister is being paraded around like a spectacle. Not only that, but every time Isabel is caught doing something she shouldn't, there magically happens to be someone powerful and sympathetic nearby to cover for her. Very convenient... on more than one occasion!

Though the book was well-written, I just didn't enjoy it as much as I'd hoped, and I don't know if I will be picking up the sequel when it's released; I actually didn't know until the end of this book that there would be a sequel. I can see how this would be an interesting book to read in a classroom, but maybe it just doesn't hold up as well for those not looking for a "discussion" book and instead just seeking reading material.(less)

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Jan 16, 2009

Bobby Simic rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: kidsstuff, historical

This is a very good book that, unfortunately, came along at a very wrong time for me. After a two-month ordeal, I had just completed "Octavian Nothing 2," which also is about an African-American during the Revolutionary War, and I had to read this one for a Mock Newbery discussion shortly after. It was just too soon for me to return to that time period and subject matter.

Nonetheless, there is a lot to admire about this book beginning with the main character, Isabel, who i...moreThis is a very good book that, unfortunately, came along at a very wrong time for me. After a two-month ordeal, I had just completed "Octavian Nothing 2," which also is about an African-American during the Revolutionary War, and I had to read this one for a Mock Newbery discussion shortly after. It was just too soon for me to return to that time period and subject matter.

Nonetheless, there is a lot to admire about this book beginning with the main character, Isabel, who is really inspiring and fully-formed.

What I liked most about the book was that it never took the easy way out (for the most part and I'll get to that). Isabel could have gained her freedom by recovering Miss Finch's original will with some deus ex machina or by having Miss Seymour purchase her and then freeing her. But Anderson knew that Isabel had to take her freedom into her own hands, and she does so literally by signing for it herself.

The other thing I liked about this book was that it could have painted a rosier picture of race relations where everybody learns something about acceptance in the end. Miss Seymour treated Isabel relatively well by offering her cookies and letting her sit beside her bed on a chair, but Isabel knew that she'd always still be less of a person in Miss Seymour's eyes despite the old woman's relative kindness. Even the villainous Mrs. Lockton could have been redeemed a bit since, in a way, she was chained down like Isabel. Only her chains came from an abusive relationship. But Ms. Lockton never made that connection and missed her shot at redemption. Nobody's prejudice gets off the hook here.

The drawbacks for me (and I have to mention that these points were brought up by other people and I realized I agree with them) is that the ending did seem to take the easy way out and there's, of course, going to be a sequel.

Her escape did seem simple (was the whole city really at this party!?!) and readers could wonder why she didn't simply escape sooner. The other drawback for me was, like every other book in children's literature nowadays, there's going to be an unnecessary sequel. Completing a story in one book seems to be lost on authors nowadays.

Anyway this review is getting long-winded. Basically, it's a well-written and rich reading experience. The timing for me was off, and that isn't the book's fault. ("I swear, Chains, it's not you, it's me!")(less)

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Dec 16, 2008

Kelly rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult

On the eve of the Revolutionary war, Isabel and her little sister Ruth are poised to be emancipated. Their dying Mistress Mary promised them their freedom upon her death, but when Mary’s uncaring brother comes to settle the estate, he instead sells Isabel and Ruth to a new family in New York City. The Locktons' prove cruel owners, and Isabel faces her worst nightmare– she and 5-year old Ruth are soon separated. Isabel struggles to maintain the overwhelming responsibilities of keeping house for ...more

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topics	posts	views	last activity
Historical Fictio...: Chains, read it?	5	21	Jan 27, 2012 07:35pm
4th Period: Chains	1	3	Dec 12, 2011 05:08pm
Ms. Maples's Book...: chains	15	26	Nov 23, 2011 03:44pm
EDRD 314-005: Group 6 Discussion	9	12	Oct 14, 2011 12:34pm
EDRD 314-005: group G3	7	8	Oct 13, 2011 09:51am
Chains/Group 6	2	8	Oct 13, 2011 08:25am
What does ill-sooted mean?	2	8	Sep 23, 2011 11:02am

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About Laurie Halse Anderson

Laurie Halse Anderson is the New York Times-bestselling author who writes for kids of all ages. Known for tackling tough subjects with humor and sensitivity, her work has earned numerous ALA and state awards. Two of her books, Speak and Chains, were National Book Award finalists.

Mother of four and wife of one, Laurie lives in Northern New York, where she likes to watch the snow fall as...more

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Quotes from Chains

“A scar is a sign of strength. . .the sign of a survivor.” — 20 people liked it

“Didn't help to ponder things that were forever gone. It only made a body restless and fill up with bees, all wanting to sting something.” — 19 people liked it

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