Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak

Voices

by Kay Winters, Larry Day (Illustrator)

Follow an errand boy through colonial Boston as he spreads word of rebellion. It?s December 16, 1773, and Boston is about to explode! King George has decided to tax the colonists? tea. The Patriots have had enough. Ethan, the printer?s errand boy, is running through town to deliver a message about an important meeting. As he stops along his route? at the bakery, the schoolhouse, the tavern, and more?readers learn about the occupations of colonial workers and their differing opinions about living under Britain?s rule. This fascinating book is like a field trip to a living history village.

Genres: Poetry, Picture Books, Historical Fiction, American Revolution, Childrens, Historical, Fiction

32 pages, Hardcover

First published May 15, 2008

About the author

Kay Winters, a former teacher and language arts consultant, is now devoting herself to writing for children full-time. Kay is the author of a number of children's books, including Whooo's Haunting The Teeny Tiny Ghost?, also illustrated by Lynn Munsinger; Did You See What I Saw?: Poems about School, illustrated by Martha Weston; and Abe Lincoln: The Boy Who Loved Books, illustrated by Nancy Carpenter.Kay lives in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, with her husband, Earl. Her favorite Halloween costume is Little Red Riding Hood -- she still has a long red cape and a basket!

Reviews

[Luisa Knight]

Each page is from a different person's perspective: the errand boy, the printer, the baker; people all across the town of Boston. They share their thoughts about their day to day and what they think of King George's tax on the tea.

Ethan, the errand boy, delivers secret messages from the Sons of Liberty as he goes through his day, telling people there will be a meeting to discuss what to do about the tea.

A clever take on the telling of the Boston Tea Party. Great illustrations too!

Ages: 4 - 10

I know this is Boston, but it would be a good read before visiting Colonial Williamsburg too!

Get more book recs and see our visit to Colonial Williamsburg: Watch the reel!

Content Considerations: nothing to note.

**Like my reviews? Then you should follow me! Because I have hundreds more just like this one. With each review, I provide Content Considerations, mentioning any objectionable content I come across so that parents and/or conscientious readers (like me) can determine beforehand whether they want to read a book or not. Content surprises are super annoying, especially when you’re 100+ pages in, so here’s my attempt to help you avoid that!

If you’re considering a book or looking for a new title to read, check out my highly categorized shelves, read my reviews and Friend or Follow me to spiff up your feed with clean, wholesome, living books.

I have an Instagram account that’s pretty bookishly unique too!

[Jenny]

I definitely appreciated this book more than my children, although they did like some of the poems. I think it helped show them why some people were patriots and planned and carried out the Boston Tea Party and why some people were loyalists and supported King George. I appreciated that a slave and a Native American were included. I enjoyed the poetry aspect, but I think my children would have appreciated it more if it was written in prose.

My favorite poem was the poem about the midwife. I found the poem about the barber/wigmaker interesting... I guess I'd never thought much about the process of making a wig.

The book also includes a historical note that includes more information about each voice in the poem, a glossary, and a lengthy bibliography.

[Sarah]

Narrative poetry with some great glimpses into the events preceding the Boston Tea Party, including the diverse perspectives on the taxing of tea.

[Bookbag_Betty]

We are JOURNEYMEN, APPRENTICES, MERCHANTS,who worked side by side speaking out for Liberty.

We were merry, in an undertone, at the idea of making so large a cup of tea for the fishes.

Patriotism is as much a virtue as justice, and is as necessary for the support of societies as natural affection is for the support of families.

LIBERTY
the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views.

TRAVELED TO // Boston, Massachusetts, Old South Meeting House, Griffin's Wharf, State House- Faneuil hall
MET ALONG THE WAY // The Errand Boy - Patriot, The Printer, The Baker - Patriot, The Mistress Of The Dame School - Patriot, The Shoemaker, The Milliner - Loyalist, The Basket Trader, The Tavern Keeper - Loyalist, The Midwife - Patriot, The Barber/Wigmaker - Loyalist, The Blacksmith's Slave, The Clockmaker - Patriot, The Silversmith's Apprentice - Patriot, Sons Of Liberty - Patriots

[Tricia Hart]

This story takes a new perspective on the new tax on tea by King George has decided to implement. Our main character is an errand boy and hears the conversations of different people throughout the town of Boston hours before the fateful event of the Boston Tea Party. This narrative adds perspective and diversity outside of the patriot view in regard to this historic event. Many groups are represented from the seamstress, to baker, to wig maker, to Native American, and many more.

This book would be good for classrooms fourth grade through eighth grade. Teachers studying the Revolutionary War could use this book to add diversity to the conversation about how different occupations and colonials may have felt about the impending tax. Students could even act out the different parts and/or the book could be used as a mini reader's theatre. Students could also research the different jobs presented in the book and dig deeper into how these occupations may have felt about the tax.

[Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book*]

Winters, Kay Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak, illustrated by Larry Day. Dutton (Penguin), 2008. PICTURE BOOK.

Through the voices of a variety of townspeople, Ms. Winters gives us a collage of the nights before the Boston Tea Party. Not all of the voices are of patriots; loyalists are also represented. It is at once a look at life in the colonies and at the variety of opinions surrounding the rebellion. This is, however, not a first person account; the vignettes are instead composites based on a huge amount of historical research. The illustrations are complimentary, without being distracting. This picture book could be used in many ways by a clever teacher at any level.

EL, MS - ADVISABLE
https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2008...

[Ariel Pickett]

Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak is a historical fiction written by Kay Winters in verse form. This book was written in multiple perspectives each page relays the thoughts and actions of person’s leading up to the Boston Tea Party. This book gives great insight and is very interactive for students that it was a WOW read for me.
This book would be a great read aloud for students because after each perspective is read the teacher can have a class discussion analyzing each character and their point of view and role in the events leading up to the Boston Tea Party. This book is also an easy read that students can be assigned a character that they would read about and then act it out for the class to learn about.

[Emily Snow]

I love studying the American Revolution and thought that this book would be the perfect addition to my classroom. My favorite part was the poems are written from point of views of many people like the baker, the teacher, the midwife, and the Son of Liberty. I would definitely be using this book for introducing the American Revolutionary War events like the Boston Tea Party and do a skit using it for inspiration.

[Steven]

Follow an errand boy through poems as he meets tradesmen and women on a journey that culminates in the Boston Tea Party. This children’s poetry book shares a variety of viewpoints from the perspective of an errand boy meeting tradespeople as he journeys toward the Boston Tea Party. This is a text for young readers to provoke discussion about the implications of a momentous event that leads to the American Revolution.

[Shelli]

This is an entertaining and educational look into life in Colonial America on the day of the Boston Tea Party. Each section (2 pages in length) is from a different perspective including: an errand boy, the printer, the baker, the barber and many more. The information in afterward is equally insightful and should not be overlooked.

[Shaelynn Bowman]

Genre: Historical Fiction
Age Range: Middle Grade
This book is told from the point of view of Ethan as if he was a paperboy during the time of the Boston tea party. This book is very fun for kids while teaching them about the Boston tea party. Kids can also use their imagination and think what if I was the paperboy during that time.

[Theresa]

Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak (Hardcover)
by Kay Winters
Various voices of the colonial people before the commencement of war with Great Brittan. The book shows how loyalist and patriots were divided. How the economics and political ideals were divided and how people reacted to the news. The publications of pamphlets and the ideals of rebellion affected everyone.

[Maria]

Ethan the printers, errand boy is charged with delivering a message to the Patriots about an important gathering at Old South meeting house. Each page has a different personal perspective about the different people. It's the story of many different people yet a poem. I love its written!!

[Jessica]

I enjoyed sharing this book with my 4th graders as part of our American Revolution unit. A great field trip of the times, indeed. I think this book was a lovely introduction to occupations at the time and relevant information to understand the Revolution better.

[Kelli]

Lainey read aloud while she was studying the American Revolution in 4th grade. I liked the challenge to listen to each chapter and determine the point of view of each speaker. I didn’t notice until reading through on my own the common character throughout, visually.

[Odessa Poore]

This book was a very interesting and engaging read. Each story is told from a different characters perspective, so it keeps the story going. This will be a great book to use in my future classroom to talk about the Boston Tea Party and why the Colonies want to leave Britain.

[Jessica]

Good insights on different perspectives and occupations just before the revolutionary war. Audio is likely more interesting than the printed version but it’s written in such a way that you could use it with a class and have different people act out the different characters.

[Abbey]

We read this as a part of our third quarter EL unit. It describes the Boston Tea Party from multiple perspectives - Great book to teach perspectives!

[Shelly]

The illustrations in this book are beautiful.
However, other books (e.g. Johnny Tremaine) paint a much more vivid picture of the time, place, and variety of people.

[Stephanie]

A small glimpse into the colonists lives and their perspectives about English taxes. The climax being the Boston Tea Party.

[Barbara Lovejoy]

Interesting book! I learned quite a number of new things. The Larry Day illustrations are great.

[Lynn]

Great little book with attractive illustrations that will teach children a lot about the colonial period of American history.

[Lydia D.]

This was not my fav book

[Crystal Beavin]

Short but great.

[Marfita]

This is a Children's Book Award nominee for our state for this school year. Winters, who discovered that "stories make up history,"* tells the story of the Boston Tea Party from the point of view of various tradespeople in Boston ... in a sort of poetic form. Each person describes their job and what they are doing in the moments that lead up to and finish slightly after the historic event.
We learn that there are some people who are Loyalists and In-Betweens as well as Patriots. Some people care very deeply and some, notably the Native American and the African Slave, who don't care at all, making this a nice, fictional cut-away view of an event. The only thing missing is the Town Drunkard.
* Almost as interesting a concept as "History is made-up stories" - please discuss.

[Becky B]

Readers follow an errand boy as he passes around a paper hot off the presses the day before the Boston Tea Party happened. Each person he passes the message to gives a brief intro to themselves and their position on the Tea Tax. The book ends with the town meeting and the Boston Tea Party that followed. Extensive notes on each historic occupation and the moment in history can be found at the end.

This was done very well. The people included was a well-rounded assortment, both male and female, young and old, and several ethnicities. The free verse form for each person allows succinct but informative pages. And the illustration style nicely fits the time period. Overall, a great Colonial America history resource. Though not strictly non-fiction, it is very informative and entertaining.

[Melissa]

3 1/2 stars. A handsome book that explores the sentiments of a variety of residents of Boston on the eve of the Boston Tea Party. Thumbs up for the variety of viewpoints, including a Native American and an African slave. I wish an African freedman or woman had also been represented,.The multiplicity of viewpoints does help convey the divided sentiments of the colonists. Thumbs up too for three pages of historical notes, a glossary and sources. Thumbs down for failing to explain why the patriots are dressed like Indians. I think children will be confused, possibly very taken aback, and sadly are unlikely to have an context for the story.

[Kim]

While the book provides some nice historical details, its attempt at presenting the voices of the Colonial period reads more like a contrived vehicle of those historical details than a true presentation of the people of the time. I enjoyed the history, but after reading Schlitz's Good Masters, Sweet Ladies---where distinct character voices blend poignancy, humor, and layers of flavor and texture into the author's overall portrait of the Middle Ages---I wanted to hear and feel the verse rather than just read through it.

[Julie]

This is on the Virginia Reader's Choice book list for grades 3-5 for the 2011-2012 school year. While the illustrations are quite lovely and it's interesting to include many of the various professions that were common during the period just prior to the Revolutionary War, I just don't think this will hold most children's attention. My children have visited Boston and Colonial Williamsburg and my 5th grader did an entire year of history of the time period last year so they were able to make many connections that I don't think the average child living in, say, Nebraska, would.

[John Sperry]

Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak by Kay Winters is a story in which a young boy named Ethan who lives in Boston in 1773 during the colonial uprising. He is an orphan who has a route which takes him to sixteen different locations. Each location contains a person of a different trade or profession and he is able to hear their perspective on whether war should occur due to excessive taxes from Great Britain. The flow of the poetry is quick and no rhyming is used. At the end of the story, a short paragraph details what profession. Overall, this is a great book to use in a history class.