An Unusual History Lesson: A Review of 7th Grade Revolution

Count on small press books for a unique style and take on a subject – in this case, the American Revolution. Liana Gardner’s middle grade novel 7th Grade Revolution (Vesuvian Books, 2017) is based on an actual middle school curriculum in North Carolina pioneered by social studies teacher Karen Rectanus (the Ms. Rectanus in the story). The 7th grade class at fictional Washington Academy, a private school located in a historic mansion, arrives one day to be told there has been a revolution, the teachers have been overthrown, and they have to form a new government. Chaos ensues. The girls try to restore order while the boys fool around. Dennis Alexander, who has been expelled from another private school and is on his last chance before military school, is torn between acceptance from the rowdy boys and his infatuation with one of the more serious girls, Maddie Harper.

Then the story takes an unexpected turn when the FBI appears and insists on cancelling school so agents can look for some sort of artifact in the old mansion. Dennis suspects a plot to close down the school, which is having financial trouble. Rhonda Snodgrass, one of Maddie’s friends, is the daughter of a survivalist steeped in the region’s history, and she and Dennis take the lead in both resisting the FBI’s occupation of the school and finding the sought-after treasure. At this point, all of the young teenagers embark on a treasure hunt with high-stakes implications.

Gardner tells the story primarily through Dennis and Rhonda’s alternating points of view, in a close third person. These point-of-view characters are well-chosen, as they show leadership, find their leadership abilities challenged, and navigate early adolescent drama with friends, rivals, and crushes. Other characters represent the wide range of middle school personalities and interests. As in real life, the students find cooperative action hard to come by, but the presence of a real enemy – federal agents bent on confiscating a hidden part of the school’s patrimony – ultimately brings them together. This plot turn is what gives the story its ultimate appeal, when the simulation of a rebellion against authority turns into a real rebellion, and former outsiders become the most capable leaders.

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