A Light in the Storm: The Civil War Diary of Amelia Martin

by Karen Hesse

Book Overview

In 1861, Amelia Martin's father is stripped of his post as a ship's captain when he is caught harboring the leader of a slave rebellion. Now he is an assistant lighthouse keeper on Fenwick Island, off... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0590567330
• ISBN13: 9780590567336
• Release Date: September 1999
• Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children
• Length: 169 Pages
• Weight: 0.63 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.5" x 7.7"
• Age Range: 9 to 14 years
• Grade Range: Grades 4 to 9

Customer Reviews

Great Book

I love this book series (I am a 15-year-old girl). I liked this book because it shows the dramatic time of the Civil War written by 16-year-old Amelia Martin who lives in a small island in Delaware and misses her family dearly. Amelia works at a Lighthouse every day.

A compelling look at the Civil War through a girl's eyes.

I found this book to be one of the better of the Dear America series. All of them are well written, but very few manage to capture that, "this is a real person" feel. Some of the books read more like a "this is what is happening in the world" rather than a real diary. However, this book has an engaging character, and a real plot of her parent's seperation. Another interesting thing to note is the way that this book has many layers that were written that the main heroine doesn't neccessarily understand, such as the relationship of her uncle and the freed slave, or her grandmother and her mothers. I also enjoyed watching the relationship between her and a friend's brother grow from a friendship to something more. Overall, I would highly reccomend this book.

Fantastic book for all ages!

I loved this book! I have read all of the Dear America books but one, and this is one of my favorites. I liked how, the story was about the Civil War but it wasn't the main deal of discussion, I also like how they talked about the war through a different view. I learned alot about how life was on the east coast, working the lighthousesin 1861. I hope you all can get the chance to read this book.

A great Dear America book!

As the United States plunges into Civil War, fifteen-year-old Amelia, living at the lighthouse on Fenwick Island, Delaware, witnesses a more personal conflict in her family, as her parents' marriage slowly unravells because her father sides with the Union and her mother sides with the Confederacy. This was an excellant book.