All Their Names Were Courage

by Sharon Phillips Denslow

Black Bess.
Kangaroo.
Burns.
Traveller.
All the horses of the Civil War.
And Belle,
the Burd family's mare.

Sallie Burd loves horses. She wants to know everything about them. What she's going to find out is that all their names are Courage.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Civil War

144 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2003

Reviews

[Alyssa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice tribute, and an interesting point of view and format. I would have preferred more action throughout the story, although I understand its written from the point of view of a girl staying at home during the war.

[Inhabiting Books]

An historical novel, set during the Civil War, told in the form of letters over the course of three years, as eleven year old Sally Burd corresponds with her brother William, a Union soldier away at war. Sally writes to her brother that she and her friend Isaac have decided to write a book about the horses of Generals fighting in the war, illustrated by Isaac. She writes a letter of introduction and sends copies off to 19 generals, on both sides of the war. Here is an excerpt of that letter:

"Dear Sir,
My friend Isaac Mills and myself, Sarah McAlister Burd, both eleven and one half years, of Brewers Mill, Kentucky, are writing to generals with regard to your fine horses. We mean to make a book of horses with pictures drawn by Isaac and letters from generals, such as yourself, telling us some about your favorite horse. We feel that the courageous warhorses and their stories and daring should not be lost."

When I saw this book on the library shelf, the title intrigued me. Then when I realized it was an epistolary book, I had to check it out: I'm a sucker for books in the form of letters or journals. As I started to read, I quickly got hooked by the story. I appreciated that the focus of the book isn't on taking sides in the war; rather, it's about the life of a family, seen through the eyes of a young girl, when a son and brother are away at war; it's about the relationship between brother and sister, and their joint interest in the project that Sally and Isaac have undertaken. And even though I am not a horse person, I was intrigued by the project they undertook. I have never really considered before just how important horses were in the Civil War. I now have a better understanding and appreciation for those gallant warhorses and that all their names were, indeed, Courage.

[Lisa Overberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sally and her friend Isaac (both eleven and one half years old!) take on the task of corresponding with the generals of the civil war in order to write a book about the experience of their war horses. It is written in the form of letters and journals, so would be a good book to teach this genre and style form. It does not take sides with the war but simply conveys one family's experience and the desire to record the courage of the horses who fought in the war.

Interest Level
Grades 3 - 5
Grade level Equivalent: 6.5
Lexile Measure®: 930L
DRA: Not Available
Guided Reading: X

[Louise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good Children's book for the Civil War era

[Paula · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick read, civil war horses, written in the forms of letters written brother and sister during civil war, Kentucky

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

He choice it from the cover, I think. :)