The Not So Boring Letters of Private Nobody

by Matthew Landis

A trio of seventh graders become one another's first friends as they discover the secrets of a Civil War soldier in this middle grade novel for fans of Gordon Korman and Gary Schmidt

Twelve-year-old Oliver Prichard is obsessed with the Civil War. He knows everything about it: the battles, the generals, every movement of the Union and Confederate Armies. So when the last assignment of seventh-grade history is a project on the Civil War, Oliver is over the moon--until he's partnered with Ella Berry, the slacker girl with the messy hair who does nothing but stare out the window. And when Oliver finds out they have to research a random soldier named Private Raymond Stone who didn't even fight in any battles before dying of some boring disease, Oliver knows he's doomed.

But Ella turns out to be very different from what Oliver expected. As the partners film their documentary about Private Stone--with Oliver's friend Kevin signing on as their head writing consultant--Oliver discovers that sometimes the most interesting things are hiding in uninteresting places. Even Private Stone is better than expected: There's a mystery buried in his past, and Oliver knows he can figure it out.

Genres: Middle Grade, Historical Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Fiction, Friendship, Civil War, Contemporary

250 pages, Hardcover

First published March 27, 2018

About the author

Matthew Landis teaches middle school history outside Philadelphia, where he seeks to slay boredom wherever it lurks in his classroom. He is the author of five novels, including the forthcoming NATIONAL ARCHIVE HUNTERS series for 8–12-year-olds. He won Mississippi's 2020 Magnolia Book Award and the ILA 2019 Teacher’s Choices Reading List Award. A three-time Junior Library Guild recipient, Matthew's MG novel, IT'S THE END OF THE WORLD AS I KNOW IT, was shortlisted for the Virginia Reader’s Award, the Missouri Truman Reading Award, Oklahoma's Sequoyah Book Award, and the South Dakota Teen Choice Award. He has one epic wife, four kids, thirty-five chickens, three barn cats, and love tacos. He hasn't slept good since 2015.

Reviews

[Ms. B · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75 stars, when is a friend more than a friend? Told from a boy's point of view, middle schoolers Oliver and Ella explore the fine line between the two when they are paired together for a class project on the Civil War.
Those with an interest in the Civil War, middle school stories about friendship and being seen, or fans of John David Anderson's Posted or Ms. Bixby's Last Day will want to give this one a try.

[Tucker Almengor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Arrgh!!! I was so stuck on the rating for this. I really wanted to rate it five stars, maybe even put on my favorite list, but there was one thing I didn't like.
Romance.
Don't get me wrong. I don't hate romance but these kids are in middle school. It isn't the time to be thinking about being "more than friends."
If it weren't for the romance, I would have loved this.
Oh well.

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[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actual rating: 3.75

Oliver is a 12-year-old Civil War buff. When he is assigned a social studies project about the Civil War he is excited. Finally, his moment to shine! That is until he is paired with Ella, a girl he sees as weird and lazy - she's failing 7th grade after all. Not only is he stuck with her as a partner, but they also have to base their project around a soldier that Oliver's never even heard of.

Over the course of the story, Oliver learns there was more to the war than the glory of battle, first impressions aren't always what they seem, and that having a partner isn't such a bad thing after all.

My only real negative about this book is that the romance side-plot. It was just really unnecessary. Yes, 7th graders think about such things, sure, but in this case, I felt like it bordered on overtaking the plot. The overall story was really entertaining, the banter with Kevin and their teacher Mr. Carrow was great, and I really appreciated the character growth of both Oliver and Ella.

[معصومه توکلی · Rating 3 out of 5]

عنوان ترجمهٔ فارسی: نامه‌های معمولی سربازی که هیچ‌کس او را نمی‌شناخت
امتیاز: ۳.۵ ستاره

احتمالاً خلاصهٔ کتاب را می‌توانید در یادداشت‌های دیگر خوانندگان پیدا کنید. پس بگذارید این ناکامی عمیقم را با شما در میان بگذارم: حسرت دیدن کتاب‌های فارسی از نویسندگان ایرانی که برهه‌ای مهم از تاریخ کشورمان را تنیده در تاروپود یک داستان واقعی به نوجوانان معرفی و اهمیت آن را به هر خواننده‌ای گوشزد کنند. (یک بار دیگر به احترام دروازهٔ مردگان و دیگر آثار تاریخی جناب شاه‌آبادی می‌ایستم و زحمات ایشان را در به تصویر کشیدن تاریخ نادیده نمی‌گیرم که از نوادر هستند)
فکر می‌کنم کمتر کسی یافت شود که این کتاب را بخواند و در دلش احترام به خود «تاریخ» برانگیخته نشود. احترام به انسان‌های کوچک و بزرگی که پیش از ما زیسته‌اند، تلخی‌ها چشیده‌اند و دشواری‌ها از سر گذرانده‌اند و جز در موارد معدود نامی از ایشان باقی نمانده است. نام آدم‌های مشهور، مهم و تأثیرگذار لااقل در کنج موزه‌ها، صفحات کتاب‌ها و تابلوی بزرگراه‌ها می‌درخشد اما «دختران قوچانی»، «بسیجیان داوطلب شهرضا» و خُرد و کلانِ آدم‌هایی که در این تنگنا و آن معرکهٔ تاریخ حاضر بوده‌اند یا قربانی شده‌اند، «نام» ندارند. (باز یاد می‌کنم از آن چند صفحه «نام» دختران فروخته شده که حمیدرضا شاه‌آبادی در «لالایی برای دختر مرده» آورده و می‌دانم که دلش می‌خواسته صفحه‌ها و صفحه‌ها ادامه‌‌اش دهد.)
به امید روزی که تاریخمان را در داستان‌هایمان ملاقات کنیم و در پیچ‌وخم قصه در چشم‌های گذشته‌ خیره بنگریم که برای گذار به آینده، جز این چاره‌ای نداریم.

[nobody · Rating 3 out of 5]

با توجه به خلاصه کتاب و حتی اسمش، انتظارات بیشتری داشتم ازش، ولی خیلی معمولی بود. کاش از زندگی سربازی که داشتن روش تحقیق می کردن بیشتر می گفت.

[Wendy MacKnight · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a charming, funny, smart middle grade novel. I adored this book from the beginning to end and guarantee that the kids who read this will not only learn something, they will fall in love with all the characters!

[J & J · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good book for history lovers!

[Madelyn (Maddie) (GFB) · Rating 5 out of 5]

it was a pretty good book! Oliver is rlly funny "Girls, who knows these things''

[Carolyn Menke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oliver Prichard is not your typical seventh grader. He spends his weekends dressing up in Civil War clothes to reenact battles, and he does it with gusto. I love that about him. When this history buff is paired with Ella Berry, the girl who's failing school and doesn't seem to care, in order to research an unknown soldier for a school project, he thinks he's doomed. Nobody gets the war like he does, nor do they appreciate a good war hero. Oliver wonders why the soldier matters since he died before ever stepping foot onto the battleground. He's about to find out. That, and maybe a thing or two about what he calls his emotional scorecard. As he and Ella delve into primary resources at the local historical society and road trip to Gettysburg to solve a mystery buried for more than a hundred years, the duo join forces with Kevin Kim, a self-proclaimed Writing Consultant, to make a documentary that quite frankly, I wish I could watch right now.

I raced through the pages. I laughed out loud. My heart hurt for Oliver. I paused, often, to take in the sheer brilliance of Matt Landis-in the way he brings these endearing characters alive, and especially how he portrays an authentic middle school experience with all its trappings. Possibly my favorite aspect of his writing is how he portrays the kids, the teachers, and the parents as perfectly imperfect. Oh, and my heart almost melted when Oliver explained that he picked a song he did because it's the "grandest song I know. And I needed something grand." Indeed. A+++ for Oliver, Ella, and Kevin.

[Kathi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book.

I loved that it was about studying the Civil War with a dynamic teacher, about three seventh graders who accomplished a cool project, and who became really good friends while doing it.

I loved that Oliver, the main character, was a Civil War reenactor. I loved the fact that the writing of this book is exceptional, and also that this exceptionally-written book was written by middle school social studies teacher Matthew Landis...while he was teaching 8th grade social studies, as well as being a husband and dad to two children!

[Mande · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this out loud to my 11 year old and we howled with laughter many, many times. My non-reader was so into it! It was also a timely history lesson.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Please trust me and just read this book. It’s so touching and so interesting. If there’s a tween you know who hasn’t found the right book yet to make them fall in love with reading, this is a worthy candidate for so many.

[Jean-Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book at the Scholastic Warehouse Sale last year and finally got around to reading it will my 12-year-old. Everything about it is charming, especially the characters. The protagonist's sidekick Kevin was a hoot. He totally gave off that whole Ned from Spider-man vibe. I think this is a great read for middle schoolers who enjoy a little history, a little mystery, a little young love, and a little buddy comedy. It's a fun read.

[Shawna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is absolutely perfect.

[Madison Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this one!! It's a good blend of realistic fiction, a very small amount of middle school romance, and even a bit of historical information. I get that the purpose is not historical, but I really liked that aspect of it. It added something to the book for sure.

[Shaila · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Not-So-Boring Letters of Private Nobody by Matthew Landis is a witty, funny, tender story about three middle school kids working on a Civil War history project, and it is way more interesting than that sounds! 🤣 Oliver is a huge civil war nerd, so when he gets assigned to research a local Private who died of dysentery, rather than, say Robert E. Lee, he is majorly bummed. To make it worse, his partner is a grumpy girl who fails all her classes, named Ella. Well, let’s just say that both Ella and the history they are researching hold a LOT of surprises for him!

This was an interesting way to learn about the Civil War and to re-examine how we think about history. It’s easy to focus on the battles and heroes and ignore the everyday people and events, but they were part of history too. The writing was so funny and although my almost 13 yr old thought the romance was “gross”, I thought it added a cute element to the story. I would definitely read another book by Matthew Landis!

[Liz Friend · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story: Oliver is pretty sure he knows more about the Civil War than any social studies teacher at his school, and he wants to work solo on his history project to make it perfect. But his teacher forces him to work with that kind of messed-up girl Ella, and even worse--to research a lowly private who died of diarrhea! This is NOT the Civil War project he's spent his life getting ready for. But Private Raymond Stone isn't the Nobody he expected, and Ella isn't the girl he expected, either. She might even be...girlfriend material!?!?

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG; Violence G; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse G; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G; adult themes PG (parental neglect); overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: I thought this one was really fun, but in selling it to kids, it might be better to play up the "are we/aren't we" boyfriend/girlfriend connection, rather than the fact that the story is about a research project for social studies. Cuz there are lots of kids who are never signing up for that.

[Toni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oliver loves the Civil War. So much so that he cannot help sharing facts about it with his classmates, none of whom share his passion. All of them find him annoying, to say the least. Now his social studies class is about to study the Civil War and Oliver cannot wait. What? A group project? His partner is sure to mess it up and does so immediately by picking a private's name out of the hat rather than anyone important.

Ella and Oliver investigate the life of the local private, spending time at historical societies and meeting a cast of interesting characters, most of whom are still alive.

I enjoyed reading the ARC of this book- it is about to come out. Oliver and Ella both grow through their partnership. The history teacher is pretty cool. I happen to know that the author is also a history teacher- Maybe he is as awesome as Mr. Carrow.

[Sarah Sammis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am rather split minded about this book. The protagonist comes across as toxic and rude. He's not an interestingly flawed character or a villain with a compelling backstory. He's just extremely selfish, extremely focused, and privileged enough to expect to get his way. That he doesn't get his way on this assignment is probably a rare even in his short fictional life.

But the private he and his partner are assigned is actually interesting. Both his part in the war (even with it cut short) and the methods used to learn about his life and death.

[Rose | Adventurous Bookworm · Rating 5 out of 5]

I almost died of laughter.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read for those who enjoy middle grade books involving history and mystery. There are some pretty funny laugh-out-loud moments, and some poignant moments as well. It would be a great choice for a reluctant reader, especially one who appreciates history!

Oliver, a 7th grader, is obsessed with the Civil War. So, when there is a project assigned in his history class, he’s thrilled — until he gets a partner (he’d rather work alone than have a partner screw it up) and that partner randomly chooses a “nobody” private who never even fought in a battle (of all the Civil War heroes, Oliver gets a guy who died of dysentery!).

Oliver assumes the project is doomed because it isn’t going the way he wanted it to, but he soon learns that there is more to his partner than he realized, and the same goes for “Private Nobody.”

The story is funny, sweet, and perfect for students who enjoy a bit of history and mystery wrapped up in modern middle school drama.

Characters:

First off, I teach 7th grade and can honestly say the author (who is also a teacher) nailed the characters of 7th graders. The dialogue was spot on! 7th graders are such complex people — still children and self-centered beings, and yet also hormonal, awkward, adult-wannabes — and Oliver, Ella, and Kevin demonstrate this in their own ways.

Mr. Carrow’s character is kind, witty, and everything a teacher should be. He engages his students with meaningful projects; knows his students strengths, weaknesses, and needs; and he is there to support and challenge them. My favorite part is when he comes into his classroom and demonstrates a Civil War doctor performing an amputation using a student, a saw, and wood. As he educates his class on the reasons for and steps involved in an amputation, he also demonstrates the process and students end up sick or fainting!

The Takeaway:

I love the lessons that are taught in this book, one of the most important being that people and situations are always more complicated than they appear to be. This could be seen through Ella’s character and Private Stone’s story.

The story also illustrates the benefits of taking a chance and delving into new territory. Oliver likes to work alone, and he thinks he knows the Civil War because knows battles and generals; however, being partnered with Ella and having to research the more human side of the war forces him to see the war on a micro level instead of the macro level he is used to. He resists at first, but eventually realizes and appreciates the complexity that the individual soldiers’ stories add to the war.

Final Thoughts:

Worth the read!

[Jennifer Notton · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the book, The Not So Boring Letters Of Private Nobody, by Matthew Landis, follows a story about Oliver and Ella. When Oliver gets assigned to do a Civil War project, he gets over excited and wants to make sure he gets to research the General Stonewall. He quickly, gets disappointed about his project when he finds out that he is partner with a girl who might fail 7th grade. Ella Berry, Ollie's partner, doesn’t care if she does fail or not because she just wants to prove a point to her parents. When it is Ollie’s and Ella’s turn to pick their person from the Civil war from a hat, Ella ended up picking Private Raymond Stone, which Ollie wasn’t to happy about. Ollie and Ella slowly became friends by going to the historical society to research Private Raymond Stone where they were finding out some interesting stuff about him. Ella and Ollie found out that this soldier never even was on the battlefield and that he died from diarrhea in someone's house. They slowly find out that Raymond was going to tell the nurse that was taking care of him that he liked her but, he died too soon to tell. Ollie and Ella started finding more secrets out about Raymond and that he might have taken someone's place in the war instead of enlisting in his hometown regiment.

The problem in the story is that Ollie and Ella are having trouble finding out Raymond’s importance to the war. Ollie and Ella keep finding letters that were addressed to Raymond's family after his death and they don’t understand why this will help prove the impact Raymond had a on the War. They don’t know why Raymond enlisted in the 68th regiment instead of the 108th regiment which was in his hometown he walked unnecessary miles to get to the 68th regiment, when his father didn’t even want Raymond to be in the army. Lastly, the same person kept writing to his family about the lost of Raymond and how Raymond wasn’t disappointed about joining the army even though his father didn’t want him to.

The people who would be interested in this book are middle schoolers that like mystery that is mixed in with a little history. People should get this book because it shares a story of two main characters, Ollie and Ella, and how they overcame the challenges of seeing each other differently as well as having their own viewing points on their Civil War project. The rating I would give this book is a 4 star rating. I would give this book a 4 star rating because the book to me felt like it was just dragging on and on and there wasn’t many major events throughout the whole story.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oliver LOVES the Civil War. No, really, it's his passion; he can think and talk about nothing else (he sometimes wonders why he has no friends). When his teacher assigns a project to do a biography of someone from the Civil War, Ollie is over the moon--he is so going to KILL this! But...of course there's a but, and this time it's three. First, it's a group project. Second, his teacher (who totally reminds me of some of our teachers, with his wry sense of humor) assigns him to work with class outsider Ella, who is pretty much failing her classes and doesn't seem to care. Third, they don't get to pick their subject; they draw a name out of a hat, and get Raymond Stone, a local young man who died early on of disease before ever firing a shot. Ollie is furious--who cares about the nobodies in the war when they could have been studying generals?--but he pulls himself together and starts exploring the project. To his surprise, Ella has some really good ideas and is much smarter than she appears (is there a reason she's failing when she could so obviously get As?). Also, his lunch partner (not yet a friend) Kevin, who is a writer, gets on board to write the script for their documentary. And even though Stone was a "nobody," they still find out some pretty interesting things about him...and about themselves.

I thought this was great! It's mostly about research and learning how to be a friend (Ollie is so clueless) and maybe more (and how to recognize when it's more, when you're completely clueless). Being a librarian I loved the primary source research the kids did, and their information is both plausible and interesting--everyone has a backstory, and you never know how interesting it might be. The interaction between the kids and the kids and the teacher rings true, and even though they use long words, I know kids who are very comfortable with those long words so this is not implausible. Overall, a win!

[Valerie McEnroe · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you're looking for a Civil War book that kids won't groan about reading, this is the one. You have to be ok with it being realistic fiction, since it's about modern kids researching the Civil War for a Social Studies project. In real life Matthew Landis is a Social Studies teacher who decided to write a book about his favorite topic. The Civil War. I'm sure his students must think he is the coolest teacher on the planet.

In the book, it's obvious that both the teacher, Mr. Carrow, and the student, Oliver, are based on the author. Both characters are fanatical about the Civil War, so it's not surprising that Oliver feels like he's won the lottery when Mr. Carrow assigns a research project on it. That is until 1) he gets assigned a partner who's failing school, and 2) she picks the name of an obscure soldier no one has ever heard of. Oliver is a walking encyclopedia on the Civil War, but he could care less about Private Raymond Stone. It only gets worse when he finds out that Private Stone died of dysentery at Gettysburg, before he ever stepped foot on the battlefield.

Here's what's great about the book. Landis sees the entire huge picture of the Civil War. Most people just see the battles and generals. He wants you to think about what went on between the battles. The hunger. The disease. The weather. The boredom. The amputations. In some ways, those details are the most interesting. Dying in battle is quick, but all those moments in between are agonizingly slow. In the book, he describes the teacher performing a mock amputation. I am dying to know if Landis actually does that with his class.

The other great thing about the book, is that it shows students how to do research. Oliver and Ella uncover lots of interesting things about Private Stone. The answer to one question leads to another question. It's the mystery that finally draws Oliver to Private Stone's story.

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Not So Boring Letters of Private Nobody makes the history of the Civil War come alive in the everyday lives of middle schoolers, their teachers, and their families. It is a great alternative to books classified in the historical fiction genre that use the past as their setting and are sometimes difficult for students to form a connection with. In TNSBLOPN the main characters are present-day 7th graders learning about the Civil War. Matt Landis is spot on with his description, dialogue, and actions of the three main characters, Oliver, Ella, and Kevin, and I laughed out loud several times when the pages included the teachers and their thoughts. The facts about the Civil War are interwoven into a plot that involves solving a mystery resulting from a Social Studies project assigned by an enthusiastic Social Studies teacher whose life goal is to make his students as excited and inquisitive about history as he is. You will wish you were in their class and knew the three students �� the Civil War geek, a girl trying to hide from her family and their expectations, and the Asian American boy who shatters many stereotypes by having a passion for writing. Besides enjoying this book as a reader, from my teacher lens this story is filled with teaching opportunities from story elements that include relevant themes of friendship, acceptance, and first crushes to the importance and value of exposure and interaction with primary sources in the classroom. My summer vacation will now include a visit to Gettysburg as Matt Landis ignited in me an interest in the Civil War that I was not aware I possessed. To parents and educators, imagine this book causing the same spark in your children and students, and their conclusion that learning about the past isn’t so boring after all.

[Kate Schwarz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was truly one of the best middle grade novels I've read. I'm so glad I got to share it with my youngest son, in third grade; it was purchased at a school book fair by his big brother in fourth grade and already read by his big sister (when she was in sixth grade, I think). So it has a wide appeal--it really has a bit of everything.

Oliver is a seventh grader who is thrilled to be doing a project on the Civil War, about which he's totally obsessed, but not thrilled to be paired up with Ella, a girl who doesn't seem to care about anything, especially soldiers who died long ago. They are tasked to research a pretty unknown soldier who died, we quickly find out, of dysentary. Oliver is beyond distraught at the unimportance of "Private Nobody." Still, he shares with her the fascinating aspects of the Civil War, she teaches him the importance of caring for every single person, regardless of their "official" importance.

Through the story, the reader learns a hefty amount of details about the Civil War, the importance of not judging a person by their effects on history (a nice twist on "don't judge a book by its cover"), and, as the two characters develop sweet feelings for each other, what a first crush feels like. Matthew Landis does a stellar job of making all these gigantically important points flow seamlessly together and towards a dramatic and fulfilling end. I am so glad that Ben found and bought this book and introduced it to all of us!

[LeeAnne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oliver is an expert on the Civil War and is thrilled when his teacher announces a new project on the war; Ella is about to fail 7th grade unless she gets a perfect score on this project. Ollie’s teacher pairs him with Ella, and Ollie could not be more disappointed. Through his time with Ella, and his new friend, Kevin, Oliver learns a lot more than he already knew about the Civil War, friendships, and middle school love. None of those things are what they appear to be, especially Ella. If she is so smart, why is she failing?

This is a very cute book, and I have taught several Ella’s and Oliver’s during my career. Having that connection made me enjoy this book even more. I loved the history lessons throughout this book as well, although some is fictional (of course,) the author did a lot of research to include as many facts as possible.

Favorite lines:
“Did it take me hours before and after school? Yes. I like Starbucks gift cards and cash.”
“Difficulty precedes greatness.”
“Give it a chance. You never know what interesting things you might discover in uninteresting places.”
“That’s because people are usually too busy doing stuff other people tell them is cool to see what is actually cool.”
“It’s like they’re on a mission to learn or something. I think we should get a raise.”

[Mary Louise Sanchez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oliver is excited because his 7th grade social studies class is finally going to study the Civil War--his favorite topic especially since he's a Civil War reenacter on weekends.

However, Oliver's teacher pairs him with Ella to complete a project, and their subject is Private Ston, a soldier who died of dysentery an never even fought.

Ella is unkempt and shows no interest in the topic, but she begins to work with Oliver and they even spend time at the historical society discovering fascinating details about Private Stone through letters. They enlist the help of Oliver's lunch friend to help them with a creative project and through this team work, Oliver discovers he has a crush on Ella and thinks she likes him too, but his zeal for battles and soldiers almost spoils their budding friendship.

I loved how the teacher in the story knew it was more important for Oliver and Ella to develop a friendship than to develop a project, but they ended up with a very creative project anyway and learned alot about themselves along the way.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oliver knows more about the Civil War than just about anybody - including teachers. So he was excited that his class would be doing a project on a Civil War person - but . . . He had to work with a partner - Ella Berry who seems to fail everything, and he didn't get to pick his person, she drew Private Raymond Stone, who didn't even die in battle or get to fire even one shot. ARGH! Now, they are spending their weekends combing through primary sources at the Historical Society, filming scenes for their presentation, and maybe becoming friends.

This was a great book! I love the connection between primary sources and research, the lessons about dealing with disappointment, learning to be nice, and what makes a person important were well developed and delivered. I have already recommended this book to 2 English teachers, a history teacher and several middle school boys. I think girls will like it, too. This author knows 7th graders.

Cross posted to http://kissthebook.blogspot.com CHECK IT OUT!

[Rachael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Twelve-year-old Oliver Prichard is obsessed with the Civil War. He knows everything about it: the battles, the generals, every movement of the Union and Confederate Armies. So when the last assignment of seventh-grade history is a project on the Civil War, Oliver is over the moon—until he’s partnered with Ella Berry, the slacker girl with the messy hair who does nothing but stare out the window. And when Oliver finds out they have to research a random soldier named Private Raymond Stone who didn’t even fight in any battles before dying of some boring disease, Oliver knows he’s doomed.

But Ella turns out to be very different from what Oliver expected. As the partners film their documentary about Private Stone—with Oliver’s friend Kevin signing on as their head writing consultant—Oliver discovers that sometimes the most interesting things are hiding in uninteresting places.

This was a surprisingly good read. I know a number of kids who are civil war obsessed & would readily recommend this book to them - its a good portrayal of a kid seeing beyond what he thinks he knows