Iron Thunder

I Witness

by Avi,, Tk, (Illustrator)

When his father is killed fighting for the Union in the War Between the States, thirteen-year-old Tom Carroll must take a job to help support his family. He manages to find work at a bustling ironworks in his hometown of Brooklyn, New York, where dozens of men are frantically pounding together the strangest ship Tom has ever seen. A ship made of iron .

Tom becomes assistant to the ship’s inventor, a gruff, boastful man named Captain John Ericsson. He soon learns that the Union army has very important plans for this iron ship called the Monitor . It is supposed to fight the Confederate “sea monster”--another ironclad--the Merrimac . But Ericsson is practically the only person who believes the Monitor will float. Everyone else calls it “Ericsson’s Folly” or “the iron coffin.”

Meanwhile, Tom’s position as Ericsson’s assistant has made him a target of Confederate spies, who offer him money for information about the ship. Tom finds himself caught between two certain an encounter with murderous spies and a battle at sea in an iron coffin …

Genres: Historical Fiction, Civil War, Fiction, Historical, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Childrens

208 pages, Paperback

First published September 18, 2007

Reviews

[Natalie Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, here is the randomness of my review on this book. Enjoy.

I had to laugh at the Southern spy because I can't believe he was that stupid and yet still alive. Although the police must have been very stupid not to catch him either. It was also stupid for Tom to blurt out important military information right in front of the spy. Like, seriously, he shouldn't have told anyone that. Not even the police. But I guess nobody made as big of a deal about blurting out military secrets during the Civil War as they did during WWII...??

Overall, not a bad book. Tom was kinda grumpy at the beginning, and I was not really looking forward to a whole book of grumpiness. But his attitude changed and so did the tone of the book. So good for Tom. Don't be a grump like Tom. Also don't be stupid like the spy. LOL (Seriously, I can't even... The stupidity of that spy has me in hysterics.)

3 stars, because it was good but not awesome.

[Debbie Gerner · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Avi and he hasn't failed me yet. He has a great ability to weave real people and events into a mostly believable historical fiction page turner. The fictional backdrop was a little thin, but learning more about the actual Civil War naval battle was the cherry on top of this kiddie lit book for me.

[Nick Nourse]

Author: Avi Iron Thunder
By Nick Nourse

This book takes place in the mid – late 1800’s during the Civil War. On a naval ship called the Monitor. This book is based on eye witness accounts and there really was a Tom Carroll on the monitor.

The two main characters in this book are Tom Carroll & Captain Ericsson.
Tom is young boy (13) whose father recently died for his country during the civil war. Tom is now forced to support his family (mom & sister) by getting a job in the navy. He starts as a messenger and works his way up to a crew member. The man in charge is a man named Captain Ericsson. Captain Ericsson is an older man with an idea of a war ship made of iron. Everyone thinks that he is crazy but they work & listen to him anyway because they need the money. But on the day of the Monitor’s departure the men struck the blocks and……. Stuff happened.


PLOT: As the monitor sails away into the deep, Dark Ocean the crew discovers ships and lots of them. Their own actually, but they’re burning and sinking. But they find ANOTHER ship, another iron ship…

QUOTE: “If you told me that I was going to be part of the most amazing adventure of the whole war, I would’ve called you a liar-flat out. Except it was no lie-I was there-I saw it all.”

[Daniel Nelms · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read along with my 6th grade class for a civil war historical fiction. Good.

[Makayla Roy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exiting events throughout the hole book amazing plot exiting, had me on the edge of my seat

[Mariah Zielke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great histoical fiction book!

[Ryan Pomerenke · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Iron Thunder” is about a thirteen year old boy named Thomas Carroll who unexpectedly joined the navy during the Civil War to fight on the Union ironclad, the Monitor. Tom’s father died only ten months into the war. Because of this, Tom needed to find a job to support his mother and sister. He lands a job working to construct the USS Monitor, and soon befriends the ship’s designer, John Ericsson. Tom eventually joins the crew and sets off for Hampton Roads, Virginia, where the Monitor was supposed to stop the Confederate ironclad, the Merrimack, from destroying the union blockade. This story shows the struggles and successes Tom and the ship faced on their way to Virginia and during the battle with the Merrimack.

Thomas Carroll is the main character. He mainly interacts with the ship’s Captain, John Worden. The ship’s designer, John Ericsson, also plays a prominent role in the book. The author, Avi, uses mainly direct characterization.

“Iron Thunder” takes place in the early months of 1862. The beginning of the book is set in Brooklyn, New York. After the Monitor is constructed, Tom and the crew battle the Merrimack in Virginia.

There were two main themes in this book: determination and courage. Initially, Tom’s goal was to earn money to support his family. Because he was desperate for money, Tom ended up joining the Navy and serving on the USS Monitor. . Although he was only a young boy, Tom was brave enough to go to war and fight on a ship that most people thought was going to be a failure.

I enjoyed reading “Iron Thunder”. The book is a quick and easy read that kept me fascinated. I would recommend this book to anybody of any age that is interested in the Civil War.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Today’s generation rarely has their first job at age 13. But during the American Civil War all hands were needed. When Tom’s father dies fighting for his county, Tom must go to work to help support the family. He will get a ring side seat in history as he helps build, launch, and fight on the Monitor. The Monitor was one of the first two ironclads in american history. Its opponent was the Merrimac, who was larger, longer, and deeper. This story follows Tom as he becomes a helpmate to the designer of the ship. But spies bound, and Tom needs to feed his family. Avi is always about his best when he puts a younger reader in the middle of history. He writes with authority, but also heart as you go through the trials and tribulations. You feel the difficulty of life. The motor shells wiz by your head, and the engine smoke makes you cough. Only a great author can put you in the middle of history, and Avi deserves his place at this table.

[Virginia Henderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's taken me entirely too long to finally getting around to finish this. I've had to restart this at least three times and I believe this has dampened my enjoyment of the book as a whole. Don't get me wrong, this was interesting and it was neat learning something new about the Civil War. But I've been pushing myself to pick it up as much as I could and that's never a good idea. This has nothing to do with the story itself.

Overall, I'm giving it a solid 3. Tom's narrative was simple and easy to follow. The pictures were a nice addition and I genuinely learned something so that's always a cool takeaway. If you enjoy Civil War historical fiction you'll probably enjoy this.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy to read historical fiction about a boy that works on the Monitor.

[Lgordo · Rating 4 out of 5]

As usual, AVI sets the standard for great books. Not just kid lit -- I genuinely enjoyed this book. Within about 10 pages the protagonist is enmeshed in multiple conflicts pulling him in all different directions, and it's beautiful. The most efficient exposition I've read in a long time.

There is a bit of a lull in middle. In terms of the narrative, most conflicts are resolved when he sails away on the Monitor. There's also a fair amount of waiting around in the history; I'm sure it's abridged for this book but it was still a lull. The narrator fills it by giving stats on the boat, which might interest a young boy more than it did me. Having just finished Big Bad Ironsides by Nathan Hale, I am naturally an expert on the Merrimac and Monitor, and I can confirm that both authors agreed on many details.

Things pick up with the battle and it was well executed. After the battle the ending is abrupt. I was like, wait, I know this was a book about the battle between the Merrimac and the Monitor but... this is it? And yet, I'm glad he did it that way. No draggy ending for its own sake.

[Nolan Kiley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Preview: I wanted to read this book because I felt like learning about the civil war would be interesting. I like books that involve action, and obviously a book about a war will involve action. Also the cover of the book is a kid, like me, so I knew I could most likely relate in many ways.

Predict: I predicted in this book that the end was going to be a standoff,I also predicted that they would come up short in the first battle. One other thing I predicted that Tom was going to have a tough time getting over his fathers loss.

Visualizing: what Tom went threw or had to do is crazy, I can't imagine me having to take a job to support my family. Than having to be stuck between two bad things, encounter with murderous spies, and a battle at sea in iron coffin. To me that is crazy for a 13 year old.

Making inferences: On this book I thought Tom was going to give up. I did not think a 13 year old had it in him to do this. If I tried to get a job to support my family I would be miserable, after that encounter two very dangerous things!?

Connect: I can connect with Tom because I have gone through some hard times to. But just like he did, I managed to fight through it and get over it. Tom was very brave also as you can see, and I think I am pretty brave myself.

[LindaJ^ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this grade school level book to determine if it would be an appropriate gift for a young boy. I think it does and hopefully so will his parents. It tells the story of a 13-year old boy named Tom whose father, a soldier in the Union Army, was killed early in the Civil War. Tom, his mother, and his sister Dolly live in Brooklyn. Tom's mother tells him he needs to get a job as she and Dolly aren't making enough to cover expenses. This means Tom has to quit school. He gets a job as the assistant to the man who is building an iron-sided ship. The book tells the story of how the Monitor was built and its battle with the Merrimac. It also brings up a number of interesting side stories, such as the illness of Tom's sister (consumption) and Southern spies around the naval yards. And, of course, there is child labor. I think it would be a good book for a family read.

[Carol Bakker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Distractions while listening might have unfairly given this 3 stars instead of 4. I've always found Avi's books very enjoyable. The one piece that stretched belief beyond the beyonds was the Captain of the USS Monitor confiding in a young boy.

I did enjoy learning more about the Civil War Ironclad ship. A little web surfing made me realize how recently the recovery of the sunken ship has taken place. The technology of the turret was interesting.

And, one of my literary fascinations is when I read about something past either in the same place or at the same time as the setting of the book. I realized that on this day (December 31, 2018) 156 years ago (1862) the USS Monitor took her final voyage and was wrecked in a fierce storm off the coast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. She was not even one year old.

[KerryT · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a 2025 re-read for me. I needed to do a quick review for a young homeschool mom who wanted to make sure it was an appropriate read ( or in this case an audio). I was happy to say that I thought her boys would like it. The author is very descriptive and sometimes I skimmed over those parts. For those who want to know, there is mention of the death of the boys father on the first page and then again a couple pages after that he had been killed. Just a mention and no details are given. It was war, after all. The only bad word was mild using “Lordy”. I thought it was fine.

[Nancy (Colorado) · Rating 5 out of 5]

A third grade teacher read. Based on the Monitor and the Merrimac. More appropriate for 5th graders than 3rd but very well written. Told through the eyes of Tom a 13 year old boy who worked on the Monitor.

[17jace17 · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is really good it is about an iron clad in the civil war named the monotar and it is in a real civil war battle.

[Art · Rating 4 out of 5]

AVI always delivers for me when he writes on a particular subject.
Good Read.

[Mia Durham · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked how this book proved even if your little you can always solve a problem.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

pretty cool. I like these genres of books :)

[Kris Dickens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listened to the audiobook with my 4 kids on vacation. It managed to keep the interest of my husband down to my 9 year old son. We call that a win in our house.

[Hlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

My review is on “Iron Thunder” by Avi. This book is historical fiction, I know this because all though the event really happened, the main character, Tom Carroll, is not real and therefore is fictional. In Brooklyn, in the 19th century, a 13 year old named Tom Carroll is the son of a dead Union soldier in the civil war. His sister is very sick and his mom only makes 50 cents a week.
Desperate for money, he joins the iron works to help with an important and dangerous mission. He joins up and quickly finds out he is working for the union, he is given many opportunities to earn lots of money to give up secrets to confederate spies, and despite his need to help his sister, turns down the many offers out of loyalty to his country.
A Swedish captain named John Ericsson is putting lots of time into his project, the “Monitor” so it will be as technologically advanced as possible so it has the best chance of defeating the legendary Merrimac. The theme
of this story is bravery because he goes into this project blindly because of his dedication to his family. As a 13 year old boy, he is very out of place in naval warfare as mentioned several times by his crew mates. He has no prior training, and is tossed into the battlefield, ready to fight for his family and his father’s legacy. Everyone of Tom’s actions serves his duty to save his sister from sickness and it his main drive to fight. He faces a dilemma, he must choose his life or his sisters, or his family or his beliefs and obligation to protect his country. Tom faces the confederates and their plans to exploit his desperate need for money. This shows that the conflict is Man vs Society, because of his fight against the confederates. He then fights them with his crew on the “Monitor” against their ship, which is terrifying, as it is the first entirely iron ship followed by the Monitor.
This book was any 6/10 because while I liked where the story was going, the author failed to relay Tom’s emotions and he was kind of a blank character. The book is not action packed at all and it is more about how life was as a young person in the civil war. I gave it a 6/10 because it did not make up for its extreme lack of action and it was very bland toward the middle with
mediocre characters. I personally prefer action above all since it’s what best keeps my attention, and it didn’t even compensate for its lack of action, so it failed to meet my expectations. I don’t think it was gripping at all, and I don’t recommend you go out of your way to read it.If you had to read it, I would recommend it to kids around the age of 12. It is a rather easy read and think you would have to be interested in the 19th century and the Civil War to fully appreciate the content. It’s almost like watching a documentary, because I personally didn’t care that much about the characters and the outcome of the events.

[Valerie McEnroe · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book really had my attention until about half way, when story gave way to technical details.

Tom Carroll is a young lad who goes to work for Captain Ericsson, designer of the Union ship the Monitor. Almost immediately, a Confederate spy is on him, offering up money and steak dinners in exchange for any information about the Union ironclad. Though tempted, Tom remains loyal to Ericsson and his bizarre new ship.

As the Confederate's own ironclad ship, the Merrimac, nears completion, the U.S. Navy urges Ericsson to get his ship to Virginia pronto. Most people have little faith in the small, iron boat with a deck that barely clears the water, but Tom decides to remain on board and forge into battle. While en route, the ship narrowly escapes ruin and arrives at Hampton Roads to find the Merrimac has already wreaked havoc on Union ships. The ironclads engage one another, but the contest ends in a stalemate. The leaking Merrimac returns to port and the Union blockade holds.

I still recommend this book as one of the better Civil War novels for kids. Tom's responsibility to provide money for his family after his father dies in battle makes for a compelling story. Unfortunately, I lost Tom's character when the boat set out for Virginia. I appreciated learning about the Monitor's design and shortcomings, but wanted more of the human story as Tom and the men lived aboard the boat.

I've been to the Maritime Museum in Virginia and I encourage anyone planning a visit to read this book first.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been considering this one for a 4th-6th grade book club. It's historical fiction but will appeal to more to nonfiction readers as it has lots of details, dates, and names from history. There is not a lot of story built around the main character Tom. There *are* lots of pictures and diagrams, and a glossary, which are all helpful as some of the naval terminology will be unfamiliar to younger readers. It's interesting but not riveting, and will definitely appeal to young readers who love learning about true events. I listened to the first half of this on audio but didn't enjoy it, so I read the rest in print. There is a lot of back and forth dialogue that is hard to keep track of on the audio, because the voices weren't very unique to each character.
There is no language or romance. A scary guy threatens Tom a bit, but no graphic violence at all. Very safe for young readers. The publisher lists it for ages 8-12.

[Gerig Wittner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Iron Thunder takes place in the year of 1862 during the Civil War. Most of the book takes place in Brooklyn, New York. After the Monitor was finished they sailed to Virginia for battle.

Thomas Carroll is the main character. Tom is a 13 year old boy who was brought into the Navy to earn money for his family after his father dies in battle. John Worden is the captain of the ship and becomes Toms friend.

One main theme in this book is trust. The captain had to trust the crew and the whole crew had to trust the ship. Also the Navy had to trust the designer John Ericsson to make a iron clad ship that floats and dos not sink.

I enjoyed this book because it shared information about a crazy cool ship that I had never herd of before. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the Civil War.

[Kristin Smeltzer · Rating 5 out of 5]

My husband was diagnosed with early onset Parkinson's disease at 67. His symptoms were shuffling of feet, slurred speech, low volume speech, degradation of handwriting, horrible driving skills, and his right arm is held at 45 degree angle. He was placed on Sinemet for 7 months and then Sifrol and rotigotine were introduced which replaced the Sinemet but he had to stop due to side effects. We tried every shot available but nothing was working. There has been little if any progress in finding a reliable treatment, I quit my meds due to side effects. Our care provider introduced us to Kycuyu Health Clinic Parkinson’s herbal treatment. The treatment is a miracle. My husband has recovered significantly! Visit kycuyuhealthclinic. co m

[Pat Salvatini · Rating 5 out of 5]

The year is 1862 and thirteen-year-old Tom Carroll goes to work at the local ironworks plant. Tom becomes assistant to a shipbuilder, Captain John Ericsson, who is building a revolutionary ironclad ship that will win the war for the North. Tom must cope with a wide range of emotions from fear, uncertainty, and pride as the ship takes shape and Tom volunteers as her first crew member. Avi captures the historical importance of the period and the great battle between ships. Although it is a fictionalized account, the many maps, illustrations, and photos lend a quality of non-fiction to the story leaving the reader wanting to know more.

[Jordan Sigler · Rating 4 out of 5]

A young boy name Tom goes to work to support his family bustling ironworks after his father died fighting for the Union in the Civil War. Tom is working with dozens of men on a strange ship…a ship made out of iron. These ships were going to be used for the war. When Tom is promoted to assistant.. this make him a huge target for the confederates. I personally really enjoyed this book. Not only is it a history lesson but grabs and keeps your attention through the whole story. It is suspenseful and action packed! Third graders will absolutely love this book!

[Autumn Parkinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cabin boy details the building of and then sea battle of the USS Monitor, the Union Army's first ironclad ship.

We started this book back in September when we were studying the Civil War in history, but got distracted with other audiobooks. Avi's books have been hit or miss for us and this started rather slowly, but the protagonist was compelling and by the end of the book we were really invested in his story. We really enjoyed photos and YouTube videos about the Monitor and Merrimac both before and after listening to this book.

3hr 11min audiobook

[Patrick Frommer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tom is a teenager in the civil war that needs to get a job because his father died and he must help his family make a living.He got a job to build a war ship called the Moniter.He later found out there were spies working with them and they were in the civil war.He then was forced to fight in war and had to fight other ships trying to survive and win.I rate this book an 8/10 because it is full of action and crazy moments.I would recomend this book to people that like fighting and action stories.