Read, My Child. Read.
Let’s be thankful for libraries, for heroes who marched, for books that share experiences and emotions and lives. John Lewis, thank you.
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Visiting with Ben
Ben kindly greeted me at the visitor’s center.
On book tour in Philadelphia (yes, I still love saying that), I got the chance to visit the Franklin Museum on the site where Ben Franklin’s former home and print shop stood. Fantastic museum, so well done! Since he is a major player in The Eureka Key, I feel a bond with him. Once you write about a person, it does sort of turn them into your best friend.
Franklin used this contraption to store electricity. It’s kind of like a colonial-era battery. He was fascinated by electricity and tinkered with it constantly. The kite and the key are his most famous experiment, but not the only one.
The “ghost houses” outline the space where Franklin’s home and his son-in-law’s print shop once stood. Evocative and strangely beautiful
The glass harmonium itself–invented by Franklin, it plays a key part in a pivotal scene of the novel.
Isn’t it amazing what archaeology can, er, dig up?
A Stroll in Philadelphia
The Eureka Key
Amazing to be staying in the heart of Philadelphia’s historic district. I took a little walk to stretch my legs after the plane ride, and wound up visiting Ben Franklin’s home, walking past the oldest post office in the U.S. (supervised by B. Franklin, postmaster), getting a glimpse of Mr. Franklin’s grave, and taking a quick peek at the liberty bell. My goodness! And all so relevant to The Eureka Key, in which my three young heroes have to track down the key that Franklin flew from his kite, or dire consequences will ensue.
Read MoreHistory Lessons
Thomas Jefferson: President and Philosopher by Jon Meacham, adapted for young readers by Sarah L. Thomson
Exciting to receive in the mail recently an advance reader’s copy of Thomas Jefferson: President and Philosopher. I got to adapt this young reader’s version of Jon Meacham’s amazing bio of Thomas Jefferson, and it will be out in September.
Lovely to see all the art in place–portraits of all the major figures, political cartoons from the day, photos from Monticello. It’s going to be a gorgeous book as well as instructive.
Writing and adapting books is how I get my history, these days, and it’s as good a method as any, although a little haphazard at times. (I know a lot about the Elizabethan theater, for example, but only up till 1593, when my book The Secret of the Rose was set. At the moment I’m busy getting a grasp on feudal Japan.) One of the great results of adapting Meacham’s work is that I have a new understanding not just of Thomas Jefferson, but of the American Revolution as a whole, and the way our history fits into the struggle between France and England for dominance of the New World.
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Sarah L. Thomson
A children’s book author publishing award-winning nonfiction, poetry, picture books and novels including…
“Readers will treasure the blossoming friendship between opposites in this whimsically illustrated tale. Short chapters and plenty of action make for an accessible and appealing reading experience. . . . Touching and inspiring.”
—Kirkus Reviews