The Scarlet Stockings Spy

 

Book: The Scarlet Stockings Spy 

Author: Trinka Hakes Noble 

Illustrator: Robert Papp 

Genre: Historical Fiction 

Awards: North Carolina Children's Book Award 

Age Group: 1-4 

Summary: 

It's fall of 1772 in Philadelphia and no one knew when the British were going to attack. Suspicions were high and spies where everywhere. Enter Maddy Rose, the spy in scarlet stockings. As she hung the wash, the clothes on the clothesline held a secret code, the same order as the real ships along the wharf. Her brother, Jonathan, would then sneak into the city after dark, read the clothesline, and relay the information to Washington's headquarters. Then one morning, battle starts.  Night after night, Maddy waited for Jonathan to come see her clothesline. Until one night, a figure appears but it's not Jonathan. Introducing himself as Seth, he breaks the news of Jonathan's death and takes up his place in reading the clothesline code. That night and many nights after, Maddy sewed an American flag from her scarlet stockings, her white petticoat, and Johnathan's blue coat. America finally gains its independence and Maddy's flag proudly hung and flew on her clothesline. 

Evaluation and Comments:

The Scarlet Stockings Spy is a inspirational story about a little girls impact during a major battle for independence. While it might not seem like much, Maddy's commitment to helping in the effort helped in winning the war and despite the death of her brother, she still continued doing what she could to help. 

Maddy's determination and commitment is one of the reasons why I would incorporate this book in my classroom. She has such a beautiful story and this book would be great in introducing or enhancing a lesson over the American Revolution. 

In terms of class activities, the class can talk about patriotism, how Maddy demonstrated it, and then have students come up with ideas of how a person can be patriotic. You can also have a class discussion in which you connect what happens to the book to real life events that happened during the war. 

In conclusion, The Scarlet Stockings Spy has my seal of approval! 🥇😄