Why Don't You Get a Horse, Sam Adams?

Book: Why don't you get a horse, Sam Adams? 

Author: Jean Fritz 

Illustrator: Trina Schart Hyman

Genre:  Biography 

Awards: None

Age Group: 1-4

Summary: 

In the early days of America, there was a man named Samuel Adams. He was rather poor, a known walker and talker, and absolutely hated the King of England! Samuel only traveled on foot, always talking about England, because he believed that man couldn't say much while on top of a horse. So he walked along, talking about the wrong doings of the English government. As time passed, England began imposing taxes on America, the red coats came, the Boston Tea Party occurred, and Samuel Adams was eventually called upon to act as a representative from Massachusetts. Despite being told that since he is now a traveler and should learn how to ride a horse, he still refused. In fact, all throughout most of the revolution, he refused to learn how to ride a horse. It wasn't until his cousin, John Adams, brought up the question "whoever heard of a great nation with statesmen who could not ride horseback", did Samuel Adams change his mind. He learned how to ride and once American independence was finally declared, Samuel Adams was there riding his horse.   

Evaluation and Comments:

Why Don't You Get a Horse, Sam Adams is a fascinating book about Samuel Adams that focuses on a fun fact that I don't think many people are aware of, that Samuel Adams did not know how to ride a horse for the majority of his life. Like wow, who would of thought?!

With history, we are often retold the same basic facts and it tends to get a little boring. However, this book tells of Samuels Adams importance in the Revolutionary War by basing all the information around the unknown fact that he didn't know how to ride a horse and refused to learn. Obviously, in this time period, that's quite normal. However, as stated in the book, it was the only way to travel and be effective in the war movement back then. With this rather odd tidbit, I was already intrigued by the book and I know most students will be too. 

For assignments, this book goes along great when students are learning about the American Revolution and its key events, such as the Boston Tea Party. With that, students can create a flowchart and write down the important events that occur in the book. Once you read the book, students can then also create their own biography over Samuel Adams or the other characters mentioned in the book, such as John Adams or John Hancock.  

In conclusion, Why Don't You Get a Horse Sam Adams has my seal of approval! 🥇😄