Sammy's Struggle

"Both of my boys enjoyed me reading this to them. It had enough action to keep them interested. It wasn’t over the top with fighting and gruesome details for my 1st grader to comprehend and be worried or scared over but real enough for my 5th grader to still enjoy it."

ABOUT THE BOOK

Twelve-year-old Samuel Wade’s life has never been easy, but the coming of the Civil War makes it even more difficult.  When his older brother, Jack enlists to fight for the Union, even more pressure is put on Samuel to take care of his family, his best friend Emma, and work hard at his job.  Then the war comes to his hometown of Gettysburg and he must make quick decisions that could mean life or death.  Will he be able to make sure no harm comes to Emma?  And will he finally be able to earn the respect of the townspeople who look down on him?

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SAMPLE SECTION

Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

June 24, 1863

“Samuel Wade!  Why didn’t you tell me that Jack was going to join the Union Army?”  I looked up to see Emma Culp approach me.   I tried not to roll my eyes.  Emma was my best friend, she had been since we could walk, but she had a strange infatuation with my older brother, Jack for the past year.

“I’m sorry you missed that piece of news, Emma,” I said, running a hand through my brown hair.  “But it is true.  Jack’s joining the 21st Pennsylvania Cavalry Regiment.  He enlisted yesterday and was assigned to be a bugler.  He leaves in a couple of days.”  I shifted the box of sausages from one hip to the other.  Even though I’m only twelve, I have to work to help support my family and do so by making deliveries for Mr. Pierce, a butcher in our town of Gettysburg.  Life would be so much easier if it weren't for the fact that my father is locked up in prison for stealing.  If he was still around, I wouldn’t have to work as much, not only that, but the people of Gettysburg wouldn’t look down on my family as much as they do.  People talked about my mom, sisters, and brother, and I was picked on quite often by the other boys in town.  Emma was one of my only friends, one of the only people to always stand by me.  

The War Between the States doesn’t make things easier either.  I despise the Rebels from the Southern states for a lot of reasons.  They started the war two years ago when they fired on Fort Sumter.  After that, my life, and the lives of many people was turned upside down.  Many of the men left to go and fight.  Some of the men that did so were the ones who were actually kind to me and my family.  Now my brother is leaving, and that makes me the man of the house.  I hope I can live up to the responsibility.

I started walking again, wanting to make my deliveries quickly so that I could go home and get some time to relax.  Mr. Pierce is a good employer for the most part, but he was also firm.

“My goodness.  Jack is leaving so soon.”  Emma pushed a strand of dark hair that had escaped from her braid out of her face.  “Did you hear about how close the Confederates are to us?  Yesterday’s issue of The Compiler newspaper reprinted an article from Baltimore that reported 2,000 Southern troops are occupying Chambersburg.”

Chambersburg was a town about half a day’s ride away.  That caught my attention.  Rebel soldiers, this close to Gettysburg?  I wondered if there would be a battle around here.  It would be the first one of the war in Northern territory, at least that I had heard of.  If there was a battle…it could be my chance to make a difference.  To be a hero.  I had wanted to be a soldier ever since the Rebs started the Civil War.  I wanted to be the one enlisting and joining the fight alongside Jack.  I wanted to prove to the whole town that the Wade family was more than just a poor family with a father who is locked up for being a crazy thief.

“That is pretty close to us here in Gettysburg.”  I finally replied to Emma.  

“Yes.  Mother is dreadfully worried about the Confederates being so close.  She’s afraid they’ll burn the whole farm right around us.”  Emma walked with her hands clasped behind her.  

As we reached Dr. O’Neal’s home, Emma stopped and waited for me.  After I made my delivery, she continued talking.  “That’s why I’m in town.  Mama sent me to stay with Ann and Julia.”  Ann and Julia Culp were Emma’s cousins.  Emma and her mother lived out on a farm east of town.  Her father was fighting for the Union, and she had a couple of older sisters who had married and moved away from town.  She was also quite close with some cousins.

“I don’t know why you would have to worry about that.  Wouldn’t your cousin Wesley protect your family home?”  I couldn’t contain the bitterness in my voice.     

“You know better than to say that name, Samuel Wade,” Emma exclaimed.  “You know how much I miss him.”  

Wesley Culp was notorious in the town.  A few years before the war, he had gone to Virginia to work, but when the war broke out, he decided to fight for the Confederacy.  Wesley was someone I had looked up to as a child, as he had been one of my sister Ginny’s best friends.  It had been a real blow when I heard he would be a Rebel.

“If Wesley cared one whit about your family, he would have come home and fought for the Union instead of turning traitor and fighting for the Rebs.”  I shook my head, but at the sad look on Emma’s face, I immediately regretted my tone.  

“You know how my family feels about Wesley.”  She said.  “They all hate him, but I just can’t.  I wish he would have chosen differently, but I just cannot wish him dead, like so many people in this town.”

“I know.  I’m sorry.”  I responded.  “I know Ginny misses him as well.”  I just couldn’t understand Wesley’s decision.  At least Ginny’s other good friend Jack Skelly had joined the Union army.  I still had him to look up to.  

“I must admit, I miss Wesley too,” I said.  “He was almost like an older brother to me.”

“I suppose.”  Emma shrugged.  “I just don’t want to talk about him.  It depresses me too much.”

“Well, we can just stop discussing him.”  We had finally reached the butcher shop.  “Listen, Emma, I am glad you’re staying in town.  It’s probably safer.  I need to get to work, though.  Mr. Pierce doesn’t like me socializing while I’m working.  I’ll stop by your cousin’s house to see you later.”

“All right.  I will see you then.”  Emma smiled and walked off.  I headed into the butcher shop.

“Samuel, your next delivery is ready.”  Mr. Pierce gave me an impatient look.

“Yes, sir.”  I set down my empty box and picked up a filled one.  Inside was the list that detailed who I was delivering to.  The first one was the Skelly home.  I nodded and walked toward the door.  Before I reached it, the door crashed open and Mr. Pierce’s fifteen-year-old daughter, Tillie burst in.

“Hello, Tillie-girl.”  Mr. Pierce said as I continued out the door to do my job.  Tillie never paid me any mind anyways.  Many people in town ignored me, but that was better than when people made fun of me, which is what happens when your father is crazy and locked up.  I suppose that was why I felt so betrayed when Wesley Culp joined the Confederacy.  He was one of the few people who had never made me feel bad just because of who my father was.  The fact that the Rebels had changed him so much made me dislike the Rebels and this war even more.

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