Taking a closer look at 1860s America, Sheinkin unravels the complicated string of events that had led to The Civil War. It is a time and a war that had threatened America's very existence, revealed in the surprising true stories of the soldiers and statesmen who had battled it out. Illustrations, .

Taking a closer look at 1860s America, Sheinkin unravels the complicated string of events that had led to The Civil War. It is a time and a war that had threatened America's very existence, revealed in the surprising true stories of the soldiers and statesmen who had battled it out. Illustrations, .

New York Times bestselling author and Newbery Honor recipient Steve Sheinkin gives young readers the causes and curses that divided America into Union and Confederate nations in Two Miserable Presidents: The Amazing, Terrible, and Totally True Story of the Civil War, illustrated by Tim Robinson. A Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year

A Beacon of Freedom Award Winner Get the feeling something big is about to happen? Welcome to the Civil War--one of the scariest, saddest, and occasionally wackiest stories in American History.

1856: Northern and Southern settlers attack each other in Kansas.

1858: Congressmen start sneaking guns and knives into the Senate chamber.

1860: President James Buchanan is heard wailing, "I am the last president of the United States!" Unraveling a very complicated string of events--the small things, the personal ones, the big issues--Steve Sheinkin takes readers behind the scenes that led to The Civil War. It is a time and a war that threatened America's very existence, revealed in the surprising true stories of the soldiers and statesmen who battled it out. "Chatty and accessible, this book does double duty: it introduces Civil War history for readers who don't know much about it and supplies browsable commentary for those familiar with the big picture...Beginning with a look at the role cotton played in the history, his fast-paced narrative is broken into short, tersely titled vignettes...The horrors of slavery and battlefield slaughter are clear, as are achievements of Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, John Brown, and many more." --Booklist Also by Steve Sheinkin: Bomb: The Race to Build--and Steal--the World's Most Dangerous Weapon

The Notorious Benedict Arnold: A True Story of Adventure, Heroism & Treachery

The Port Chicago 50: Disaster, Mutiny, and the Fight for Civil Rights

Undefeated: Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team

Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War

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