Fever 1793
Laurie Halse Anderson
Mattie, the protagonist in this story, is a 14 year old girl, living above a coffee house in Philadelphia in 1793 . She lives with her Grandfather, mother, 2 pets and Eliza, a free slave. Mattie always daydreams. She always gets into arguments with her mother, Lucille. Mattie thinks her mom is not running the shop right and that one day, she'll take over and expand the business. Mattie also dreams about traveling. However, Philadelphia is beginning to fall apart. There is a mysterious sickness that is spreading. Next thing you know, Mattie's mother comes down with yellow fever. People are abandoning the city and it becomes a ghost town. Her mother admittedly says that Mattie should leave the city before she gets the fever. So Mattie and her grandfather set off for a safe journey. They get stopped by two gurads. They thought that Mattie and her grandfather have the fever.The people they are with won't even help them, so they leave them stuck in the city. Mattie trys to take care of her grandfather who is not feeling well. She does not think he has the fever. Mattie woke up in a hospital. She did not remember feeling dizzy and passing out. Eventually, Mattie overcame the fever and she and her grandfather return to Philadelpha. They find the coffee house torn apart. Thieves took all of the food and wrecked it. Mattie trys to find as much food as she can for her grandfather and herself. Her grandfather is still not feeling well and it is up to Mattie to take care of both of them. One night, robbers come into the coffe house from an open widow and attack Mattie. Her grandfather trys to help and gets injured and dies. Mattie is completly alone now. Instead of crying and feeling sorry for herself, Mattie tries to move on. She walks around the city and finds an orphan Nell, who lost her mother. They meet Eliza who takes them to her brother's (Joseph) house. Sadly, Nell and Joseph's twin sons get the yellow fever. Eliza takes them back to the coffee shop to care for them. With Mattie's help, the children survive. Soon, people start coming back into Philadelphia, including the Presindent, George Washingtion. Mattie's mother also comes back into town. She survived but is very weak. Mattie starts a new relationship with her mother and the fever is gone. Mattie has turned into a brave and helpful person.
I highly recommend the book . I loved how Mattie was so brave when her grandfather died and she never gave up. She walked around the city by herself day and night . She shockinly survived the fever.