Don Brown's "America Is Under Attack" provides an important resource for students in this age group.  I taught 5th grade Language Arts this past year (I am usually primarily a Library / Media teacher), and I didn't realize just how little students know about the actual events of September 11, 2011.  Of course, this should not be a surprise, since many of them were either infants or not even born yet.

As adults we often have a personal link to historic events we have lived through.  I will remember watching events unfold on my library computer, watching the news sites in New York and Washington, and worrying about my husband who was out of town on a business trip.  But our students don't have those connections.  They need someone who can make those events real and personal, who can help them to understand the shock and the fear that these incidents caused in all of us who lived through them.

This book does just that in a strong and powerful fashion.  I was both moved and informed by Brown's careful delineation of the events -- in "real" time.  It helped me, and I believe it would help students, envision just what was happening when.  It works to engage readers while at the same time teaching them about how this tragedy unfolded.


Cross-posted at Camp Read-A-Lot