Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales: Big Bad Ironclad! by Nathan Hale

Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales: Big Bad Ironclad! by Nathan Hale
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Hardcover, 128 pages
Published August 1st 2012 by Amulet Books

Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales (Book 2)

I read the first book in this series when it came out and highly enjoyed it, but three years have gone by before I got around to reading this next one! I loved this also but didn't find it near so funny. That may have been, though, that this was an entirely new subject for me. I have read many, many books about or take place during the Civil War but have never come across the navy aspect of it. Of course, I've heard of the Monitor and the Merrimac but this is my first introduction to them. This book is incredibly educational while being silly and fantastical at the same time. While Nathan Hale is the storyteller it is his sidekicks the Executioner and the British Redcoat that are the main feature of the series success. This is a wonderful introduction to all the people involved in the naval battles of the Civil War, what the military aspects of it were and how it was fought and won. The most intriguing character throughout this book is William Cushing, someone I'd love to read about again. Following the story, like the previous book, is a brief bio on all the major historical characters and a bibliography. The jokes are funny, the story is a riot and history comes alive. I'm really looking forward to the next book which is on one of my favourite frontier stories, the Donner Party!