The Poison Place Download Free (EPUB, PDF)
It's a dark night in 1827 when Moses Williams, Charles Willson Peale's former slave, reveals to this daughter this startling account of jealousy, betrayal, and suspicion to be found with the walls of the famous Peale Museum. In a fascinating psychological profile and study of urban slave life in post-Revolutionary Philadelphia, Moses tells a remarkable story indeed.
Age Range: 12 and up
Lexile Measure: 830L (What's this?)
Hardcover: 160 pages
Publisher: Atheneum; 1st edition (October 1, 1997)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0689811462
ISBN-13: 978-0689811463
Product Dimensions: 5.8 x 0.8 x 8.6 inches
Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces
Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #1,857,074 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #94 in Books > Teens > Historical Fiction > Biographical > United States #537 in Books > Children's Books > Biographies > United States #1516 in Books > Teens > Historical Fiction > United States
This is one of those books that completely has a hold on you while you read it. The best thing about it? You're excitedly reading historical fiction and gleaning many facts about the artist Charles Peale, the Civil War, slave life, etc. The story is being told right to you, as recalled by the main character, Moses Williams. The chapters are set up in a tour-like layout of Peale's Museum. Moses leads you from one room to the next, continuing to tell you about his life as you step in and look at your new surroundings. He verbally guides you personally, making this a very imaginative book. For example: "These stairs are tricky, like everything else round this place. The wood's been scalloped by thousands of boots and slippers."Permeating every part of the story, there is the foreboding Poison (arsenic), and the creeping presence of Charles Peale---a great artist and taxidermist in his day, although out of his mind, as the story progresses. I rather enjoyed learning about arsenic, about preserving dead animals, about life as an artist, about using a physiognotrace, and so much more. The author has done a wonderful job of piecing everything together into a riveting novel. There is an eerie and mysterious appeal to the book, which keeps you wondering what will take place next.Notes: I do not remember any profanities used whatsoever---but every once in a while, just for a brief moment, a certain word or phrase seemed to be insinuating something offensive. Because of this, I felt it right to take my rating down to 4 stars.
I would highly recommend The Posion Place by Mary E. Lyons. It is truly a gem of a book. A fasinating story, told in the words of a formor slave, makes it come alive, and keeps you wondering, 'What happens next?' If you don't like historical fiction books, you should still try this novel. It's difinetly one in a class of it's own!
The Poison Place Home Rules: Transform the Place You Live into a Place You'll Love In the Kitchen with the Pike Place Fish Guys: 100 Recipes and Tips from the World-Famous Crew of Pike Place Fish Watching Great Meadow: A Place of Joy, A Place of Woe Miracle Mongers and Their Methods: A complete expose of the modus operandi of fire eaters, heat resisters, poison eaters, Venomous reptile defiers, sword swallowers, human ostriches, strong men, etc. Greek Fire, Poison Arrows, & Scorpion Bombs The Poison Frog Assault (Battle Bugs #3) Poison Ivy Makes Me Itch (Tell Me Why Library) Poison Ivy: Cycle of Life and Death Shadows in the Vineyard: The True Story of the Plot to Poison the World's Greatest Wine Poison Dart Frogs: A Complete Guide to Dendrobatidae (Complete Herp Care) Greek Fire, Poison Arrows, and Scorpion Bombs: Biological & Chemical Warfare in the Ancient World Peacock in the Poison Grove: Two Buddhist Texts on Training the Mind Seductive Poison: A Jonestown Survivor's Story of Life and Death in the People's Temple The Poison Diaries Poison Princess (The Arcana Chronicles) Learned Pigs & Fireproof Women: Unique, Eccentric and Amazing Entertainers: Stone Eaters, Mind Readers, Poison Resisters, Daredevils, Singing Mice, etc. Strong Poison: A Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane Mystery The Poison King: The Life and Legend of Mithradates, Rome's Deadliest Enemy Poison In The Blood: The Memoirs of Lucrezia Borgia
