Iron Thunder by Avi
Tom Carroll’s dad was killed fighting for the Union in the Civil War. Tom was only 13 years old, but forced to find work in order to support his family. He was sent to work in an ironworks in his hometown of Brooklyn, NY where men were frantically working on a ship that would fight against the Merrimac, the strongest ship of the Confederate (South States). It was long, hard work and Tom was given many jobs aboard that ship. He saw it through to finish and in the end, wound up sailing with it to battle. It was unusual for a boy that young to be invited to go, but the captain knew he could be of great help and it might actually be safer for him. That’s because spies for the Confederate States were chasing Tom. After they found out he was working on the ship to support his mom and sister, they thought they could bribe him to tell about the ship in exchange for gold coins. Tom might have been tempted at first, but he knew he could not betray his boss and co-workers. So, he refused to give the spies any information, but they hunted him down! Going to battle was scary, but so was the thought of being captured and tortured by spies. Tom proved a valuable sailor, but whether or not they survived or won the battle, I will not say. Read it yourself and find out the answers. Does Tom live or face the same fate as his father? Does he ever see his Ma and sister again?