Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales: The Underground Abductor (9 out of 10) Graphic Novel, 128 pages, Hardcover. 2015, Amulet Books. 

It’s great when book series I love are doing well. Well enough that the series continues. That doesn’t always happen, which makes me hesitate to put all my lovin’ into one particular franchise. Happily, one of the current hits among history-based-graphic-novels-for-middle-grades is “Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales.” The series is written by to-me local guy Nathan Hale, and he’s finding a wider audience than you’d expect for such a narrow piece of the market. The audience is coming because the books are good. Having tackled subjects like the Revolutionary War, Civil War, the Donner Party, and World War I, he’s gone back to the 19th Century for his fifth book, “The Underground Abductor.”

“The Underground Abductor” is the story of Harriet Tubman, and is the first in the series that’s a biography of a single person. It’s a break in the formula that Hale has established, but is still able to use one woman’s story as an exemplar of what’s happening in the wider story of American History. In this case, slavery and the abolitionist movement in the antebellum South. 

The format is the same as the other books in this series: American patriot/spy Nathan Hale is at the gallows, about to be executed by a Hangman and British Provost. As he’s about to die, he’s able to magically see all of American History, and entertains the Hangman and Provost with the tales, Sheherazade-style. At the beginning of this story, the Provost (stuffy, very British) says essentially “all of these stories are about how America is so great, so special, the best country ever…” which Hale admits to, but does say that the country has made many mistakes, and that slavery is one of the worst. 

Hale condemns the horrors of slavery, but is still appropriate for the target audience.

Hale (the author) does a good job of laying out the history of slavery quickly getting us up to the 1830s, when Harriet Tubman was a young girl. Back then she was “Araminta Ross,” and she keeps that name for the half of the book before she escapes to freedom. Her story gives us a good look at what the institution of slavery was like in the south at the time…in a word, terrible. Hale is able to do this in a way that honors the pain and condemns the horrors of slavery, but is still appropriate for the target audience of 5th – 8th graders. I wouldn’t say it’s sanitized; he gets into the fugitive slave laws, and punishments including hobbling. He describes and shows the beating of Araminta and other slaves, and there are passages that are a hard read because of that. Throughout, Hale’s cartoony style of illustration is able to convey the humanity of these people, but soften some of the harder edges of history. 

In the middle of telling Harriet Tubman’s story, Hale takes two small detours to tell other stories that fit into the same time period and subject: the Nat Turner Rebellion and the story of Frederick Douglass. He’s able to tell both succinctly, and their inclusion gives us a broader view of what was happening outside of Tubman’s relatively small world. 

If you’re into history, or graphic novels, or have kids who are, this is an excellent entry into one of the best current series for middle grade readers. 

More “Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales”

One Dead Spy

Big Bad Ironclad!

The Donner Dinner Party

Treaties, Trenches, Mud, and Blood

Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales: Treaties, Trenches, Mud, and Blood (9 out of 10) Nathan Hale, Amulet Books, 2014 

There are times as a teacher and parent that I’ll come across a book that hits all the right notes for middle grades. A combination of excitement and humor, adventure and horror, with an overall message that’s important enough for me to recommend to every kid, and parent, and teacher I meet. When I’m really really lucky, that book will be part of a series. That’s what’s happened with “Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales.”

The series of history-themed graphic novels kicked off in 2012 with “One Dead Spy,” the Revolutionary War story of Nathan Hale. He’s the patriot spy who…well, he got caught and executed on his first mission. In the book series (by author Nathan Hale, funnily enough), that execution creates this magic moment where Hale, his hangman, and the provost overseeing the hanging all become observers of American History. Nathan Hale is an omniscient narrator, with the other two taking the roles of comedy relief (Hangman) and plot exposition-prodder (Provost). After “One Dead Spy,” we also had the Civil War’s “Big Bad Ironclad,” and Westward Expansion’s “Donner Dinner Party.” Yeah, he went there.

The fourth book in the series is the World War I tale “Treaties, Trenches, Mud, and Blood.” I have a big ol’ history teacher crush on World War I, and with this being the centenary year of the beginning of that conflict, I’m loving all of the hoopla surrounding it. The other three Nathan Hale graphic novels have all focused in on a relatively narrow event–the development of American ironclad ships, for example. This is Hale’s first that’s tried to tackle an entire war, and had it make sense, but still tell compelling stories. Overall, Hale succeeds well, but admits within the book there are other stories to be told that just won’t fit into a 128-page graphic novel.

The reason for the story within the story is that the Very British Provost wants to hear about a story where the United States and Great Britain are allies–so Nathan Hale tells them about World War I. The Hangman being the animal-lover he is, asks that each of the countries be represented by a different kind of “cute little animal.” So Austria-Hungary becomes a Griffin, Serbia a Wolf, Russia a Bear, Germany an Eagle; the allies are a French Gallic Rooster, Belgium is a Lion, UK a Bulldog, and the United States…was going to be a Bald Eagle, but was changed at the last second by the Hangman into a Bunny. Other countries will enter later, but these are the major players. What might seem disrespectful to some actually makes the complicated war easier to follow, and provides some comic relief here and there. At times, for key people, Hale switches to a more realistic human portrait for a quote or dramatic moment, but most of the story is told with cute little animals.

Hale (the author, not the spy)(well, kind of both) does an excellent job of mapping out the treaties and alliances that escalated a regional conflict into a world war; the passionate and misguided nationalism that inspired citizens to rush into their military; and the romantic ideals of war for a generation that was about to lose that idealism in the worst imaginable way.

Some major themes are the shift in tactics and technology that resulted in the deaths of millions; the idea that each country is filled with people who think of themselves as the “good guys,” and the escalation of a war that spun out of control within the first year of combat. For each year of the war, there’s a two-page spread that shows a symbolic God of War–Ares, collecting the dead as they fall. In 1914, he’s an oversized Greek warrior, holding a flaming cauldron, catching the bodies as they fall off of a ramp. That image alone could be used to teach the causes of World War I, as the ramp is held up by the pillars of imperialism, alliances, nationalism, and militarism. The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand is the gate to that ramp, but not the cause of the war becoming World War I. In 1915, Ares is more grotesque, the cauldron larger, and he’s got bandoliers of bullets and shells. The 1916 Ares is a true monster, with smoke pouring from his mouth and ringed with ammunition. 1917 and 1918 make him bigger, uglier, and more mechanized, becoming a kind of cyborg of early 20th Century technology. And truly frightening.

Ares becomes bigger, uglier, and more mechanized.

We get close looks at some key battles that become emblematic of the entire war–Liege, Cer, Ypres, Verdun. Hale is very good at helping kids (and adults) visualize the trench system that became the war’s western front, and illustrating things like the supply lines that were life or death for the soldiers at the front lines. He points out the mismatched technologies that had Germans with machine guns slaughtering Russians with rifles. He gets around to the communist revolution that pulled Russia out of the war early, and the reasons the war accelerated the fall of that empire. We get insight into major leaders on every side, and the push-and-pull between Woodrow Wilson, ex-president Teddy Roosevelt and others that kept the United States out of the war until 1917. We get the Lusitania, the Zimmerman Telegram, and the advent of poison gas, flamethrowers, and tanks. So when Hale (the spy) somewhat apologetically explains that the book isn’t long enough to get to the Air War, with the Red Baron etc., it’s quite alright. We’ve already had an embarrassment of riches. Hale also makes clear that despite the way the tale has been told, with cute little animals, the cost of war is very human and very real. 

I could go on forever about this series of books. I have. I do. This one in particular seems to have been a kind of experiment–would it be possible to fit an entire war into a slim graphic novel and still do it justice? In my opinion, the answer is yes. Are there things missing? Sure. But thousand-page treatments of World War I miss things too. For kids in say, 4th-8th grades, this book is an amazing way to learn about The War to End All Wars, and do it in a way they’ll actually want to read. My 12 year-old devoured it, and  even my 10 year-old, an adamant reluctant reader is working his way through the other books in the series.

If you haven’t heard of “Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales,” it’s time you did. They’re some of the best history books I’ve read. You’ll like them, your kids will love them. Number 5 is due April 21, 2015 – the story of Harriet Tubman. I can’t wait. 

“Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales: Donner Dinner Party”  (10 out of 10) Nathan Hale, 2103. Abrams Books.

2012 saw the debut of a new line of children’s history books, told in graphic novel format. The books are written and illustrated by a guy with the historically fortuitous name Nathan Hale. Taking a cue from his own name, Mr. Hale has the books narrated by the historic Nathan Hale, executed by the British for espionage in 1776.  Nathan Hale, his own Hangman, and the British Provost form a kind of triad narrator, chiming in with their own opinions and asides as the historic tales unfold. The first two books were One Dead Spy, telling Nathan Hale’s own story as part of the American Revolution, and Big Bad Ironclad about the first ironclad ships used in the American Civil War.  The third book just came out in 2013, and I’ve read it a few times, and recommended it to every teacher and parent and history buff I can find. And now you. 

With a title like “Donner Dinner Party,” I’m guessing adults will cringe, and kids will um…eat it up. The book tells the story of the doomed Donner-Reed Party, who was traveling from the midwest to California in 1846.  As with the previous two books, “Donner Dinner Part”y is about more than just that expedition, but about Westward Expansion on the whole–in brings in information about the Black Hawk War, the Gold Rush, the Oregon Trail and Mormon pioneers, and just how dangerous it was for any group to move west, not just the Donner Party.  

From the first chapter, Hale establishes that James Reed is something of a buffoon, pretentious and preening, and making foolish choices. He’s able to do that in a fairly even-handed way, balancing the foolishness with the sort of “pioneering spirit” that we like to think Americans have.  Reed, one of the leaders of the Donner-Reed Party, will be a source of comic relief–but also a serious threat–for much of the book.  In Chapter 2, Reed leads his group of wagons into a serious blunder: following the Hastings Cutoff.  A shortcut promoted by Lansford Hastings, who had never even been on the route he was touting, it’s probably what caused the death of so many in the Donner-Reed Party. Instead of following the well-traveled path of the Oregon Trail, it led them through the mountains of Utah and the deserts of the Great Basin (including the Great Salt Lake Desert), some of the least hospitable land in the entire continent.  

The first dramatic death is Billy the Pony, The Hangman, who loves cute little animals (even though his career is executing men) is sure “he went and found a nice meadow to live in. Right?” But Nathan Hale tells him, “Billy most likely ended up as dinner for someone farther down the wagon train. Fresh meat shouldn’t be wasted.” The Hangman responds with a full page “NOOOOOOOO!!”, his fingers clenched, his face a rictus of horror. It’s a nice way of letting the reader experience the emotion, but also laugh at themselves a little, and eases the tension a little…because things are going to get much worse. 

The first dramatic death is Billy the Pony.

There are several places where Nathan Hale (the narrator) warns the reader that this isn’t a happy story, and things are going to get worse. He even tells us that we can skip ahead to page 113 if we want to get away from the worst of it. But of course, we don’t.

When you hear the phrase “Donner Party,” besides thinking of cannibalism, you probably think of a small group of people. A two-page spread on pages 42-43 shows us how many people there really were, and how the 81 of them were arranged in groups of ten families, with nineteen wagons, each with four oxen needed to pull it. It’s one of the many times in these books where the pictures really help to understand the story, and even though I’ve read several books about the Donner Party, this one ended up being one of the better ones. 

Once the group is stranded in the Sierra Nevada mountains, the deaths start coming quickly. Hale (the author/illustrator) uses the classic Grim Reaper imagery to show the taking of lives, and is somehow able to let the reader experience the grief and the solemnity of being forced to cannibalize the flesh of someone who’s died without being too horrific about it.  It’s not graphic, but it’s still disturbing.  Even then, when it gets to the cannibalism, the Hangman is able to bring a little bit of humor–but also a reality of life in the past–that we often overlook in discussions of The Donner-Reed Party.  I won’t spoil what it was, but it’s on page 104, if you’re looking.

One boy actually died from overeating. 

As a history teacher, one of the things I love about these books is that Hale tells you about the research that he does in order to write the books.  He includes tools found in other (non graphic novel) history books, like a good bibliography, biographies of major characters in the book, and questions that might be raised while you’re reading the book. In this case, there are also a few one-page mini comics that explain some of those.  A case in point: one boy who was a part of the Donner-Reed Party, William Hook, actually died from overeating. Hale explains how that happened. There’s also a two-page “Who Died and Who Survived” chart that looks almost like a periodic table of everyone in the party, including how they died and whether or not they were eaten after they died. It’s a little creepy, a little morbid, but not as disturbing as you’d expect. Another part of the appendix is a one page story “By the Hangman” that made me laugh out loud…and does some healing for those who were too saddened or traumatized by the story of the Donner-Reed Party, and needed to cleanse their palate.

This book, like the first two in this series, is fantastic. It makes for good reading, it’s historically valid, and it’s able to tell a very serious story in a way that’s informative and entertaining. I was wondering if Hale would be able to tell such a tragic story without making light of the people involved, and he does so admirably.  I loved this book.  You don’t need to read the first two in the series to understand why the historic Nathan Hale and his executioners are narrating a Donner Party story, but the characters do get more interesting over the course of the books.  Whether you’re a kid or adult, whether you like history, or are morbidly curious about one of the most famous tragedies in the American West, you’ll probably enjoy “Donner Dinner Party.” Bring the dessert.

“Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales: One Dead Spy” (9 out of 10 stars) Nathan Hale. Hardcover graphic novel, 128 pages. Published by Amulet Books, 2012.

Nathan Hale has been a favorite local (Utah) author and artist for several years now.  I first met him at a booksigning in suburban Salt Lake City, and casually followed what he was working on since then.  Up until 2012 the highlight of his career has been the two graphic novels written by Shannon Hale (no relation): “Rapunzel’s Revenge” and “Calamity Jack.”  Both are very entertaining takes on fairy tales, both come highly recommended by me.

Hale’s own series takes stories from American History and retelling them in a funny and informative way: “Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales.” The first in the series is “One Dead Spy“, the account of Nathan Hale’s namesake, um, Nathan Hale.  The second book, also published in 2012, is “Big Bad Ironclad!”  

“Big Bad Ironclad” is of course a Civil War tale, about the sea battle between the Monitor and the Virginia (when I was growing up, we called that one the Merrimack), two of the first ironclad ships.  The premise of this series is that each story is narrated by heroic spy Nathan Hale, delaying his own execution Sheherezade-style by telling stories from American History to his own Hangman and a British Provost.  Hale (the author) plays with the idea of Hale (the spy) as an omniscient historian, who’s able to tell stories that haven’t happened yet, and he’s balanced out by the Hangman, who’s brutish but loves cute little animals, and the Provost, who reminds me of a stuffier Sam Eagle from “The Muppet Show.” But…British. 

A brief prologue does a good job of introducing the Civil War, and even though the ironclad battle is really only one small episode within the larger conflict, the book manages to give perspective to the war.  We meet Abraham Lincoln and his cabinet, we learn about General Winfield Scott’s Anaconda Plan to cut off the South from any outside support, and meet Gideon Welles, Lincoln’s “Father Neptune” and Secretary of the Navy.  These people put the ironclad plans into motion, and does so in a quick, straightforward way that is easy for kids and teens to get onboard with.

The graphic novel format keeps things moving quickly, and lets Hale play with words and images–Gideon Welles’ assistant Gustavus Fox is rendered as a cute little fox, and Confederacy naval leader Stephen Mallory is shown as a “sharkface,” although Hale does point out that he’s not a villain so much as a leader of the opposition.  

Interspersed with the main story about the building and battle of the Monitor and Virginia is the story of William Cushing–a guy I hadn’t ever heard of, but a navy officer who ends up becoming the prototype for Navy SEALS.  His adventures punctuate the already exciting war story, and are able to provide a continual thread that gives us insight into the other things that were happening away from the ironclads.  

“Big Bad Ironclad” includes biographies of the major characters in the story (so that kids can find out that Stephen Mallory wasn’t really known as “Sharkface”), a bibliography that includes resources on the Ironclads, the Civil War, and some of the major characters in the book; a “Corrections Baby” page that addresses some historical discrepancies, and a Civil War timeline that points out where Will Cushing was at various points in the conflict.  One of my favorite “extras” is at the bottom of the timeline, where we’re shown how to build our own Monitor from a few “plastic bricks.” As a die-hard LEGO fan, I was pleased to see that.  This is the second of four “Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales” books currently in stores, and the fifth is coming this spring. It can’t be soon enough. 

“Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales: One Dead Spy” (10 out of 10 stars) Nathan Hale. Hardcover graphic novel, 128 pages. Published by Amulet Books, 2012.

I’ve been a fan of Nathan Hale’s for a while.  Nathan Hale the author and illustrator, not the patriot, although you could be pardoned the confusion.  I loved his illustrations for the graphic novels “Rapunzel’s Revenge” and “Calamity Jack,” and his picture book “Yellowbelly and Plum” was one of my sons’ favorites.  Hale’s current series has moved him to the top of my list.  

In 2012 Nathan Hale and Amulet Books started a series of graphic novels based on American History, under the banner (literally) “Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales.”  The first book in the series is “One Dead Spy,” and it and the following books are interesting, easy to follow, and downright entertaining. I’m buying every one of them.  

“One Dead Spy” is about Nathan Hale (the patriot), executed in 1776, at the very beginning of the American Revolution.  The 128-page hardcover comic begins with Manhattan in flames, and a whistling Hangman bringing a noose to a gallows.  He shoos a bald eagle away, and prepares Nathan Hale to be hanged.  They’re soon joined by a British Officer, and these three will be the narrators for the rest of the book.  Given an omniscient overview of American History, Hale sees what the destiny of the country is, and even though things look grim for the colonists (and more especially for Hale personally) in September 1776, he knows that there’s a brighter future.  He proceeds to tell the Hangman and British Officer all about the American Revolution, focusing on the first year, and Hale’s role in it.  

Nathan Hale makes a good narrator for the years 1775-76, and his path crosses with the likes of George Washington, Henry Knox, Ethan Allen, Benedict Arnold, General Howe and other notable heroes and villains of American History.  The author uses these interactions to tell the key events of the revolution, including the capture of Fort Ticonderoga, the Battle of Bunker Hill (and Breed Hill), the Boston Massacre, and the Declaration of Independence.  He leaves a lot of things untold, telling more of his tales in future volumes, but gives us enough information to make this book a solid read. 

As a parent, a history teacher, a geek, and a promoter of graphic novels, I frigging love this series. I enjoy the humor and the menace in One Dead Spy—even as the Hangman provides comic relief, you can’t forget that the real narrator, Nathan Hale, was executed.  Some of the humor is in asides, some is in telling the truths of history that are often left out of the dry history books. The illustrations are cartoony but excellent, with no confusion about who’s who in the course of the story. Hale (the author) also doesn’t shy away from telling us when people suffered and died, making this more mature reading than you might expect.  I loved it.