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How Benjamin Franklin Became a Revolutionary in Seven (Not-So-Easy) Steps

Author Gretchen Woelfle
Illustrated by John O'Brien
Ebook
Astra Publishing House | Calkins Creek
6"W x 9"H
On sale Oct 17, 2023 | 96 Pages | 9781635925524
Grades 4-7
Reading Level: Fountas & Pinnell X
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How did Ben Franklin become an outspoken leader of the American Revolution? Learn all about it in seven (not-so-easy) steps in this humorous, accessible middle-grade chapter book that focuses on Ben’s political awakening.

Famous founding father Benjamin Franklin was a proud subject of the British Empire—until he wasn’t. It took nearly seventy years and seven not-so-easy steps to turn Benjamin Franklin from a loyal British subject to a British traitor—and a fired-up American revolutionary. 

In this light, whimsical narrative, young readers learn how Franklin came to be a rebel, beginning with his childhood lesson in street smarts when he buys a whistle at an inflated price. Franklin is a defiant boy who runs away from his apprenticeship, and while he becomes a deep thinker, a brilliant scientist, and a persuasive writer when he grows up, he never loses that spark. As a community leader who tries his best to promote peace and unity both between the colonies and with Great Britain, he becomes more and more convinced that independence for the American colonies is the way forward.

Illustrated throughout with art by noted New Yorker cartoonist and illustrator John O’Brien and sprinkled with quotations from Franklin, this unfamiliar story of a familiar figure in American history will surprise and delight young readers.
Gretchen Woelfle is the author of multiple award-winning fiction and nonfiction books for young readers. Her books include Answering the Cry for Freedom, Mumbet’s Declaration of Independence, and Write On, Mercy!, both of which received the California Reading Association’s Eureka! Silver Award, among many other honors. She lives in Los Angeles, California. Visit gretchenwoelfle.com. View titles by Gretchen Woelfle
© Hannah Hoogerwoerd
John O'Brien also is the author and illustrator of Mother Hubbard's Christmas, which Booklist calls "a yuk-filled read-aloud." John is also a cartoonist for many magazines and newspapers, most notably The New Yorker, New York Times, and Esquire. He lives in Delran, New Jersey. Visit johnobrienillustrator.com. View titles by John O'Brien
Benjamin Franklin was a proud
citizen of America all his life.
And a proud subject of the British Empire.
Until he wasn’t.
It took nearly seventy years and seven
not-so-easy steps to turn Benjamin Franklin from
a loyal British subject to a British traitor—and a
fired-up American revolutionary.
Here’s how it happened.
 
“Being ignorant is
not so much a Shame,
as being unwilling to learn.”
 
’Twas a special day!
Seven-year-old Benjamin Franklin had a pocket full of pennies, so he strolled down the streets of Boston to the toy store. On his way, he met a boy playing a shiny tin whistle.
He stopped to listen. The boy played on.
Benjamin loved that shiny whistle!
He wanted that whistle!
He wanted that whistle so much he emptied his pocket and gave the boy all his pennies—every single one.
Benjamin wasn’t shy about getting what he wanted.
Home he went, tooting his whistle all the way. He tooted
in the kitchen . . . in the bedrooms . . . in the workshop where his father stirred smelly vats of soap . . . in the shop where his mother sold the soap, made from a secret family recipe . . .
“STOP!” cried his mother and father and brothers and sisters and cousins.
Benjamin stopped long enough to tell them how he spent all his pennies for his wonderful whistle. Everyone laughed.
“You paid four times more than it was worth,” they told him.
They kept on laughing, but Benjamin cried with vexation.
His shiny whistle wasn’t fun anymore.
 
Step #1
 
Benjamin Franklin learned early, “Do not give too much for the Whistle.”
Copyright © 2023 by Gretchen Woelfle; Illustrated by John O'Brien. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
★ "Along with tracing the general arc of Franklin’s rise in the commercial, scientific, and diplomatic realms, the author offers sidelights on some of his pastimes and inventions before closing with backmatter that includes separate reading lists for adult and younger readers. Woelfle’s dynamic approach results in a personal, probing portrait of the Founding Father. In O’Brien’s tongue-in-cheek ink drawings, small period figures with paper-white skin gesticulate, scurry about busily, or, in one amusing scene, fall comically victim to one of Franklin’s infamous electrical pranks. A superb tribute to a foresighted patriot in peace and war." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“Gretchen Woelfle’s delightful book weaves a tapestry of wisdom from Benjamin Franklin’s extraordinary and multifaceted life, a life that prepared him for his ultimate challenge as the revolutionary leader and Founding Father. Her seven steps are a roadmap for young readers to build the ‘milestones’ in their own lives for a successful future, maybe even a revolutionary one.” —Mark Barbour, executive director and curator, International Printing Museum

How Benjamin Franklin Became a Revolutionary in Seven (Not-So-Easy) Steps Book Trailer

About

How did Ben Franklin become an outspoken leader of the American Revolution? Learn all about it in seven (not-so-easy) steps in this humorous, accessible middle-grade chapter book that focuses on Ben’s political awakening.

Famous founding father Benjamin Franklin was a proud subject of the British Empire—until he wasn’t. It took nearly seventy years and seven not-so-easy steps to turn Benjamin Franklin from a loyal British subject to a British traitor—and a fired-up American revolutionary. 

In this light, whimsical narrative, young readers learn how Franklin came to be a rebel, beginning with his childhood lesson in street smarts when he buys a whistle at an inflated price. Franklin is a defiant boy who runs away from his apprenticeship, and while he becomes a deep thinker, a brilliant scientist, and a persuasive writer when he grows up, he never loses that spark. As a community leader who tries his best to promote peace and unity both between the colonies and with Great Britain, he becomes more and more convinced that independence for the American colonies is the way forward.

Illustrated throughout with art by noted New Yorker cartoonist and illustrator John O’Brien and sprinkled with quotations from Franklin, this unfamiliar story of a familiar figure in American history will surprise and delight young readers.

Author

Gretchen Woelfle is the author of multiple award-winning fiction and nonfiction books for young readers. Her books include Answering the Cry for Freedom, Mumbet’s Declaration of Independence, and Write On, Mercy!, both of which received the California Reading Association’s Eureka! Silver Award, among many other honors. She lives in Los Angeles, California. Visit gretchenwoelfle.com. View titles by Gretchen Woelfle
© Hannah Hoogerwoerd
John O'Brien also is the author and illustrator of Mother Hubbard's Christmas, which Booklist calls "a yuk-filled read-aloud." John is also a cartoonist for many magazines and newspapers, most notably The New Yorker, New York Times, and Esquire. He lives in Delran, New Jersey. Visit johnobrienillustrator.com. View titles by John O'Brien

Excerpt

Benjamin Franklin was a proud
citizen of America all his life.
And a proud subject of the British Empire.
Until he wasn’t.
It took nearly seventy years and seven
not-so-easy steps to turn Benjamin Franklin from
a loyal British subject to a British traitor—and a
fired-up American revolutionary.
Here’s how it happened.
 
“Being ignorant is
not so much a Shame,
as being unwilling to learn.”
 
’Twas a special day!
Seven-year-old Benjamin Franklin had a pocket full of pennies, so he strolled down the streets of Boston to the toy store. On his way, he met a boy playing a shiny tin whistle.
He stopped to listen. The boy played on.
Benjamin loved that shiny whistle!
He wanted that whistle!
He wanted that whistle so much he emptied his pocket and gave the boy all his pennies—every single one.
Benjamin wasn’t shy about getting what he wanted.
Home he went, tooting his whistle all the way. He tooted
in the kitchen . . . in the bedrooms . . . in the workshop where his father stirred smelly vats of soap . . . in the shop where his mother sold the soap, made from a secret family recipe . . .
“STOP!” cried his mother and father and brothers and sisters and cousins.
Benjamin stopped long enough to tell them how he spent all his pennies for his wonderful whistle. Everyone laughed.
“You paid four times more than it was worth,” they told him.
They kept on laughing, but Benjamin cried with vexation.
His shiny whistle wasn’t fun anymore.
 
Step #1
 
Benjamin Franklin learned early, “Do not give too much for the Whistle.”
Copyright © 2023 by Gretchen Woelfle; Illustrated by John O'Brien. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

Praise

★ "Along with tracing the general arc of Franklin’s rise in the commercial, scientific, and diplomatic realms, the author offers sidelights on some of his pastimes and inventions before closing with backmatter that includes separate reading lists for adult and younger readers. Woelfle’s dynamic approach results in a personal, probing portrait of the Founding Father. In O’Brien’s tongue-in-cheek ink drawings, small period figures with paper-white skin gesticulate, scurry about busily, or, in one amusing scene, fall comically victim to one of Franklin’s infamous electrical pranks. A superb tribute to a foresighted patriot in peace and war." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“Gretchen Woelfle’s delightful book weaves a tapestry of wisdom from Benjamin Franklin’s extraordinary and multifaceted life, a life that prepared him for his ultimate challenge as the revolutionary leader and Founding Father. Her seven steps are a roadmap for young readers to build the ‘milestones’ in their own lives for a successful future, maybe even a revolutionary one.” —Mark Barbour, executive director and curator, International Printing Museum

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How Benjamin Franklin Became a Revolutionary in Seven (Not-So-Easy) Steps Book Trailer

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