Book Review: The Notorious Benedict Arnold

The Notorious Benedict Arnold: A True Story of Adventure, Heroism, and Treachery

By Stephen Sheinkin

Flashpoint/Roaring Brook Press, 2010

ISBN: 978-1-59643-4686-8

Grades 6 and Up

Review

If you are of a certain generation, you remember when Peter Brady was assigned the role of Benedict Arnold, dashing his hopes of playing George Washington. In American culture, Benedict Arnold is synonymous with words such as villain or traitor. He was the first American leader to profoundly disappoint the American population. But readers of this cradle-to-grave biography may be surprised at how many times the Continental Army lived to see another day because of Arnold’s actions, approved or otherwise. In short chapters that keep the pace moving, Sheinkin provides readers with the unique opportunity to explore Arnold’s “backstory,” including his successes and failures prior to the start of the American Revolution, the various roles he played in the Continental Army, and in particular, just how close he was to George Washington, and what a personal and public devastation Arnold’s treachery was to the Commander. Without Arnold, the American Revolution could have ended much earlier, in favor of the British. With Arnold, it almost ended earlier, in favor of the British. Ideal for exploration in small groups and literature circles, this engaging biography allows readers to examine maneuvers and morals, alliances and ambition. 

Curriculum Links

Benedict Arnold’s Papers at Harvard University’s Houghton Library

http://oasis.lib.harvard.edu/oasis/deliver/~hou01257

Library of Congress: Benedict Arnold’s October 20, 1780 Proclamation

http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/presentationsandactivities/presentations/timeline/amrev/homefrnt/arnold.html

Benedict Arnold in London, England

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/09/nyregion/an-american-traitor-gets-a-tribute-in-london-that-is.html?ref=benedictarnold

Benedict Arnold in New London, Connecticut

http://nlhistory.org/?p=452

Fort Clinton, Fort Arnold @ West Point, now the United States Military Academy

http://www.usma.edu/

Fort Ticonderoga

http://www.fortticonderoga.org/

Saratoga National Historic Park

http://www.nps.gov/sara/index.htm

George Washington’s Papers at the Library of Congress: Timeline of the American Revolution

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gwhtml/1775.html

Mt. Pleasant, Benedict Arnold’s Home in Philadelphia

http://www.loc.gov/pictures/resource/ppmsca.17949/

John Andre’s Monument in Westminster Abbey, London

http://www.westminster-abbey.org/our-history/people/john-andre

John Andre in Art, Courtesy of the Worcester Art Museum, Worcester, MA

http://www.worcesterart.org/Collection/Early_American/Artists/sully/capture/painting-discussion.html

Benedict Arnold’s Letters and Portraits in the New York Public Library Digital Gallery

http://digitalgallery.nypl.org/nypldigital/dgkeysearchresult.cfm?keyword=benedict+arnold

Brady Bunch Episode: “Not Everyone can be George Washington”

http://www.tv.com/shows/the-brady-bunch/watch/everyone-cant-be-george-washington-4990/