List Price: $8.99 Details

Save: $2.60 (29%)

Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime & FREE Returns

FREE delivery Friday, June 3 if you spend $25 on items shipped by Amazon

Or fastest delivery Wednesday, June 1. Order within 13 hrs 58 mins

In Stock.

As an alternative, the Kindle eBook is available now and can be read on any device with the free Kindle app. Want to listen? Try Audible.

[{"displayPrice":"$6.39","priceAmount":6.39,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"6","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"39","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"Y%2B9PAnjj15MlxoIlbT0sdMbxyOCtuRIdt%2BbN%2Bc381Npy0ri%2FmV6K8MitqasnHNdCXM33lwbHLWKL7OSUCDsglpucvo%2BYQg3qPt6MdoL8rdVQpvB5MgK4r8YZ%2FL4Iy%2FzKRRlMJHs4zGY%3D","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"NEW"},{"displayPrice":"$5.04","priceAmount":5.04,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"5","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"04","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"cMSOFtBr25X%2BwTcyqVEk4%2BqJssprlnptvGCJ3vGDVniW9E3VK1kzTuMVD9XOgHIpoVH7Bk38dBuYGiWp4xbxUTDGMoHWsRjM%2Fdo%2BK9yTnwDcv6Za0Z%2BkkPja3QOp63QGh4sIqQyoYW2GTyi80wCh55zuwWjVG%2FdyDIaxZQDSRjRs7LDt%2BHIBXS5kSW4e8ZIr","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"USED"}]

$$6.39 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details

Secure transaction

Ships from

Amazon.com

Sold by

Amazon.com

Details

Ships from

Amazon.com

Sold by

Amazon.com

Return policy: Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

Add a gift receipt for easy returns

FREE delivery June 8 - 14. Details

Or fastest delivery June 2 - 6. Details

Select delivery location

Used: Acceptable | Details

Sold by LegendTradingCo.

Share <Embed>

Have one to sell?

Sell on Amazon

Other Sellers on Amazon

Added

Not added

$5.94
& FREE Shipping

Sold by: Greenpine_Books

Added

Not added

$6.99
& FREE Shipping

Sold by: Jabs Books

Added

Not added

$7.00
FREE Shipping on orders over $25.00 shipped by Amazon.

Sold by: Iz Time To Read!

Flip to back Flip to front

Listen Playing... Paused You're listening to a sample of the Audible audio edition.
Learn more

See all 3 images

Follow the Author

Laurie Halse Anderson

Chains (The Seeds of America Trilogy) Paperback – January 5, 2010

by Laurie Halse Anderson (Author)

2,230 ratings

Book 1 of 3: Seeds of America

See all formats and editions

Price

New from

Used from

Kindle

"Please retry"

$7.99

—

Audible Audiobook, Unabridged

"Please retry"

$0.00

Free with your Audible trial

Hardcover, Deckle Edge

"Please retry"

$11.47

$10.00

$1.35

Paperback

"Please retry"

$6.39

$2.26

$1.05

Audio CD, Audiobook, CD, Unabridged

"Please retry"

$74.25

—

Kindle
$0.00 Give this and thousands of kid-friendly books with Amazon Kids+
Audiobook
$0.00 Free with your Audible trial
Hardcover
$11.47

89 Used from $1.35 24 New from $10.00 3 Collectible from $10.00
Paperback
$6.39

178 Used from $1.05 48 New from $2.26 3 Collectible from $6.50
Audio CD
$74.25

1 New from $74.25

Enhance your purchase

From acclaimed author Laurie Halse Anderson comes this compelling first novel in the historical middle grade The Seeds of America trilogy that shows the lengths we can go to cast off our chains, both physical and spiritual.

As the Revolutionary War begins, thirteen-year-old Isabel wages her own fight...for freedom. Promised freedom upon the death of their owner, she and her sister, Ruth, in a cruel twist of fate become the property of a malicious New York City couple, the Locktons, who have no sympathy for the American Revolution and even less for Ruth and Isabel.

When Isabel meets Curzon, a slave with ties to the Patriots, he encourages her to spy on her owners, who know details of British plans for invasion. She is reluctant at first, but when the unthinkable happens to Ruth, Isabel realizes her loyalty is available to the bidder who can provide her with freedom.

Reading age

10+ years, from customers
Print length

316 pages
Language

English
Grade level

5 - 9
Lexile measure

780L
Dimensions

5.13 x 1 x 7.63 inches
Publication date

January 5, 2010
ISBN-10

1416905863
ISBN-13

978-1416905868
See all details

Frequently bought together

+
+

Total price:

To see our price, add these items to your cart.

Choose items to buy together.

by Laurie Halse Anderson Paperback
$6.39
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
Get it as soon as Friday, Jun 3
by Laurie Halse Anderson Paperback
$8.39
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
Get it as soon as Friday, Jun 3
by Laurie Halse Anderson Paperback
$7.49
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
Get it as soon as Friday, Jun 3

Popular Highlights in this book

What are popular highlights?

She was set on keeping my arms and legs dancing to her tune and my soul bound in her chains.
Highlighted by 850 Kindle readers
“A scar is a sign of strength,” he said quietly. “The sign of a survivor.”
Highlighted by 848 Kindle readers
She did not look into my eyes, did not see the lion inside. She did not see the me of me, the Isabel.
Highlighted by 811 Kindle readers

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Laurie Halse Anderson is a New York Times bestselling author known for tackling tough subjects with humor and sensitivity. Her work has earned numerous ALA and state awards. Two of her books, Chains and Speak, were National Book Award finalists. Chains also received the 2009 Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction, and Laurie was chosen for the 2009 Margaret A. Edwards Award. Mother of four and wife of one, Laurie lives in Pennsylvania, where she likes to watch the snow fall as she writes. You can follow her adventures on Twitter @HalseAnderson, or visit her at MadWomanintheForest.com.

Start reading Chains (Seeds of America Book 1) on your Kindle in under a minute.

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Atheneum Books for Young Readers; Reprint edition (January 5, 2010)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 316 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1416905863
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1416905868
Reading age ‏ : ‎ 10 - 14 years
Lexile measure ‏ : ‎ 780L
Grade level ‏ : ‎ 5 - 9
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.13 x 1 x 7.63 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #4,008 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #3 in Children's Colonial American Historical Fiction
- #7 in Children's Military Fiction (Books)
- #19 in Children's Black & African American Story Books

Customer Reviews:
2,230 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

Laurie Halse Anderson

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Laurie Halse Anderson is the New York Times-bestselling author who writes for kids of all ages. Known for tackling tough subjects with humor and sensitivity, her work has earned numerous American Library Association and state awards. Two of her books, Speak and Chains, were National Book Award finalists. Chains also earned a spot on the Carnegie Medal Short List.

Laurie received the 2009 Margaret A. Edwards Award given by the Young Adult Library Services Association division of the American Library Association for her "significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature."

Mother of four and wife of one, Laurie lives in Northern New York State, an hour south of the Canadian border, where she likes to watch the snow fall as she writes. Right now she's finishing up her next YA novel and researching Ashes, which will conclude the adventure of Isabel and Curzon that readers enjoyed in her historical novels Chains and Forge.

You'll find loads more information about Laurie and her books on her website: http://madwomanintheforest.com/. You can follow her adventures on Twitter, http://twitter.com/halseanderson, on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/lauriehalseanderson, and on her blog, http://madwomanintheforest.com/blog/.

Customer reviews

5 star		80%
4 star		12%
3 star		4%
2 star		1%
1 star		3%

How customer reviews and ratings work

Reviews with images

See all customer images

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Joan C. Curtis

Wish I Could Give It More Than 5 Stars!

Reviewed in the United States on January 14, 2017

Verified Purchase

Some books just blow you away. Laurie Halse Anderson did that in her trilogy beginning with Chains. A National Book Award finalist this book deserves all its awards.

In a time like today when we face the possible repression of our people, it behooves us to examine history. So many of us believe our founding fathers were good people. We believe what they said and did was sacrosanct. We've honor them and set them up as near dieties. But, in reality they were people. Full of flaws, just like us. Had they lost the Revolutionary War, they would have been shunned and called traitors. Having won, we herald them as heroes.

In Chains we examine what it might have been like during that turbulent, uncertain time to have been a slave. The main character, Isabel, is a Negro child, trying to protect her younger sister. Alone, enslaved, abused, she struggles to achieve her rightful freedoms. The author did an amazing job of telling Isabel's story without overdramatizing the hardships. Made it easier for me to read.

The times are tempestuous at best. Finding herself in New York City at the time of the British invasion, Isabel sways from the rebel side to the British side. Her goal is not a country's freedom, which she recognizes as not pertaining to her, but the freedom of herself and her sister. She'll risk her life to achieve that goal.

Each chapter begins with a clip from a primary source, a newspaper article, a letter from a patriot or a British soldier, an excerpt from our historical documents. Those headings ground the chapter in history. The author strives to tell Isabel's story as accurately as she can all these years later.

Book 2 and 3 are finished. Thank goodness for those of us just finding this trilogy. Because when you finish Chains, you'll not want to wait to keep reading.

Here are some examples of the beautiful writing:
...Being loyal to the one who owned me gave me prickly thoughts, like burrs trapped in my shift, pressing into my skin with every step.
...There was truth in his words, hard truth, a hammer sticking a stone
..."Gossip is the foul smell of the Devil's backside," that's what Momma always said.
...Her voice sounded raw, like it had been run against a grater.

The absolute essence of this first book is written in these words from Isabel's mouth: I was chained between two nations.

Enjoy this wonderful series. If it doesn't win the National Book Award, it certainly should have!!i

23 people found this helpful

Helpful

S. Werkema

Historically detailed, realistic

Reviewed in the United States on May 16, 2019

Verified Purchase

Many books about slavery - whether for kids or adults - focus on the American South. This makes sense, except it's important not to forget that slavery was for many years also common in the North. In Chains, a 13-year-old slave girl in New York City tries to protect her younger sister. When she cannot, she resolves to do whatever it takes to find freedom. Chains is engrossing, realistic, historically detailed, suspenseful. The beginning of the Revolution is certainly important to the story, but the central issue in Chains is that the Colonists' goal of freedom applied only to whites, not to the humans they owned. I look forward to reading the other books in the series.

7 people found this helpful

Helpful

David Valentine

My 13 year old daughter devoured this book

Reviewed in the United States on October 23, 2020

Verified Purchase

My 13 yr old daughter was assigned this book to read in school. The first assignment was to read the first 5 chapters. When the teacher checked on students' progress toward that, she'd already read those 5 chapters, plus 40 more. And asked (well, demanded) that we buy the next two books in the trilogy, which she's now reading. So I'd offer kudos all around--to the author for writing such an engaging book, and to the teacher for assigning reading that really inspires students.

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

Customer

Perfect for Historical Fiction Lovers

Reviewed in the United States on January 13, 2019

Verified Purchase

I'm a reading teacher, and whenever I have a student who tells me they love historical ficiton, I recommend this book. I think that students sometimes forget that slavery existed in the Northern parts of the United States when we were still colonies, and it's an incredibly eye opening experience for them to read Isabel's story, especially because we live in New York. It's a new perspective on the Revolutionary War that really engages my students!

7 people found this helpful

Helpful

K. Bird Lincoln

learn more about the Revolutionary war and have the lessons sink into your brain because of how Isabel experiences it as a slave

Reviewed in the United States on April 10, 2014

Verified Purchase

Quite possibly Chains is one of the best, most difficult, mesmerizing, lilting pieces of American historical fiction I've ever read.

Isabel and her 5 year old, "slow" sister Ruth are slaves. They were supposed to get their freedom upon the death of their mistress, but in a cruel twist of fairly common fate, the son of their mistress sells them to a well-to-do Tory couple on their way back to New York.

Only it's 1776 and New York is caught in the grip of rebellion and political upheaval. The first person Isabel meets is the slave of a rebel patriot, Curzon, who makes it known to Isabel that any information she can pass on about her Tory master will be rewarded.

But despite risking herself for the patriots and the implied promise of freedom, Isabel will contend with broken promises and refusal to acknowledge her humanity from the very men fomenting war to protest their own lack of voice and freedom.

What side can a slave choose?

From the first chapter Anderson sets you down in Isabel's work-a-day world and immerses you in 1776 New York. There are primary source quotations at the beginning of each chapter that only drive home the terrible irony of a time people waxed eloquent on freedom and still kept slaves. Anderson slowly strips away any naivete a reader might have as she imprisons Isabel in cruel situations where she can not care for the only precious thing she as left-- her sister, Ruth.

You can learn more about famous patriots and the Revolutionary war reading this book then many a textbook-- and the lessons will sink deep in your brain because of how Isabel experiences them and the meaning it has for her own life as a slave.

And Isabel's voice. A perfect balance of gritty reality, a touch of African spirituality, and that stream of consciousness sensibility that Anderson brings to her main characters that let you inside a world so utterly different from your own in a way that makes it familiar and terrifyingly real.

I wouldn't necessarily hand this book to a younger YA reader without being sure they could handle some very cruel (but realistic) portrayals of slapping, beating, and at one point branding of a slave.

Highly recommended.

7 people found this helpful

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Amazon Customer

Amazing

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 30, 2014

Verified Purchase

I've read every single book LHA has published (even the ones that weren't published in the UK....you can still get hold of them) and she has an extraordinary talent for making characters completely arresting and believable in a single sentence. This is her best book, and since she is an exceptional writer, this is high praise indeed!!

2 people found this helpful

seb

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 1, 2014

Verified Purchase

my daughter got totally engrossed reading this book (11yr old)

scriv

A must read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 12, 2013

Verified Purchase