My Brother Sam is Dead is a historical fiction novel told in the first person, through the eyes of Timothy Meeker, a ten-year-old boy. It narrates the hardships suffered by Tim and his family during the Revolutionary War. When Tim’s older brother, Sam, joins the rebel forces, he shocks the rest of his family who wish to remain neutral and/or avoid war with England. Tim’s family is Anglican and therefore loyal to the Church of England, so a break with England would hit them hard.
Through Tim Meeker we learn about the problems, concerns and conflicts of the rebellion on a personal level. Each chapter touches on a series of themes and issues that give readers a better understanding of the effects the American Revolution had on individuals, their families, their churches, their towns, their neighbors…in short, it allows readers to see the war from the position of those who lived through it. This is one of the greatest strengths of the novel; quietly weaves all the themes and problems of the early years of the American Revolution into a tragic story of a ten-year-old boy’s role in a war he doesn’t understand.
The novel highlights many of the issues and events that affected towns like Redding, Connecticut and its inhabitants at this time in the war. Below are the themes that have been woven into this novel that I find most intriguing.
- What people were experiencing at the start of the Revolution.
The novel begins in April 1775 and ends in February 1779… a very volatile period of the American Revolution as it was not clear which side would win the war. Many were still confused about the issues or unwilling to solidify a position on the issues. As the story unfolds, the consequences of the war prove devastating for the Meeker family, as the rebelliousness of Tim’s brother, Sam, and the pacifist stance taken by Tim’s father, Life, result in the ironic death of Tim. of both, symbolizing the atrocities and injustice of war. .
- Trying to remain neutral and/or ignore the Rebellion.
Life Meeker is a moderately successful businessman and member of the Anglican Church who feels that a rebellious secession from England will put both his livelihood and his religion at risk. He doesn’t want Rebellion; he just wants things to stay the way they are. Life’s decision to ignore the war and go about his business as he always has, turns out to be fatal.
- The currency problems that arose because of the rebellion and the way in which it was financed.
The Meekers run a tavern/shop, and keeping it running is hard work. Even before the Revolution, to earn money, every year Tim’s father and his brother Sam traveled to New York State to sell the cattle they received from people who owed them money. During war it becomes even more difficult as paper money and commissary notes alter the values of existing currencies and have a negative impact on local economies and businesses.
- Sacrifices that families and individuals were forced to make during the American Revolution.
Since Sam sided with the rebels and wasn’t there, Tim’s responsibilities have increased tenfold. The jobs that Tim and Sam used to share now fall on Tim’s shoulders. Father (Vida) takes Tim on his annual cattle drive to New York. They even have to travel without a Brown Bess (musket/pistol used for protection), which Sam had recently stolen. Because Life is captured on her return trip from Verplanck, Tim has to take care of his mother and himself for the rest of the novel. He is forced to grow up overnight to see that he is now the man of the house, with his father in prison and Sam fighting with the patriots.
- Groups that formed during the war for good and bad reasons.
Safety Committees – These committees were formed early in the war to disarm people who could potentially provide aid to the British. Life is an Anglican and is therefore seen as a loyalist/conservative by the local Safety Committee who go to the Meeker Tavern to disarm him. As the war progressed, these groups worked to maintain order in rural areas and help those in need.
Cowboys and Skinners: Cowboys and Skinners were groups of raiders who harassed and pillaged the rural border districts between American and British forces in Westchester County, New York. Westchester County was the so-called “neutral ground” since the British were in the Bronx and the Americans were in Peekskill, New York. The cowboys capture life on their way back to Redding on their cattle run. Cowboys.
- Wartime raids and brutal acts that take place during war.
In Chapter 10, the British march through Redding and capture several Patriots on their way to Danbury, CT to destroy the rebel/Patriot war supplies that were stored there. As the British leave town, a local slave is accosted and brutally murdered as Tim watches in horror. The point the authors were making here is that war is cruel and people die.
- Winter camps and the problems within them during the early stages of the Revolutionary War: theft of local cattle; spies and desertion; too much discipline.
General Israel Putnam’s division of the Continental Army is encamped at Redding in the winter of 1778-1779 and Sam Meeker is a soldier in one of Putnam’s camps. One night, Sam sneaks out of camp and returns home to spend time with his family. As they discuss the war and related topics, Sam hears a commotion outside… Patriot soldiers are trying to steal their cattle! When Sam steps in, they outnumber him and beat him up. Back at the camp, he is falsely accused and court-martialed for deserting the camp and stealing cattle. General Putnam, who has long dealt with ill-equipped troops, deserters and traitors, feels he needs to set an example to maintain discipline among his army. Sam, unfortunately, becomes one of the two examples that winter, and is executed.
- The difficulties of war.
Throughout the novel, we are provided with examples of the hardships that local communities endured during the Revolution and long after. Economically, socially, and emotionally, the Revolutionary War was devastating to the people who lived through it, and the narrative provided by Tim brings these sentiments to life.
I believe that the best way to use this novel in the classroom is to explore the themes that I have listed above. Each chapter is oriented to give us a better understanding of the difficulties caused by the American Revolution and the effect it had on people, their families, their churches, their towns, their neighbors, etc… and therefore the novel can be a very powerful learning tool if you are willing to look beyond the story.
My Brother Sam Is Dead was written by Christopher and James Lincoln Collier and can be found in most bookstores and public libraries.
