Danger Along the Ohio is a novel of historical fiction written by Patricia Willis

Patricia Willis

Patricia Willis is an American author of historical novels for middle-grade readers. She won the Western Writers of America Spur Award for her novel Danger Along the Ohio. She lives in North Canton, Ohio.-See also:Danger Along the OhioThe Barn Burner...

 and first published in 1997, it was the paperback edition. A hardcover

Hardcover

A hardcover, hardback or hardbound is a book bound with rigid protective covers...

 edition was published in 1999. There was also a limited edition library binding

Library binding

Library binding is the term used to describe the method of binding serials, and re-binding paperback or hardcover books, for use within libraries. Library binding increases the durability of books, as well as making the materials easier to use...

 edition that came out on October 1999.

Synopsis

Traveling down the Ohio River

Ohio River

The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...

 in May 1793, thirteen-year-old Amos and his younger siblings Clara and Jonathan and their cow Queen Anne are separated from their father during a raid by the Shawnee

Shawnee

The Shawnee, Shaawanwaki, Shaawanooki and Shaawanowi lenaweeki, are an Algonquian-speaking people native to North America. Historically they inhabited the areas of Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Western Maryland, Kentucky, Indiana, and Pennsylvania...

 Indians

Native Americans in the United States

Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...

. The three children and their cow are swept down the river, and decide that they must make their way back through the wilderness in the direction of the Marietta, Ohio

Marietta, Ohio

Marietta is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Ohio, United States. During 1788, pioneers to the Ohio Country established Marietta as the first permanent American settlement of the new United States in the Northwest Territory. Marietta is located in southeastern Ohio at the mouth...

 settlement, hoping to find their father there. They find an Indian in the Ohio River. They call him Red Moccasin. Red Moccasin mistrusts them and his condition slows them down, but Amos refuses to leave him behind to die. The children and they're cow continue their dangerous journey towards the Marietta Settlement on their own, but they get captured by Red Moccasin's grandfather. Amos is thinking about the Indian Chef Blue Jacket

Blue Jacket

Blue Jacket or Weyapiersenwah was a war chief of the Shawnee people, known for his militant defense of Shawnee lands in the Ohio Country...

about how he got captured by Indians to stay if they left his siblings go. They finally get to Marietta, and they find their father there. [see notes]

Red Moccasin

He is the Indian that Amos, Clara,and Jonathan found. He is a Shawnee, and his grandfather name is unknown. His Indian name is also unknown.

Simon

Amos old friend. Amos accidentally killed him with a gun when they were playing a game. It was when Amos [supposed to be not loaded] pulled that trigger and said "Bang,your dead!" The gun was loaded and it hit him in the stomach. It killed him a couple days later.

Major themes

One of Danger Along the Ohio major themes is about how the struggle for land against the newly founded United States of America vs. the Native Americans. Also, one of its major themes is how the Europeans wanted to own land and how the Native Americans wanted people to share their land.

Kirkus Reviews

Kirkus Reviews said that

...Willis has created a rousing adventure; it will have readers turning the pages and rooting for the spunky Dunn kids all the way.

School Library Journal

School Library Journal said that

...The author's sturdy plot advances distinctly and chronologically, resulting in pure suspense. She keeps her vocabulary action-oriented and her dialogue straightforward. The young Shawnee's presence raises intriguing philosophical questions regarding the nature of communication and the components of true friendship. After all of this, who could complain about a contrived happy ending?

Booklist

Booklist said that

...In this fast-paced adventure, Willis successfully re-creates the anti-Indian prejudice of 1795 when white easterners fought to settle Ohio.

Spur Award for Best Juvenile Fiction

Danger Along the Ohio won the Spur Award for Best Juvenile Fiction in 1998.

Society of School Librarians International Book Awards

Danger Along the Ohio won the 1997 Society of School Librarians International Book Awards for Novel. (Grades K-6)

Young Hoosier Book Award [Nominee]

Danger Along the Ohio was a nominee for Young Hoosier Book Award

External links

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