George Washington's Spectacular Spectacles

Starred review from November 1, 2024
Grades 2-5 *Starred Review* It was a closely guarded secret that President George Washington wore glasses when reading documents. If people found out, would they consider him weak or odd-looking? In 1783, he learned that his army officers, furious that they had never been paid for their wartime service, had decided to storm Congress, demanding their money. Washington sent a polite note to Congress, which promised to pay when they could. Washington wrote a speech urging patience and tried to read it to the angry officers, who listened but disagreed. Frustrated by his difficulty reading the speech, Washington put on his glasses. Silence fell as the officers realized their beloved former general, who had given up so much for his country, was aging. Tears fell, and the men decided to drop their treasonous plan and follow Washington's advice. The author of many children's books based on research into American history, Castrovilla tells her latest story with wit, pathos, and attention to detail. The end matter traces the history of the officer's little-known treasonous plan and notes that when Washington began using his spectacles in public, others overcame their reluctance as well. Harney's quirky illustrations suggest the look of the period while capturing the amusing tone of the narrative.

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November 15, 2024
By donning his glasses, George Washington thwarts soldiers from committing treason. Castrovilla, who's written four other books about the Revolutionary War, describes Washington's need for glasses as an embarrassment ("It was a secret"). She uses this fact to launch a storyline about the Newburgh Conspiracy ("It was a secret," she repeats), a plan hatched by frustrated army officers to storm Congress and demand payment. Having defeated the British, Washington refuses to allow his new government to be toppled. His spectacles, illustrated by Harney in shimmering sepia, appear only when he slams his office door to read in private. During one of those sessions, he reads Congress' answer to him about when his officers will be paid--soon, they say. Washington shares this response in a windy speech that doesn't convince them to stand down. Putting on his spectacles to read them the actual letter from Congress, he prefaces his remarks with an apology ("I have grown gray in your service and now find myself growing blind"); they are moved to tears by his sacrifice. The book uses a variety of fonts, from hand-lettered notes to onomatopoeic sound effects, alongside comical close-ups of Washington's bug eyes and emotive crowd scenes that lend the story a pleasing, old-timey feel. Allowing readers to experience this event through Washington's lens, literally, makes for an original, thought-provoking framing, and it's hard not to draw a connection with the January 6 insurrection--though with a vastly different outcome. An enlightening tale, enlivened by droll, retro illustrations. (author's note, the Newburgh Conspiracy players, glasses in 1783, about the research, bibliography)(Informational picture book. 7-10)

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