Donner Dinner Party (Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales) by Nathan Hale
Reviewed by: Sylvia Shults, Circulation
Genre: Historical Fiction (Graphic Novel)
Suggested Age: Tweens, Teens
What is the book about?: Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales is a graphic novel series that describes events from history in a way that makes them easy to understand and very, very entertaining. It helps that the author chooses stories that really have the potential to hold an audience’s interest … things like the Donner party tragedy. You say history is boring? Not when Nathan Hale is here to tell those hazardous tales! The secret is that there are two Nathan Hales. Nathan Hale the Revolutionary spy tells the stories, while Nathan Hale the author writes them all down.
My Review: This is some seriously entertaining stuff about some serious subjects. The point of this series is that Nathan Hale, a spy hanged during the American Revolution, puts off his execution, Scheherezade-style, by telling the hangman and the British officer in charge of the hanging tales from American history. It’s a macabre premise for a series, but boy does it work. And the stories Hale shares border on the macabre too. I started off with Donner Dinner Party, curious to see how this could possibly be in any way funny. Hale (both the storyteller and the author) does manage it. Other stories include Harriet Tubman’s story (not macabre but intense), the Battle of the Alamo, and the First World War (Treaties, Trenches, Mud and Blood).
Three Words That Describe This Book: Funny, informative, thrilling
Give This a Try if You Like… History and/or graphic novels.
Rating: 5/5
About FDL Reads
Welcome to FDL Reads, weekly book reviews from Fondulac District Library. Librarians (and possibly some other guest reviewers) review all types of books, from children’s picture books, young adult favorites, to the latest adult thriller, and share their thoughts each week at fondulaclibrary.org. If the book is owned by Fondulac District Library (or another local library), you’ll see a direct link to the catalog entry and whether or not it is available. If it is checked out or at another local library, you will be able to place a hold as long as you have your library card and PIN numbers. As with any book review, these are our opinions…we disagree amongst ourselves about books frequently. We all have different likes and dislikes, which is what makes the world an interesting place. Please enjoy, and keep on reading!