
A Most Perilous World
The True Story of the Young Abolitionists and Their Crusade Against Slavery
Penguin Young Readers Group · Print & ebook · June 10, 2025
The stories of the four teenage children of prominent abolitionists before and during the Civil War combine to form a surprisingly familiar tapestry of struggle, disappointment, and ultimately hope.
We earn from qualifying purchases.
- Genres
- Civil War Era for Teens, Civil & Human Rights for Teens, Prejudice & Racism for Teens
- Published
- Penguin Young Readers Group, June 10, 2025
Nearest books
Matched by what the books are about, then ordered by what their readers also loved.
A Long Time ComingRay Anthony Shepard53% matchShares Civil & Human Rights for Teens
Passenger on the PearlWinifred Conkling65% match
Turning 15 on the Road to FreedomLynda Blackmon Lowery60% matchShares Civil & Human Rights for Teens
The Letter WriterAnn Rinaldi59% match
Women Heroes of the American RevolutionSusan Casey58% match
RiotWalter Dean Myers58% match
Under Siege!Andrea Warren57% matchShares Civil War Era for Teens
Across Five AprilsIrene Hunt57% match
For younger readers: Bloody Times, The 1619 Project: Born on the Water
For older readers: A Year in the South: 1865
Start with three books, and this one can be the first.
Members get a new edition every morning: a route out from their books to essays, research and talks, with the reason for each.
Start with this bookAbout this book
The stories of the four teenage children of prominent abolitionists before and during the Civil War combine to form a surprisingly familiar tapestry of struggle, disappointment, and ultimately hope.
Continue reading
"Impeccable research and incredible details bring the stories of these four young people to life as they come of age in the years leading up to and during the Civil War."—Kip Wilson, award-winning author of White Rose Flowers in the Gutter author Kristina R. Gaddy tells the story of America’s tumultuous years leading up to the Civil War and of the war itself from the viewpoints of four children of famous abolitionists, including those of Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison. Gaddy crafts a surprisingly contemporary coming-of-age narrative, supported by meticulous research and featuring dozens of primary documents. Each of these four young people—two white, two Black—was strongly committed to the anti-slavery cause but felt just as keenly a need to make their own names, away from the often over-protective or disapproving shadows of the famous adults in their lives. This is a true story of how a torch of resistance is passed and how a new generation makes its mark.
Where it sits
| Civil War Era for Teens | 95% |
|---|---|
| Civil & Human Rights for Teens | 33% |
| Prejudice & Racism for Teens | 30% |
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- Civil War Era for Teens
- Prejudice & Racism for Teens
- Civil & Human Rights for Teens
- Authors
- Kristina R. Gaddy
- Publisher
- Penguin Young Readers Group
- Published
- June 10, 2025
- Format
- Print & ebook
- Reading lane
- Civil War Era for Teens