A Most Perilous World by Kristina R. Gaddy

A Most Perilous World

The True Story of the Young Abolitionists and Their Crusade Against Slavery

Kristina R. Gaddy

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.

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Genres
Civil War Era for Teens, Civil & Human Rights for Teens, Prejudice & Racism for Teens
Published
Penguin Young Readers Group, June 10, 2025

About 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.

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"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 Teens95%
Civil & Human Rights for Teens33%
Prejudice & Racism for Teens30%

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