The appeal of black bile.

Genre: YA/Middle Grade/ Historical Fiction

Summary: Matilda Cook lives in Philadelphia in 1793 as the Yellow Fever outbreak is decimating the world around her.

Most appropriate for: 4th grade and up.

Sensitivities: none.

Classroom library? yes. 

Enjoyability: ★★★★★ (5/5)

I adore this book. This year, I’ve read it essentially 4 times in total and I enjoyed it every time. The plot keeps you guessing and keeps you on your toes. The main character is truly enjoyable and relatable, despite the time era differences, and the Yellow Fever epidemic is truly fascinating to study and read about. Also Nathaniel Benson. The more Nathaniel Benson, the happier everyone is.

Teachability: ★★★★★ (5/5)

This book provides SO MUCH opportunity for teaching. From the extension activities you can do with Yellow Fever, to the opportunities for reading response, to the phenomenal vocabulary and figurative language - it’s the kind of book that causes you to choose what your focus is going to be because if you tried to teach everything you’d be reading forever. I could not more highly recommend any book for curriculum use, and what’s even better is that students, for the most part, truly enjoyed it. They were always wanting to know what happened next, and gave favorable reviews at the end. 

Plus, any time someone’s puking up black stuff, Middle Schoolers are on board.

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