James Lovell desperately wants to help the American cause, but alone
in a cold, dark cell in the Boston Stone Jail, his dreams seem a faint
illusion.
In icy March winds, pounded by the Americans' cannon, General Howe
evacuates British troops and Loyalists from Boston. James Lovell is
forced into a ship bound for Halifax, while his father and family take
passage for the British stronghold in the ship's upper berth. In jail in
Halifax, James can only write letters and pray for release, hoping
General George Washington will hear his appeal.
In The Remarkable Cause, experience conflict and courage in the roots
of the American Revolution:
- protests over the Stamp Act and Townshend Acts
- hanging in effigy, tar and feathering
- tension of the Boston Massacre trials
- troops charging Bunker Hill
- dreadful conditions in British jails for James and his fellow
prisoners
- the strength of a friend, Ethan Allen of the Green Mountain Boys
- James's passion for his family, in his own words
Jean C. O'Connor, a high school English teacher for over thirty years,
researched this story using letters, journals, and documents written by
James Lovell and his contemporaries. Inspired by a few sentences in her
grandmother's journal, Jean discovered details of that time far
away--yet still relevant. Images from early newspapers and pictures
enliven the narrative's pages.
