American Spirits
The Famous Fox Sisters and the Mysterious Fad that Haunted a Nation
by Barb Rosenstock
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Pub Date Apr 15 2025 | Archive Date Apr 01 2025
Astra Publishing House | Calkins Creek
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Description
A real-life ghost story for young adult readers interested in the supernatural, American history, and women’s rights!
Rap. Rap. Rap. The eerie sound was first heard in March of 1848 at the home of the Fox family in Hydesville, New York. The family’s two daughters, Kate and Maggie, soon discovered that they could communicate with the spirit that was making these uncanny noises; he told them he had been a traveling peddler who had been murdered. This strange incident, and the ones that followed, generated a media frenzy beyond anything the Fox sisters could have imagined. Kate and Maggie, managed (or perhaps manipulated) by their elder sister Leah, became famous spirit mediums, giving public exhibitions, and advising other celebrities of their day.
But were the Fox sisters legitimate? In the years that followed their rise, the Civil War killed roughly 1 in 4 soldiers, increasing the demand for contacting the dead. However, media campaigns against the sisters gathered steam as well...
This thrilling and mysterious true story from veteran author Barb Rosenstock (Caldecott Honor winner) will spark teens’ interest in American history, encourage media literacy, and reveal insights into the Civil War era, fake news, and women's rights.
Advance Praise
“Gather around the table and dim the lights. Clap. Clap. Clap. Do you hear that? It’s the sound of young readers applauding Barb Rosenstock’s American Spirits, a compelling, dramatic, wonderfully strange, yet entirely true ghost story. Gullibility and fakery; obscurity and celebrity; religion, history and biography. It’s all here, and it’s utterly mesmerizing.” —Candace Fleming, Sibert Medalist, winner of the LA Times Book Prize for Young People’s Literature, author of Murder Among Friends and other award-winning nonfiction and fiction for all ages.
“The Fox sisters captivated their neighbors, friends, detractors, and all of America. This book will captivate readers—with great storytelling, rigorous research, the truth—and no trickery!” —Deborah Heiligman, winner of the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for Nonfiction for Vincent and Theo, author of Charles and Emma, Torpedoed, and other celebrated nonfiction.
“Both a personal story of the three Fox sisters and a unique look at mid-nineteenth-century history, American Spirits has it all: rise to power, fame, greed, love, lost love, and fall from grace, all recounted blow by blow in the frenzied media coverage of the day.” —Elizabeth Partridge, National Book Award Finalist, 2023 Sibert Medalist for Seen and Unseen, and author of more than a dozen award-winning books for young people.
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9781635928051 |
| PRICE | $24.99 (USD) |
| PAGES | 304 |
Links
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
Melanie T, Reviewer
I really enjoyed this - this the exact kind of nonfiction book I would have loved as a teenager, and as a historian, I tend to want ALL the details about a subject I am interested in. The book really shone in it's images and readability. I also greatly appreciated the depth of the historical context Rosenstock included, as it really emphasized the impact these women had on the broader American story.
That being said, the first half of the book was essentially a circular story of the Fox sisters being believed and disbelieved and I don't know that every experience and quote included was really necessary and it felt a little repetitive. Once the girls began to be more independent from Leah, it became a lot more exciting and easier to become invested.
Overall, I would absolutely recommend this to any teenager I knew who loved the supernatural, history, or both. The average teenager may find this too long - but my kindred American spirits would find this worth the read.
Kathryn M, Reviewer
I really didn't know anything about the Fox sisters expect for a feel things but was glad I was able to read this and learn more about them. Barb Rosenstock has a strong writing style and could see the research element that I was looking for.
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