My Brother Sam Is Dead

Sam is arrested by two cattle thieves who frame him for being a cattle thief. The cattle thieves proceed to present Sam to General Putnam. The story My Brother Sam is Dead gives a different...

Tim Meeker is the main character of My Brother Sam is Dead. When the story starts, Tim is still a child. He admires his brother, Sam, and looks up to his father. By the end of the story, both his...

The war has torn the Meeker family apart, and Mrs. Meeker is not about to let Tim, her only remaining son, get involved in it too. The Meeker family is entangled in both sides of the war - Tim's...

Tim takes the Brown Bess, a rifle, from his brother Sam to protect his father against the continental soldiers. At the beginning of the chapter, Sam runs toward his house when he sees the soldiers...

The book My Brother Sam Is Dead takes place during the Revolutionary War. Since it is a historical fiction young adult novel, it is based on real places and historical themes, although the...

In the fall of 1776, Mr. Meeker must plan his usual trip to Verplancks Point to trade cattle in exchange for supplies needed by the family. Because "there's no one else to do it", Tim will...

Mr. William Heron is a somewhat minor character in the book; however, that does not prevent him from being an incredibly interesting character. Heron is a very wealthy individual who lives near the...

In Chapter 2 Tim (the narrator) explains to the reader his community's perspective on the war, then talks with his father about what Sam wanted and then with Sam and Betsy Read about the reasons...

I have read this book while teaching junior high English, but my memory on it is not very good due to the lack of interest in Revolutionary literature. I do know of an excellent website though that...

As with many young men, Tim is initially very enthusiastic about war. He sees the bitter, bloody conflict between the American colonists and the British as nothing more than an awfully big...

Tim's parents fight over Sam's letters mainly because Mrs. Meeker wants to respond to Sam, and Mr. Meeker does not. Mr. Meeker does not condone Sam's involvement in the war. As you can see...

Early in the story readers are told that Jeremiah "Jerry" Sanford is a few years younger than Tim, and we are told that they are friends and like to do a lot of things together. Readers have to...

To answer this question, it is probably best to start looking in chapter 7. It is in this chapter that Tim and his father begin their travels to Verplancks Point which is a trading post in New...

The bullet is removed from the wounded Rebel messenger, and he tells the people in the tavern that Captain Benedict Arnold will be bringing his army through Redding in order to pursue the British....

The actual details for this question can be found on pages 136-138 of "My Brother Sam Is Dead." Tim's mother tells him to hide the pewter in the barn and when he finishes that chore he stops...

This information can be found at the beginning of chapter 10, and it is a great economics lesson because it takes the high level concepts of supply and demand curves and explains it in a single,...

Mr. Beach "like(s) peace". He tells Sam, "God meant man to obey. He meant children to obey their fathers, he meant men to obey their kings". He espouses loyalty and thinks...

This chapter is similar to the previous chapters in that it is set in the time period of the Revolutionary War in the town of Redding, Connecticut. Before Chapter Five begins, the realities of the...

According to historical records for the city of Redding, Connecticut, Tom Warrups' grandfather's name was Chief Chickens Warrups.As presented in the novel "My Brother Sam Is Dead", Tom...

In the novel, "My Brother Sam Is Dead," Sam Meeker drops out of school, in 1775, and joins the militia so that he can fight for America's independence. The theme of the story is the Revolutionary...

During this time period there was great mistrust even among neighbors; people weren't really sure which side their friends and neighbors were on. Such was the case with Mr. Heron. Rumors that he...

The trip to Verplancks Point is a huge milestone for Tim. He has been looking forward to it because he is finally taking on the role of his older brother, Sam, whom he admires. However, the...

My Brother Sam is Dead is a coming-of-age story for Tim Meeker. He learns a lot about war, hardship, corruption, and death. Alongside of those things Tim learns responsibilities, and many of those...

The soldiers don't wear proper uniforms because they can't afford them. In a series of letters to his family, Sam describes how they have to live on short rations and, even in the winter, some men...

In the context of the Revolutionary War, which forms the backdrop to the action in My Brother Sam is Dead, most soldiers would've gone home after their initial period of enlistment was up. The vast...

The person who actually asks the question "Who shot first?" is Mr. Beach the Minister. I could see how you get confused about this because Sam's father is present at the table while the story is...

Verplancks Point is on the Hudson River. Boats from New York and Albany would travel up the Hudson to do some trading. Tim's father would start gathering cattle in October. Some of the farmers...

In My Brother Sam is Dead, by Christopher and James Collier, there are many shortages, in addition to food. As in all times of war, those involved in the fighting suffer many shortages of things...

My Brother Sam is Dead was written by Christopher Collier and James L. Collier. It is a fictional story about the Revolutionary War's disruptive impacts on a small Connecticut community. The story...

When Tim goes out to take care of the animals, he hopes his brother Sam will come to help him, but he doesn't at first. Resigned, Tim starts with the milking, and finally Sam does come in. Tim...

Do you mean Mr. Heron? Mr. Heron arrives at the tavern to order a keg of rum. However, he is really there to inquire about having Tim run an errand. Tim jumps at the chance to participate in...

Throughout the young adult novel My Brother Sam is Dead by Christopher Collier and James Lincoln Collier, Tim idolizes Sam. Sam is his outgoing, impetuous. older brother. Tim attends Sam’s...

In the beginning of My Brother Sam is Dead, by authors Christopher Collier and James L. Collier, young protagonist Tim expresses feelings of confusion about the Revolutionary War, and his confusion...

Sam fights with his father because he becomes a soldier for the Revolutionaries. Unfortunately, his father is a Loyalist and opposes Sam's decision. The argument Sam has with his father spurs on...

My Brother Sam is Dead focuses on the evolution of Tim Meeker as he grows from a young boy, easily accepting what the adults in his life tell him to a thoughtful young man, capable of his own...

In My Brother Sam Is Dead, Tim’s dad, Mr. Eliphalet Meeker, doesn’t want to buy another rifle, because he needs only one, and he doesn’t want Sam to take it in the first place: he doesn't want...

The Loyalists and Patriots had myriad reasons for and against the idea of going to war. In essence, the main question was whether the colonists owed their allegiance to the King of England, or...

There isn't a definitively correct answer to this question. Part of the reason for that is because Tim is the story's narrator, and he is constantly explaining to readers that he is not ever quite...

Sam has been arrested for stealing his own cattle. Mrs. Meeker doesn't understand why General Putman won't just let him go. Col. Read comes to the tavern and explains that Sam is in bad trouble...

Tim's father has just sold a lot of cattle and hogs to Mr. Bogardus. It feels good for Tim to be free of the animals at long last. Now that the hogs and the cattle have been safely penned and sold,...

The reality is that the origin of the term "Brown Bess" is disputed. People have differing ideas. Here are some of them: "Brown" came from the brown color of the rifle stock. "Brown" came from an...

Tim has been waiting for months to see Sam. Chapter 3 ends with Betsy giving Tim a signal that lets him know Sam has covertly returned for a brief visit. Chapter 4 begins with Tim being super...

I believe that this question is asking about events that occur in chapters 2 and 3. Already in chapter 2, Sam has gone to join the Patriot fight, and his actions have caused quite a stir in the...

The Meekers own a tavern. In it, they serve meals, but they also sell items such as kegs of rum, like the one Mr. Heron purchases from the family. The store in the tavern is a general store....

There is a point in the story when the war had not yet changed anything for Tim. He was still continuing life as usual. The only changes were stories about a war in the newspaper and...

In chapter 7 of "My Brother Sam Is Dead," Life Meeker was getting cattle together to try and get ready to travel to Verplancks Point. Every year in November Meeker travelled to Verplancks Point to...