Numbering all the Bones

Rinaldi calls Andersonville “a death camp–maybe the only real one to exist on American soil” (165). Research the concentration camps and military prison camps of the Nazis before and during World War II. How did the conditions at Andersonville compare to Nazi concentration camps? How did they compare to World War II prisoner-of-war camps? Research the Union Civil War military prisons. How did Andersonville compare to Union Army prisoner-of-war camps?

Rinaldi was a white author from New York who was writing about the experiences of Black individuals and those with a diverse racial background in the Civil War south, thus leading some reviewers to challenge the authenticity of what she wrote. Can any person write an authentic account of events that happened 150 years or more in the past? If an author is of a different race, gender, or geographical origin, does that make it impossible for that author to capture the truth and ambiance of a different culture?

Clara Barton was aghast at the conditions experienced by the prisoners at Andersonville and wondered why locals did not intervene. Knowing that women could speak out and make a difference, why was Clara willing to socialize with the women in that region who had done nothing to protest or prevent the atrocities there?

Research the topics of “Secret Yankee” and “copperhead” regarding Civil War era civilians. What is the difference between these two positions? What is the danger to a civilian of favoring the opposite side when that person’s nation has gone to war? Is it always wrong to favor the opposite side in a military conflict? How should a government that is at war treat its citizens who favor the opposing side?

Historians point to the Emancipation Proclamation, issued January 1, 1863, and Lee’s surrender to Grant on April 9, 1865, as the end of slavery and the end of the Civil War. Yet in Chapter 17, several dozen former slaves approach Clara Barton to ask her if President Lincoln was dead and whether they had to return to slavery. Even today, Juneteenth is celebrated as the date when slaves in Texas learned of their emancipation. Why was there so much confusion around the official end of slavery in the United States?

One of the themes that continually emerges among Eulinda and African Americans around her is the notion of “making oneself come true.” Does the concept of “becoming true” to oneself have any application in today’s world? How can a person know if they have become true today? Was it simpler for people in Eulinda’s day to know what it meant to become true?

In their conversation about William Griffin’s motives, Man-Jack discusses with Eulinda the universal unwillingness of soldiers to talk about their battlefield experiences. What possible reasons might cause veterans of armed conflict to be so reticent to explain to non-combatants what happened during wartime? Who might benefit from veterans discussing these experiences?

Numbering All the Bones deals with several topics, including war, slavery, prison camps, severe illness, malnutrition, mistreatment of prisoners, and death. How was the author able to discuss such difficult topics in ways that could still be discussed by middle-graders?