Includes bibliographical references (pages 115-118) and index.

"The question of whether to make the United States a slave country or to make all people free was the question that pitted the states against each other in a brutal battle. In The Civil War: The Struggle that Divided America, readers ages 12-15 explore this conflict through the eyes and ears of the men and women who were touched by the clash that left more than 700,000 soldiers dead. Following the American Revolution, slavery was enshrined in the U.S. Constitution. However, the United States still wrestled with whether it would be a country of slavery or grant freedom for all. The southern states relied on slavery's economic role, while the northern states, though also beneficiaries of the benefits of slavery, were closer to deciding that the institution should be outlawed. The rapid territorial expansion of the United States in the first half of the nineteenth century created a series of crises that upset the delicate balance of power between free and slave states, ultimately sparking the Civil War. The Civil War was the central crisis in American history. The issues at the heart of the conflict--race, freedom, and citizenship--still resonate today."--Page [4] of cover.

Ages 12-15.

Guided reading level: Z+