Beth Anderson, Children's Writer

Welcome to 2026! 

I’m kicking off the #AmericanRevolution250 blog series with a cover reveal—your first peek at THE PATRIOTS AND THE POX: GEORGE WASHINGTON’S BATTLE TO SAVE THE CONTINENTAL ARMY, illustrated by Ashley Yazdani, who came up with creative ways to depict disease, contagion, and immunity! Releasing September 29, 2026, it’s up online now! While many of us know that smallpox was a problem in the war, we tend to give little thought to the tremendous threat it posed and how it tested the new commander in chief. 

This often overlooked part of the American Revolution was an incredible adventure as I dug into the intersection of SO many topics…

• George Washington as commander in chief
• Small pox: epidemics, contagion, symptoms, progression of the disease, treatment, death rates, immunity
• Smallpox Inoculation: knowledge, fears, procedures, risks
• Immunity in Americans and British troops
• George’s bout with smallpox as a teen 
• The Continental Army: traveling, camps, procurement of supplies, medical procedures and staffing, divisions of the army, enlistment procedures
• Troops: behaviors, discipline, habits, conditions, attitudes
• Relationship and communication between government representatives and Washington
• Camp followers
• Battles: Quebec, Montreal, Boston, New York, and more
• Maps!

 While you can research any of these topics, the challenge for me is always the intersection of them—the interplay, the impact of each on the others. BUT that’s where real life happens. Therein lies the humanity. And that’s where I dig in—in search of the real people who faced incredible challenges we can barely imagine. 

Asking WHO? finds the people interacting. Asking WHY? helps me discover motivations. WHEN? and WHERE? reveal cause and effect, immerse me in the times, and widen understanding. HOW? brings realizations and connections. And WHAT IF? is where I find risk and stakes. 

Somehow in this process of sifting and digging and pondering, I find connections across time for myself and endeavor to offer valuable opportunities for young readers to engage with history as critical thinkers able to make connections to their lives and our world. 

I’ll be sharing more about the writing of this story, and also will be featuring guest posts from other authors with books about the revolutionary time period. So stay tuned and get ready to widen your world during the 250^th anniversary of the American Revolution this year.

Without further ado, here’s the cover of THE PATRIOTS AND THE POX…

You can find out more about the book HERE and find links to preorder.

I can’t wait to share it with you!