Why Longfellow Lied by Jeff Lantos

Why Longfellow Lied:  The Truth About Paul Revere’s Midnight Ride

by Jeff Lantos

Why Longfellow Lied: The Truth About Paul Revere’s Midnight Ride is a junior Non-Fiction book about Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s famous poem, Paul Revere’s Ride. The ride took place at the beginning of the Revolutionary War to warn the people of Massachusetts that the British were coming to attack.

The author, Jeff Lantos studied history at Brown University and is a school teacher in Los Angeles. His extensive Bibliography, Source Notes, and Cast of Characters give considerable credibility to the author’s information.

I thought the title of the book should be The Truth About Paul Revere’s Midnight Ride…no need for “Why Longfellow Lied”. I doubt that when Longfellow was using his creative talents to write a work of literature that he was intentionally being devious; rather, he was using creative license.

As for factual information, the author provides about that famous midnight ride, it is plentiful and interesting: Did you know that Paul Revere could do many things but he could not row a boat? How then did he get across the Charles River from Boston to Charles Town/Charlestown?

Learn what very strange material was used for the sides of the lanterns in the Old North Church. Whom from the British side does the author think provided important information to the Patriots? Find out what the difference is between minutemen and militiamen and more.

The author, Jeff Lantos, fills in for us what Longfellow chose to leave out of his poem, or perhaps did not know. He also gives Longfellow credit for writing the Midnight Ride of Paul Revere and asks us to forgive Longfellow’s sins of omission, noting that  Longfellow…” didn’t write the poem to inform; he wrote it to inspire.”