Clyde Thomason has everything to live for and plenty to escape! His brother is serving as an Army Guard of the famed Freedom Train. Touring the United States with its 127 historic, patriotic American documents, the train’s passage through large and small American cities and suburbs is inspiring a people exhausted from the suffering of the recent Depression and World War II. As the date for the Freedom Train’s appearance in Clyde’s hometown approaches, one student will be chosen to stand on stage and pronounce the Freedom Pledge. Will it be Clyde, who is more often than not the victim of bullies’ words and acts, or Phillip Granger? And what will Clyde do with his thoughts and feelings that both compel him toward and away from William Dobbs the Third, the different newcomer boy who might turn out to be friend or just another enemy? Freedom Train is a young adult story that has several great historical plot lines eventually joining to create a believable, appealing ending.