In 1776, with pressure mounting to join the American Revolution, an intrepid young Post rider, Nathaniel Marten, accepts the task of carrying the sole copy of the Declaration of Independence to seven congressmen unable to attend the formal signing. British generals and double-crossing spies are eager to capture both him and the document so they can divide the colonies already weakened by war. Through encounters with well-known original founding fathers and mothers, and by witnessing the effects of the Revolution on ordinary Americans, Nathaniel must learn that independence--for himself, for those he loves, and for the country­­--is not granted, it's chosen.

Presents the lives, deaths, and scandals involving the fifty-six signers of the Declaration of Independence, including John Adams, John Hancock, and Thomas Jefferson.

A journalist for National Public Radio and ABC News recounts the challenges he has faced as a paraplegic at home and abroad, from the dangers of war-torn Iraq and Jerusalem to discrimination at home. Reprint.