On Friday, May 1, at 7 p.m. at the Plaza Branch, 4801 Main St., local author Andrea Warren presents her recently released nonfiction book for young adults Under Siege! Three Children at the Civil War Battle for Vicksburg.

Warren's period piece, described as "a unique perspective on a pivotal Civil War campaign," follows the 1863 siege of Vicksburg through the eyes of three young people from December 1862 through the aftermath of the surrender on July 4, 1863. The narrative uses the points of view of 10-year-old Lucy McRae, the daughter of a successful Vicksburg businessman, as well as 11-year-old Willie Lord, the son of a Vicksburg minister, and Fred Grant, the 12-year-old son of then-General Ulysses S. Grant.

Those interested in military campaigns will find Grant's observations of battlefields as well as his father's command center fascinating, while others will be intrigued by the stories of families living in dug-out caves and eventually facing starvation while cannonballs and artillery shells rained down.

Warren's writing has earned her several awards including the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, the American Library Association Notable Book Award, and Booklist: Top 10 Biographies for 2001 for her book We Rode the Orphan Trains.