Burning Bright

Burning Bright –by Tracy Chevalier

Fiction, Historical

637 KB / 327 pages

4 Stars

London 1793-1793, or rather, one small neighborhood and two families, with the Blake's in the middle.

To be honest (and somewhat embarrassed) I didn't realize the neighbor, Mr. Blake was THE William Blake until I began reading some of the other reviews. Neither that particular part of history, nor he, nor his poetry, have ever been great favorites of mine, in case you couldn't tell.

I read this story as a coming of age story of two young people, Jem and Maggie and except for the long bouts of poetry I fairly well enjoyed it. Until the end. Something about the end left me dissatisfied. Like a well prepared gourmet meal and a bag of cheap cookies from the corner store for dessert. It was OK, but....

My first Chevalier book was The Last Runaway, and I loved it. This is my second book, and though not as soul satisfying as the first, I am eager to read the rest of her books. Ms. Chevalier is an accomplished author, she does her research, and her characters are captivating.

The picture she paints of London fairly reeked with the stench that Jem and his family must have up with put once there after having come from the country. The street-wise girl, Maggie was a delight. I enjoyed the banter between the two, in their own dialects. Normally, I don't care for dialog in dialect, but Chevalier both handled it well, and did not over-use it.

If you are interested in London of the 1790s, and or Blake (yes, THAT Blake;-) I highly recommend this book. If you just want a good story, I still recommend this book. A most engaging story well told of life as it was lived then.

The Last Runaway

The Last Runaway: A Novel –by Tracy Chevalier

Fiction / History c.1850 Ohio

320 pages

5 Stars

Honor Bright comes to America with her sister, who is to be wed to Adam Cox in the small Quaker town of Faithwell, in Ohio (3 miles from Oberlin). She is, from the get-go set into a new life nothing like she has ever known. From the start, she is sick all the way across the Atlantic. She gets better, and her sister dies just short of reaching Faithwell.

The Quakers of the New World are different from the ones she is used to. The homes and buildings are different. The speech is different. Life, she is discovering, is different. She is used to the permanency of stone, not the temporary and flammable wood so common on these shores.

In a word, Honor is frightened, lonely, in mourning, and most importantly, she is homesick. If you've never been there consider yourself fortunate!

Honor is met with suspicion and jealousy. She is young, pretty, and competition to the single girls in the town. Her quilting is different, her stitches are even and tiny—one more thing to set her apart and add to her homesickness.

When she marries, she is not welcome by any in her new family but her husband. She is told not to help escaping slaves, but no one tells her why they refuse to get involved. She must discover that on her own as she follows the dictates of her conscious.

Had I started this book in the morning, it would have been a "one-sit" read; alas, I started it at night, intending to read a couple chapters a night before turning out my light. I read until my eyes burned and the words swam off the page and I couldn't seem to get them back where they belonged. I finished it the next day. (The dusting could wait!)

The fact Ms. Chevalier attended Oberlin College added to the realism of the area and era of The Last Runaway. I found the characters believable, especially considering the times. And having been as homesick as Honor at one time in my life, thrust into a totally different environment, where the language was the same—but not, etc., I found her quite believable. I could even understand the draw to the bad boy, Donovan.

When I closed the book, I immediately began to re-write the ending to suit me (a game in which I often indulge). And, you know what? Ms. Chevalier nailed it! She wrote the perfect ending for this story. Of course, I want to know what comes next in Honor's life, but I don't think this is the first of a series. I have not read Ms. Chevalier's other books, but they are most assuredly on my list.

Would I recommend this book? Oh, most definitely! Anyone who is interested in the Underground Railroad, without all the drama and hype of Hollywood would like it. Anyone who likes history should enjoy it. But beware. It may turn into a one-sit read.

The Bloodletter's Daughter

The Bloodletter's Daughter (A Novel of Old Bohemia) –by Linda Lafferty

Fiction, Historical

513 pages / 682 KB

5 Stars

This is quite possibly the best novel I've read this year! It truly was a page burner and the only reason I didn't read it in one sitting is it was my bedtime read, and I read until my eyes burned and blurred and the words swam away.

Based on history, and actual people whom I had little to no knowledge of only made this read that much more fun. The characters were real, they came alive on the page, and yes, I'm certain there was a bit of license taken with the story, but it was very well done.

Taking place in the early 1600s, it is the story of Marketa, daughter to the Barber-Surgeon of Cesky Krumlov who has ambitions to become a doctor, like her father. Of course, she is a girl, and that could never be. When Don Julius, the illegitimate and insane son of Rudolf II, Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, is interred in the local castle, she goes with her father to help in the treatment (blood letting) of the handsome prince in the hopes they can cure him.

Insane, sadistic, cruel, Don Julius is also wealthy, a Hapsburg, and handsome. And a good talker. She, the poor daughter of the barber-bloodletter and matron who runs the local bathhouse, is entranced and against all advice and her own intelligence, is drawn to Don Julius.

Ms. Lafferty did her homework, and spun a marvelous tale firmly based in history. This is a book I will read more than once. Now that I know how the story ends, I can read it again and just enjoy the beauty of the words as Ms. Lafferty wove them into a shimmery, silken scarf, called Historical Novel.

Winds of Change

The Winds of Change –by Orland Ned Eddins

Novel, Historical

336 Pages

Footnotes / Endnotes: Yes

Suitable for eReaders: Yes

4 Stars

This is the sequel to Mountains of Stone, which was a delightful surprise. The story goes to page 255, the rest of the pages are interesting little statements of trivia for the Oregon Trail, Mormon Trail, Mountain Men, etc.

Winds of Change is about the end of life as The People new it, how the white man would come, and came, to change their way of life forever.

Broken Knife is the protagonist, and learns through a vision from his deceased Indian father, Lame Bear, that great change is coming, and he must help The People. He does not specify tribe, and Broken Knife and his wife, Whispering Wind, befriend many of The People from different tribes.

Broken Knife's paternal grandfather, a Marquis in France, died and left him a title and fortune, which he uses to benefit The People as much as he can. There is a lot of history packed into this novel, and at times it becomes difficult to read. A bit like trying to drink champagne from a fire hose. It tastes great, but is almost too much too fast.

Mr. Eddins uses footnotes liberally, which I appreciate not end. (I hate endnotes with a passion!) The footnotes are used for short, informative explanations of things such as place names. He uses the old names in the story, and tells us in a footnote what/where it is today. Since I am planning a road trip through much of that territory next month, I found the footnotes of particular interest.

I do with the Addenda had been placed at the end of the book rather than at the ends of the chapters. Although very interesting, they often were of a later time, and tended to throw me out of the narrative somewhat. I also wish he had used the services of a good Copy Editor. The placement of the Addenda and lack of copy editing is what brought this from a 5 Star to a 4 Star. Still, I highly recommend the book, especially if you are interested in the history of 1811-1812 in the Far West.

One note about both of the books I've read by Mr. Eddins that is, in my opinion, worthy of note, is that he treats The People (Indians) with a great deal of respect and empathy but does not make them victims of the times.

Like Mountains of Stone, if you buy this book from the author, you will receive a DVD of magnificent photography of the area in the story.