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nairam1173's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.5
No disrespect to Irene Hunt or her grandfather, but this book seems to be trying to be three things: a novel, a family history, and a comprehensive list of Civil War battles and generals. It's succeeding at none of these. The second thing is what I was most interested in, the third what it felt the book was full of, and the attempts at the first are tedious at best.
The fictionalization and outside-in view of the characters feels remote and mostly disconnected. Moments of high emotion were cut off to go back to telling me about the general shape of the war at large. Elements of some characters were developed only to never be returned to, again, in favor of the need to explain the Larger Story.
It's disappointing because there are a lot of interesting elements in play, but they never get the time to actually DO anything, and characters don't get the chance to be fully realized.
This book could introduce some of the tension of the Civil War in the context of a particular family to a young audience, but I don't think it works well as a story, which will make it a tough sell for anyone.
The fictionalization and outside-in view of the characters feels remote and mostly disconnected. Moments of high emotion were cut off to go back to telling me about the general shape of the war at large. Elements of some characters were developed only to never be returned to, again, in favor of the need to explain the Larger Story.
It's disappointing because there are a lot of interesting elements in play, but they never get the time to actually DO anything, and characters don't get the chance to be fully realized.
This book could introduce some of the tension of the Civil War in the context of a particular family to a young audience, but I don't think it works well as a story, which will make it a tough sell for anyone.
Content Warnings
Minor: Racism and War
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