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4.05 AVERAGE
4.05 AVERAGE
interesting reworking of the pocahontas and the jamestown colony which shows the reality of the harshness and ambitions of the players involved and not the disney fantasy which most people view this story of the start of the road of modern day America. thanks for the publisher and netgalley for allowing me a free copy to read
This was phenomenal. A richly layered historical novel that meditated on what happens when two cultures compete for the same 'evolutionary niche'. There's a good chance that if someone asked you to name a historical figure of Native American origins that you would pick Pocahontas. Whether you're a Disney fan or not, her mythology is widespread in the Western influenced world. That's what it is of course - mythology. In reality there was no romance between her and 16th C explorer John Smith. Pocahontas would have been about eleven years old while Smith was around twenty-six. Nor was Pocahontas a princess. While she was the daughter of Powhatan, her birth was miserably low - her people measured status matrilinearly so it was her mother's blood which conferred status, or lack thereof. Hawker explores how these myths came to be whilst also acknowledging the fully rounded, flawed and very human characters who stood at this pivot point in history. The novel is told from three POVs - Pocahontas, John Smith and Opechencanough (Pocahontas' uncle). This gives a very balanced view of both cultures and the person who sought to form a bridge between them.
The writing is beautiful with many of the descriptions feeding directly in the the characters' mindsets. It is by turns violent, gentle, poignant and humourous. The research is meticulous and where Hawker has adhered to the legend rather than the fact, it's understandable in the context of this story. The operative word in the term 'historical fiction' is of course 'fiction' and while writers have a duty to research well and present a plausible version of the truth (or at least make it clear why they are not doing so), a historical novel is not designed to be a factual account. That's what non-fiction is for. The advantage with fiction is that opinion can become story and character can be ascribed to people we will never know of fully understand. Good histfic manages to make you understand the mindset of people who were very different in outlook to a modern reader. This is one of the finest historical fiction novels I have ever read. Hawker does not soften the atrocities of the English but she does present a full picture - the fact that there were protests in England against the Virginia Company, for instance, because many English people believed it was wrong to take the Native's land away from them. The Native Americans are also given fully formed characters. Hawker avoids both the propaganda of 'violent savages' and the insulting 'noble savage' trope (which Disney most certainly did not!) Both of which are hideous erasures of a sophisticated, intelligent, complex and occasionally warlike and calculating culture. Powhatan, for instance, was most definitely a shrewd politician and a ruthless adversary in his attempt to maintain his own power. In a word, Hawker allows all her historical figures to be 'real'. Men are not automatically violent rapists; women are not automatically meek subservients. This is what we need in historical fiction. I applaud every histfic author who digs past the received and partial truth (usually written by one gender and one ethnic perspective) and attempts to reconstruct something a bit closer to what was most plausibly the case at the time.
As to the story, in many ways Pocahontas is not an entirely likeable character at the beginning of this story - which means her character journey from selfishness to selflessness and love for her people is immensely satisfying. Similarly, Smith does terrible things and makes them the least terrible he can, and yet he is aware that these are acts he cannot ever absolve himself for. Because of the circumstances of his life, his character arc is very truncated. There's another story for certain. In fact all of the characters are very compelling. I really want to believe John Rolfe was as Hawker portrays him.
Final thoughts - be aware that in Pocahontas' culture, people change their names at great moments in their lives so Pocahontas ( a nickname meaning 'Little Wanton' or 'Mischief maker') changes her name four times during the course of this rather long book. This is a sad story in many ways, a poignant meditation on the oncoming death of a way of life. It made me think of the death of the Highland way of life and the suppression of the clans in Ireland (both amongst my own ancestors) so that provided an extra poignancy for me personally, although even the cultural cleansing there cannot compare to the ultimate genocide of the Native Americans. Despite this there are moments of transformative hope here too, the darkness is balanced with light.
I really do want Hawker to write her proposed follow on novel about Opechencanough and his daughter, even knowing it will be very traumatic.
The writing is beautiful with many of the descriptions feeding directly in the the characters' mindsets. It is by turns violent, gentle, poignant and humourous. The research is meticulous and where Hawker has adhered to the legend rather than the fact, it's understandable in the context of this story. The operative word in the term 'historical fiction' is of course 'fiction' and while writers have a duty to research well and present a plausible version of the truth (or at least make it clear why they are not doing so), a historical novel is not designed to be a factual account. That's what non-fiction is for. The advantage with fiction is that opinion can become story and character can be ascribed to people we will never know of fully understand. Good histfic manages to make you understand the mindset of people who were very different in outlook to a modern reader. This is one of the finest historical fiction novels I have ever read. Hawker does not soften the atrocities of the English but she does present a full picture - the fact that there were protests in England against the Virginia Company, for instance, because many English people believed it was wrong to take the Native's land away from them. The Native Americans are also given fully formed characters. Hawker avoids both the propaganda of 'violent savages' and the insulting 'noble savage' trope (which Disney most certainly did not!) Both of which are hideous erasures of a sophisticated, intelligent, complex and occasionally warlike and calculating culture. Powhatan, for instance, was most definitely a shrewd politician and a ruthless adversary in his attempt to maintain his own power. In a word, Hawker allows all her historical figures to be 'real'. Men are not automatically violent rapists; women are not automatically meek subservients. This is what we need in historical fiction. I applaud every histfic author who digs past the received and partial truth (usually written by one gender and one ethnic perspective) and attempts to reconstruct something a bit closer to what was most plausibly the case at the time.
As to the story, in many ways Pocahontas is not an entirely likeable character at the beginning of this story - which means her character journey from selfishness to selflessness and love for her people is immensely satisfying. Similarly, Smith does terrible things and makes them the least terrible he can, and yet he is aware that these are acts he cannot ever absolve himself for. Because of the circumstances of his life, his character arc is very truncated. There's another story for certain. In fact all of the characters are very compelling. I really want to believe John Rolfe was as Hawker portrays him.
Final thoughts - be aware that in Pocahontas' culture, people change their names at great moments in their lives so Pocahontas ( a nickname meaning 'Little Wanton' or 'Mischief maker') changes her name four times during the course of this rather long book. This is a sad story in many ways, a poignant meditation on the oncoming death of a way of life. It made me think of the death of the Highland way of life and the suppression of the clans in Ireland (both amongst my own ancestors) so that provided an extra poignancy for me personally, although even the cultural cleansing there cannot compare to the ultimate genocide of the Native Americans. Despite this there are moments of transformative hope here too, the darkness is balanced with light.
I really do want Hawker to write her proposed follow on novel about Opechencanough and his daughter, even knowing it will be very traumatic.