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A review by abigailbat
Crooked River by Shelley Pearsall
3.0
Rebecca is appalled when her Pa brings home an Indian and locks him up in the attic. She's terrified of Indians in general and her Pa says that this Indian is a murderer. But when she screws up her courage to bring the Indian some food, she begins to realize that maybe he's not as terrifying as she thought. Then a young lawyer comes to their cabin claiming to be friends with the Indian. He's going to defend "Indian John" at his trial. Rebecca knows that there is no chance Indian John will be found innocent, but maybe, just maybe, something spectacular will happen that could save his life.
I found it a little hard to get into this book because the action starts pretty much right away and you don't get a lot of background about the characters. Short chapters narrated by Rebecca alternate with poems that show "Indian John" (Amik)'s point of view. As the novel went on, I found myself rooting for the characters and Pearsall includes a fabulous author's note and selected bibliography.
Readalike suggestions: For another book set in the same time period and dealing with Native Americans, "Caddie Woodlawn" by Carol Ryrie Brink and "The Sign of the Beaver" by Elizabeth George Speare are ideas (though beware stereotypes!). For books about trials that deal with similarly unpopular peoples or ideas, suggest "Monkey Town" by Ronald Kidd or "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee.
I found it a little hard to get into this book because the action starts pretty much right away and you don't get a lot of background about the characters. Short chapters narrated by Rebecca alternate with poems that show "Indian John" (Amik)'s point of view. As the novel went on, I found myself rooting for the characters and Pearsall includes a fabulous author's note and selected bibliography.
Readalike suggestions: For another book set in the same time period and dealing with Native Americans, "Caddie Woodlawn" by Carol Ryrie Brink and "The Sign of the Beaver" by Elizabeth George Speare are ideas (though beware stereotypes!). For books about trials that deal with similarly unpopular peoples or ideas, suggest "Monkey Town" by Ronald Kidd or "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee.