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A review by estherfilbrun
Between Two Shores by Jocelyn Green
4.0
Between Two Shores came as something of a surprise in my reading diet this last month. I saw a review from a reader I respect, and I know our reading tastes are similar in a lot of ways. And after seeing that, I thought I should try to find my own copy to read—and, hello! NetGalley had it available!
What a story! I’m not sure I’ve ever read something quite like this. I’ve read about Indian captives before—Alone Yet Not Alone by Tracy Leininger Craven was quite a favorite growing up—and I’ve also read a book or two about the French who settled in Canada. But I’ve never read one that combined both elements and told the story of the French and Indian war in quite the same detail as it was shown here. The war wasn’t all there was to the book, but it was the framework that held up the story, and I enjoyed learning a bit more about it.
I loved the main character, Catherine, and sympathized with the struggles she had facing her. Learning to heal from and forgive the past is a hard thing, no matter what situation you find yourself in, and she had it especially hard because of the circumstances. Then there’s the trouble with siblings that she had to work through, and her father’s drinking problem…all while trying to survive and keep the family’s business going somehow.
I’m not sure what my favorite part of this story was. I always love the new little piece of history that books like this give me—though it may have been about a very narrow section of American/Canadian history, it still really did happen, and books like this give faces to fact. I love that. I also love the moral content of this story. Sometimes I wondered what the characters would do, and while I didn’t totally agree with all their decisions, I appreciated what happened overall. There was also some wonderful story-building here, and a depth to characters that you just don’t find every day. I felt like I really got to know some of them, and felt like I got to walk alongside them the entire way, and I loved that. A great historical fiction. Recommended.
Favorite quote: “ ‘What is courage,’ he said, ‘but moving forward in the face of fear? If there was nothing to be afraid of, we would have no need to be brave.’ ” —Samuel
I requested a free review copy of this book from NetGalley, and this is my honest opinion of it.
What a story! I’m not sure I’ve ever read something quite like this. I’ve read about Indian captives before—Alone Yet Not Alone by Tracy Leininger Craven was quite a favorite growing up—and I’ve also read a book or two about the French who settled in Canada. But I’ve never read one that combined both elements and told the story of the French and Indian war in quite the same detail as it was shown here. The war wasn’t all there was to the book, but it was the framework that held up the story, and I enjoyed learning a bit more about it.
I loved the main character, Catherine, and sympathized with the struggles she had facing her. Learning to heal from and forgive the past is a hard thing, no matter what situation you find yourself in, and she had it especially hard because of the circumstances. Then there’s the trouble with siblings that she had to work through, and her father’s drinking problem…all while trying to survive and keep the family’s business going somehow.
I’m not sure what my favorite part of this story was. I always love the new little piece of history that books like this give me—though it may have been about a very narrow section of American/Canadian history, it still really did happen, and books like this give faces to fact. I love that. I also love the moral content of this story. Sometimes I wondered what the characters would do, and while I didn’t totally agree with all their decisions, I appreciated what happened overall. There was also some wonderful story-building here, and a depth to characters that you just don’t find every day. I felt like I really got to know some of them, and felt like I got to walk alongside them the entire way, and I loved that. A great historical fiction. Recommended.
Favorite quote: “ ‘What is courage,’ he said, ‘but moving forward in the face of fear? If there was nothing to be afraid of, we would have no need to be brave.’ ” —Samuel
I requested a free review copy of this book from NetGalley, and this is my honest opinion of it.