I have recently become a HUGE fan of this author. She writes everything from amazing historical fiction to contemporary fiction, to stories based on current, real-life events. I first became aware of her when her book ALL OF THE ABOVE showed up on the Maud Hart Lovelace Award Nominee list for 2010-11 in Division II (5th -7th grade).If you are a middle school or young adult reader, or you know one, these books are excellent. ALL OF THE ABOVE is based on the true story of a middle school class in Ohio trying to break the world record by building the largest freestanding paper tetrahedron. The four distinct voices of the narrators are genuine and engaging. Regardless of where you live or who you are each reader will find feelings and perceptions with which to identify. By the same token, each reader will also then use those similarities to really experience the differences among the characters in the book as well. Personally, this type of layered reading experience within a story is one of the things that makes a book precious to me.Having read ALL OF THE ABOVE and enjoyed it so thoroughly, I went looking for more of Ms. Pearsall’s work. I also visited her website, which is quite informative and interesting to explore.Her first novel was TROUBLE DON’T LAST, which I just finished. It tells the story of Samuel, an 11yr old boy born into slavery in Kentucky. He never knew his mother, as she was sold before he could walk. One night Harrison, the old man who has taken care of him, wakes Samuel and takes him along as they run toward freedom in Canada. The viewpoint throughout the story is Samuel’s. I was drawn into the story by Samuel’s very clear, genuine voice. I could feel his fear, and his horror, his wonder and his sadness amidst deplorable circumstances. Shelley Pearsall says that she felt much had been written about the Underground Railroad, but there were few personal accounts and she tried to capture that in this story. In my opinion she succeeded.The next novel of Ms. Pearsall’s I read this summer was ALL SHOOK UP. This is set in the present. The main character is a 7th Grade boy whose parents are already divorced at the beginning of the story. His maternal grandmother falls in her home in Florida and his mother has to relocate there for a few months to help her mother with her recovery. Josh is sent to live with his dad in Chicago.Upon arriving in Chicago Josh discovers that the father who had always worked as a shoe salesman has lost his job and is now working as an Elvis Presley impersonator. Josh is mortified by this information. He even goes so far as to pick up a job application from a local video store for his dad so he can have a “real” job again. The really moving part about this novel is the honesty with which Josh speaks. We all have feelings of anger and resentment and embarrassment connected at times with our parents. It’s hard to admit those things to ourselves. We see in Josh’s gradual realization of the discrepancy between his perceptions and his father’s our own understanding of those feelings and thoughts that can otherwise fester. When Josh decides to manipulate circumstances, sacrificing his father’s goals for his own he discovers that the consequences are far-reaching in ways he never anticipated. And he discovers how to find his way back from some questionable decisions. It is a remarkable book that adds to my admiration for Shelley Pearsall and her work.The other work by Ms. Pearsall that I have read this past month is CROOKED RIVER. This is historical fiction. The story takes place in 1812. A white trapper is murdered and a Chippewa man is accused of the crime. The narrator is a young girl whose father is resposible for taking the young Chippewa prisoner and chaining him in their attic until his “trial.” Again, there are many details within the story that are based on actual individuals and circumstances although all the specifics of the main characters are fictional. Like all her other work, this story came alive right off the pages for me.This book in particular poses a dilemma for young Rebecca: (1)she knows her father is a cruel individual; (2) she is afraid of him–and of doing anything against his wishes; (3) she knows that she has always been taught that “Indians” are ‘savages; then she begins to really observe the young man in her attic, and she communicates with another man who believes Indians (in this case, Native American Chippewa) are the same as settlers like himself–and like Rebecca. Now she must decide on her own if she must act and how she must act.Rebecca & her sister Laura find themselves seeing Amik (the Native American) as a human being, no different in basic right and worth than themselves.It is a story about doing what is you feel is morally right even when the majority of those around you (including those who have absolute authority OVER you) tell you differently. As Rebecca searches to find courage to do what she can to help Amik, we, too, are encouraged to look inward at our own prejudices, our own behaviors. What are they based on? Fact? Authentic experience? What we have been TOLD by others?Although Rebecca’s dilemma is much more severe than those we face on a daily basis, doing what we believe is right in the face of possible physical, mental, emotional, or financial consequences is no less a hallmark of our character. Rebecca’s dilemma and decision provide an excellent springboard for discussion about majority rule, mob mentality, individuality vs. accepted viewpoints, even personal values. It also allows each reader the opportunity to look inside herself at what qualities Rebecca possesses that I would like to emulate and in what ways can I make sure my actions support what I believe about people.She includes at the end of the book the facts which inspired her to write it—from the actual trial of a Native American, to the many stories/experiences related in the narrative.It is moving, touching, inspiring. I think this is the kind of story that makes the reader want to be a better person, and maybe recognize that those choices will often be some of the hardest we make.
This book has two strikes against it, friends, and one of those strikes is totally not its fault: namely, that I am too damn old for this book, and thus found it kind of simple and not-suited-to-my-reading-level.And while there are indeed plenty of not-suited-to-my-reading-level books out there that I genuinely enjoy, I try not to let that bias me against ones that I don’t.Because they’re supposed to be juvenile. Due to the way they’re aimed at nine-year-olds. So. There’s that. Presumably age-appropriate readers will be much more taken with the Crude Frontier Justice and the Brave Young Chippewa Warrior and the Girls In The Wilderness Struggling Against Sexism And Worse than I was, as it should be.The other strike is one I’m having a hard time articulating, so probably it’s the sort of thing that wouldn’t bother most people. But… okay, let’s see how I can put this. So “Indian John,” because of course that’s what the asshole fur trappers have arbitrarily decided to call Amik, a name which our protagonist Rebecca continues to use even after she actually learns his goddamn real name, but whatever—Anyway, Indian John is narrating his story in alternating chapters with Rebecca.Rebecca’s sections of the story are Normal Prose, filled with colloquialisms and dialect quirks along the lines of “she kilt a rattlesnake with that same iron pan” and “we just gave bread to the devil, sure enough we did.” Indian John’s, on the other hand, are completely written in free-verse poetry.I just… I felt…It seemed gimmicky, guys.Like, far be it for me to make any assumptions whatsoever about the way your average Ojibwe man in 1813 would narrate things to himself, buti tell them it was Ten Clawswho was too much madseems weird for an internal monologue. Anyone else? No? Pidgin English, lack of capitalization, none of this seems strange?Andthe gichi-mookomaanagpaint my facein crooked stripes.they take me from the placethat floats above the ground.outsidei hear the deer movingwith their fawnsand the snapping turtlescoming up from the riversand the rattlesnakes curledasleepin the sunlight.where a) he hears the rattlesnakes curled up asleep, seriously?, but also b) again, doesn’t this seem awfully Dances With Wolves? Behold The Noble Savage and all that? I don’t know. Again, I’m finding it hard to articulate my problem here, and I am sure it’s just me needing something to complain about.Let’s round up to three stars and move on from this book, shall we? Yes!
Do You like book Crooked River (2007)?
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.
—Abby Johnson
My sister who lives in Cleveland told me about Shelley Pearsall after she met her at an elementary school presentation where Shelley talked to the kids about her books. She showed the kids all of her rejection letters as she tried to get her work published. Shelley writes about Ohio, a state which I am nuts about. As a writer too, I'm always happy to know I am not alone in my struggle to be published. What better reason than those to read a book.Crooked River is a young adult novel set in 1812 in a settlement in Ohio. The story is told through the eyes of thirteen year old, Rebecca and Indian John who is shackled in the loft of the family's cabin. Her angry and demanding father, Major Carver has charge of the Indian accused of murdering a trapper, while awaiting trial. Her mother died in childbirth. She and her sister, Laura keep the household running and care for their little sister, Mercy. Rebecca is described as the one in the family with the soft heart and without a common language, she befriends Indian John by bringing him small gifts of a feather or acorn along with a bowl of food.This is a beautifully written story. It is a story of injustice but also one of love and the strength of the human spirit. In each chapter the reader first hears Rebecca's point of view. And then Indian John tells his side of story through gorgeous poetry. The prose and the poetry compliment each other perfectly. The author has done extensive research which she details at the end of the story. Her dedication to the historical side of this story is what brought it to life. I became a pioneer in Ohio in 1812, alongside Rebecca, gathering eggs, washing clothes, sweeping the dirt floors. Shelley Pearsall has a gift as a writer. As a reviewer, I never like to reveal too much of the storyline. As a reader, I like the element of surprise. I like to tell a reader about the writing style and if the story is interesting and engaging. Crooked River is full of history and set in a time of change and struggle. And the story is full of emotion that will tug at your heartstrings. You won't want to put it down.
—Linda C.
This book was recommended to me by an eleven-year-old actress and member of the Ojibwe nation in Minnesota. We became acquainted when she joined the cast of a theater-dance fusion work for which I had been commissioned to compose the sound score.Not surprisingly, the book, a work of historical fiction, is aimed primarily at juvenile audiences. The prose is for the most part simple and direct, short on nuance and layering of meanings. Also, Pearsall's blending of the idiomatic expressions of the 1812 Ohio frontier with more standard English creates inconsistencies of tone that could certainly put off a mature reader.All that being said, I strongly recommend Crooked River to readers of all ages. Whatever the book's shortcomings, it tells a beautiful story of the moral awakening of two young women amidst the ugliest aspects of European-American westward expansion. Ultimately, the young narrator, Rebecca, in the manner of Huckleberry Finn, realizes that it is worth risking one's very soul to protect an innocent friend. Surely that is a lesson of which we should all be reminded throughout our lives. I also deeply appreciated Pearsall's choice to have the wrongly accused Ojibwe man tell his side of the story in a verse form based on traditional Ojibwe poetry. The beauty of the Ojibwe language is indeed as Great as the legendary lakes that define the nation's ancestral homelands. To experience even a small glimpse of the great oral traditions of these Original People is to know at the deepest level how horribly those traditions have been misunderstood.I am deeply grateful to have read this book. To the one who recommended it to me, who, like the story's protagonist, is a brave and independent girl struggling to find her place in a world where she has often been misjudged, I can only say:Miigwech.Thank you.
—Ben Siems
