Tried and True

Finished January 19

Tried and True by Mary Connealy

Set just after the American Civil War, this is the first in a series of novels about three sisters, Bailey, Shannon, and Kylie shortly after they begin their land claims in Idaho Territory. Pressured by their father into disguising themselves as young men and joining the Union army after their only brother dies in service, the women have used their service as a way of decreasing the time they must stay on the land to finalize their claim. Kylie is the youngest, and the least adept at the skills needed to manage a farm. Her sisters helped build her cabin in the fall, and now that it is spring the story starts with her attempting to repair a loose shingle in her roof. 

She was troubled by her war experience, but after her first battle was able to avoid worse trauma by working as a general's aide and as a spy. Her commanders were unaware that her success as a spy was due to her gender as she removed her disguise when engaging in espionage activity. 

When the local land agent, Aaron Masterson comes by just as Kylie is descending from the roof, he discovers her secret and insists that he must change her claim to eliminate the service record, even though she served as women weren't allowed to enlist. 

He finds himself drawn to her, and finds himself visiting her again soon after when a local rancher threatens her land. When another threat appears soon after, Aaron worries about her safety alone at her cabin and works with her siblings to find a solution. 

This novel is an historical western romance, with a touch of mystery. Kylie is less helpless than she first appears, as she has depended on her sisters more than she could have. But she is also a reluctant land claim candidate and plans to sell as soon as she owns the land outright. 

I found Kylie growing on me, but enjoyed her sisters more. There are other interesting characters as well, including a motherly and capable native woman. Aaron's history played a role in the plot and was an interesting commentary on the aftermath of the Civil War. 

Maria Chapdelaine

Finished August 1
Maria Chapdelaine: A Romance of French Canada by Louis Hémon, translated by Andrew MacPhail, illustrations by M.A. Suzor-Cote

This classic Canadian story is one that I've meant to read for a while, and part of the reason I chose it for my book club July pick. The copy I've got is quite an old one, with interesting illustrations scattered through it.
Maria Chapdelaine is the oldest daughter in her family. She has mostly brothers, and one much younger sister, Alma Rose.
Her father Samuel is a man who is more of a settler than a farmer. He has cleared land, and created a homestead before, but then felt the urge to move to a less settled area and start again. His wife has recognized and accepted this about him, though she would like to be closer to a parish. Maria is at the age when young women of her time and situation considered marriage, and as the book moves on, we see that there are three young men interested in her. They are quite different from each other, but all good young men. François Paradis is the first one that we meet. Their fathers knew each other well, and Maria met him when she was younger. Paradis has sold his farm and makes his living guiding other men through the Canadian wilderness and facilitating trading and sourcing resources. He is ambitious and and bright.
The next one we see is Eutrope Gagnon. He is the Chapdelaine's only neighbour, having taking a concessions two miles away with his brother the year before. His brother, like many of Maria's brothers, works in logging camps during the winter. He is clearing the land mostly on his own (we never see his brother in the novel), but making good headway and once the land is cleared, will build a better house so that he can begin a family. He is a hard worker and a good neighbour in hard times.
The third and last suitor we meet is Lorenzo Suprenant, a young man who has sold his father's farm in Quebec and gone to work in Maine in a factory. He speaks of the joys of urban living, the good wages he earns, and the large contingent of Canadians who live in the same area and provide a community. He wants to offer Maria an easier life than the one in the wilderness she lives in now.
As we watch Maria's family work to clear their land, gather crops, reap fruits from the surrounding wilderness, and hunt to provide meat, we see the reality of their lives and the hard work that goes into survival. Maria must evaluate her emotional connection and her vision of the future with each of these men, based on her experience this far. Her parents offer support, but do not advise her on this important choice.
I enjoyed the story and the independence that Maria had to choose her own life. Her family was a supportive one that worked together to make a good life for themselves and I could see how they cared for each other and worked as a team.

The Survivor

Finished January 28
The Survivor by Paul Almond
This is the second book in the Alford Saga, the first being The Deserter. The series is loosely based on Almond's own ancestors. We rejoin Thomas Manning/James Alford as he overcomes his grief and returns to the small English community of New Carlisle in hopes of work to earn money for supplies, both food and building materials. He ends up in a sawmill, soon proving his value as a hard worker. He teaches an orphan boy working at the mill to read and write and comes through for the boy at a crucial point.
Proving himself to the small community and becoming on good terms with the Garrett family, James returns to his land eager to make a life for his family.
Struggling against the elements, a harsh growing season, local villains, and personal sorrow, James and his family make a new home a begin to form a community with other newcomers.
I look forward to the next one.

The Deserter

Finished August 24
The Deserter by Paul Almond
This is the first book in a new series called the Alford Saga. Loosely based on Almond's own ancestors, this book includes a good deal of historical research as well as some artistic license.
The book begins around 1800, when a young man named Thomas Manning is on a British man o' war moored in a small bay of the Gulf of St. Lawrence riding out a spring storm. Thomas knows the price to be paid if he gets caught deserting, but he has planned in advance for just such an opportunity and knows he may not get another chance before his ship heads back to join the fight against Napoleon.
He makes his way ashore and begins the trek inland, encountering a tribe of Micmac natives. They assist his endeavors and he becomes close to them. He begins to make a home for himself, but also works at a French village building ships. He also encounters some English settlers, using an assumed name, James Alford, to hide his identity in case they are looking for him for desertion.
As he learns skills from his employer, and from the natives, Thomas begins to make a life and start his own family. This book ends with him at that point, opening the opportunities for furthering the story in later books. The story flows well and Thomas comes across as a believable characters. The natives are also portrayed well and with respect. This is an interesting story and I look forward to future installments.

More good reads

Finished March 11
Family Tree by Barbara Delinsky
This novel begins with an interesting premise, a white couple has a baby who shows African-American features. The father, Hugh, is a blueblood with a family tree traced back several generations. His father, Eaton, is a historian who has just written a personal history book. The mother, Dana, who was born to a single mother who died when she was five, doesn't know her father's background and feel impelled to trace him. As the parents are influenced by family prejudice and have trust issues with each other, they reexamine their values and beliefs.
Dana's grandmother, who raised her runs a knitting store and Dana feels comfort and support there, both from the staff and the patrons.
The questions that arise, about whether those with liberal beliefs change when it becomes personal, about how to answer questions about the baby's colour, and about trust and responsibilities between people who care about each other.

Finished March 10
Treading Water by Anne DeGrace
This Canadian first novel has interesting characters and plot. Taking place in the fictional community of Bear Creek in the mountains of B.C. the plot moves from the late 1800s to the present. The first settlers in the community are Mennonites from Manitoba, moving to where they hope to find an easier land to make a living in. Other early settlers include a trapper, and men working riverboats. There is some interaction with local native people, not all positive. The first child born in the community, Ursula is followed through the book. There are some inconsistencies, such as when Ursula is 16 and in her last year of school, other students included in the class are described and include boys who were young when she was born, so some editing would have elped here. Eventually the community is bought out by the government when a hydro project will flood the area.
Part of why I was drawn to read this was that I lived in Hudson Hope, B.C. as a young child when they were building the dam there.
The characters are memorable and several of them are portrayed in more than one time period, but I would have liked to see greater depth to some of them. I will look forward to the author's next offering.

Finished March 8
Invitation to Provence by Elizabeth Adler
I'd classify this one as suspense/romance. I listened to the unabridged book in my car (getting a lot listened to Monday evening when I was stuck in a traffic jam getting home!) The plot does force one to suspend disbelief just a tad due to the close calls, and romantic encounters. But it was a nice light read. The heroine, Franny Martin is a veterinarian who worked hard to put herself through school after her father died when she was 17. Going to meet her long-distance boyfriend after work one night, she finds herself met by his soon-t0-be-ex-wife instead. Amazing the two get along quite well and become best friends. Meanwhile, Franny's estranged great aunt in France, who Franny isn't even aware of, decides to reunite all her family. Taking place in Provence, the Cote D'Azur, Hong Kong, and Shanghai, the family meetings the invitations lead does brings murder, discover, arson, and romance.