Rating: *****
Tags: Fiction, General, Historical, Family Life, Historical fiction, Arizona, Women Pioneers - Arizona, Diary Fiction, Western Stories, Autobiographical Fiction, Westerns, Women Pioneers, Prine; Sarah Agnes, Frontier and Pioneer Life, Lang:en
Summary
A moving, exciting, and heartfelt American saga inspired by
the author's own family memoirs, these words belong to Sarah
Prine, a woman of spirit and fire who forges a full and
remarkable existence in a harsh, unfamiliar frontier.
Scrupulously recording her steps down the path Providence has
set her upon—from child to determined young adult to
loving mother—she shares the turbulent events, both
joyous and tragic, that molded her, and recalls the enduring
love with cavalry officer Captain Jack Elliot that gave her
strength and purpose. Rich in authentic everyday details and alive with truly
unforgettable characters,
These Is My Words brilliantly brings a vanished world
to breathtaking life again. Based on the real-life exploits of the author's
great-grandmother, this fictionalized diary vividly details one
woman's struggles with life and love in frontier Arizona at the
end of the last century. When she begins recording her life,
Sarah Prine is an intelligent, headstrong 18-year-old capable
of holding her own on her family's settlement near Tucson. Her
skill with a rifle fends off a constant barrage of Indian
attacks and outlaw assaults. It also attracts a handsome Army
captain named Jack Elliot. By the time she's 21, Sarah has
recorded her loveless marriage to a family friend, the
establishment of a profitable ranch, the birth of her first
child?and the death of her husband. The love between Jack and
Sarah, which dominates the rest of the tale, has begun to
blossom. Fragmented and disjointed in its early chapters, with
poor spelling and grammar, Sarah's journal gradually gains in
clarity and eloquence as she matures. While this device may
frustrate some readers at first, Taylor's deft progression
produces the intended reward: she not only tells of her
heroine's growth, but she shows it through Sarah's writing and
insights. The result is a compelling portrait of an enduring
love, the rough old West and a memorable pioneer. First serial
to Good Housekeeping; author tour; Literary Guild and Doubleday
Book Club selections. (Feb.) FYI: Selected as the March 1998
Good Housekeeping "Novel of the Month."
YA-This novel in diary format parallels the early history of
the Arizona Territories as Sarah and her family travel from the
New Mexico Territory and settle down to carve out a new life on
a ranch near Tucson in the 1880s. Sarah's diary, based on the
author's family memoirs, is a heartwarming and heartbreaking
fictional account of a vibrant and gifted young woman. Sarah
starts out as an illiterate, fiery 17 year old. Eventually, her
writing becomes as smooth and polished as Sarah herself as she
becomes a tenacious, literate, and loving wife and mother. A
treasure trove of discovered books becomes the source of her
self-education. Turner describes the trip in such detail that
one has a sense of having traveled with Sarah, experiencing all
of its heartache and sadness, its backbreaking exertion and
struggles, its danger and adventure, its gentle and lighter
moments. Life in the new country brings the constant fear of
Indian raids and the threat and reality of floods, fire, and
rattlesnakes; bandits; rough men, and pretentious women all
have an effect on the protagonist but her strong marriage makes
the effort worthwhile. Sarah centers her world around her home
and family but maintains an independent spirit that keeps her
whole and alive throughout her many trials and heartaches. This
is a beautifully written book that quickly captures readers'
attention and holds it tightly and emotionally until the end.
From Publishers Weekly
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.From School Library Journal
Dottie Kraft, formerly at Fairfax County Public Schools,
VA
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.