Ann Rinaldi (1934–2021)

An enjoyable young adult historical novel. The book is divided into two sections; the first, the shorter of the two, follows Caty Littlefield from eleven-ish to just after her marriage (in her late teens) to Nathanael Greene. The section focuses on Caty's coming of age, her courtship with Nathanael, and her curiosity about her aunt's supposed affair with Benjamin Franklin. The second section follows Caty's daughter Cornelia (beginning when she is about nine), and primarily focuses on show more Cornelia's relationship with her Pa (Nathanael) and her confusion and turmoil over the rumor that family friend Anthony Wayne might actually be her father. Together these two sections form an elegant study of the ways women use flirtation and their sexuality to gain power over men (particularly in a time when women had little or no recognized political or legal power), of how such flirtation affects the men who love them, and of how such practices influence the girls growing up around them. While the thematic parallel between the two sections is made very plain, the novel's execution of the premise and the conclusions to which it comes are gentle and subtle. Rinaldi also does an excellent job portraying the struggle Cornelia has in trying to find her way into adulthood and learning to negotiate the relationships between men and women while her childhood is mired in so much confusion about fatherhood and marital loyalty. A recommended read, though I will say that I was confused about what audience the book was aiming for. The sentence-level writing seems appropriate for the 9-11 set, while the subject matter felt more 13+. It's not that there's anything particularly inappropriate for younger readers (there's nothing explicit, or graphic, or even suggestive on the page--beyond a few tame kisses), I just wonder if the complexity of Cornelia's feelings and the subtlety with which they are dealt might leave younger readers thinking they've missed something. show less

I am a Marylander. I was born in Maryland, grew up in Maryland, married in Maryland, and have always lived in Maryland. So when the book opens with "Mama and I were Southerners, but not Rebels. We were for the Union but not the Yankees. You have to be from Maryland to understand it."

I understand.

And yet I don't, and because of that, this book expressed my feelings about the Civil War in many ways. In this fictional account, Amelia Grafton is a pre-teen who lives in the "northern" Maryland show more town of Hagerstown during the Civil War and it is her personal dilemma which is told so beautifully in this book. Because of its location Hagerstown was frequently "visited" by both the Confederate forces and the Union Army. Amelia's best friend is a Southern sympathizer while her father is whole-heartedly for the Union. Her Mother believes that everyone should be treated with kindness whether they are Yankees or Rebels but the family takes in Aunt Lou, an escaped slave, and try to aid her in her run to freedom.

So there are many conflicts for a young girl to face and then when her brother runs off to join the Union forces, Amelia still feels an inner turmoil. Amelia wants to do something to make her contribution to the war effort, but can't decide what that should be until her moment of truth arrives and she has to do something to try to save her town when a ransom is demanded by the Confederate Army general, the uncle of her best friend.

In readings depicting the Civil War, a reader cannot believe that there is even the slightly possibility of avoiding ugliness. War is ugly and no matter how it might be romanticized by writers, the ugliness will creep through and smack you in the face. In the end, even though Amelia makes her contribution, it isn't without that ugliness reaching out to smack her in the face.

Yes, the book is a romanticized depiction of the real-life ransoming of Hagerstown, Maryland and the manner in which the tale is told is geared more toward the Youth for which the book was written, however, for this Marylander it presents the dilemma that was faced by many during the Civil War in an all too clear light - do you support your state or the nation? IMHO, in that time period, states had a much greater pull for their citizens then a national identity did. Rarely if ever, when asked would someone say they were an American, no they were a Virginian, or New Yorker, or Georgian, or Marylander. What a wonderful book to show our youth that decisions are not always easy and that peer pressure should not make them race to a decision.

I want to thank Linda (Whisper1) and VictoriaPL for their recommendation of this book. show less

While the Union and the Confederacy are warring against each other in America, President Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation. But Texans keep their enslaved laborers from hearing about it, a fact that will impact Luli Holcomb and the sister she never thought of as a slave in Come Juneteenth by author Ann Rinaldi.

This is my first time reading this author since back in my teens, when her novels matured and sharpened my taste for historical fiction, especially concerning American show more history.

Knowing the kind of hard-hitting and poignant young adult stories Rinaldi can deliver, I probably should have been better prepared emotionally for this story of injustice, violence, and human relationships. Although my interest in the read waned here and there, the parts that got me, got me.

Now, it's important to know this isn't a story told from the perspective of African American characters, and it isn't about a big Juneteenth celebration. Nor is it a simplistic, romantic painting of the Civil War and Reconstruction that depicts all white Yankees as completely good and noble and all white Southerners as completely wicked and backward. Rather, it's a story of flawed human beings and what happens when you have to face where you, and other people in the place you fondly call home, have been profoundly wrong.

This is a tragic novel. Still, it has glimmers of hope for healing and learning from the past. show less

This is a comparatively brief book for the time and events it covers. However, it does not feel as though the story is rushed, glossed over or shallow. In fact the characters are well developed, and their subsequent growth is understandable and clear. The slowly developed romance between Jemima Emerson and John Reid is likely the highlight of the story for its readers. In addition to its more lighthearted appeal, the novel does present a great deal of history and successfully conveys show more feelings about the events of the time. The conflicts within a family, as its members support different sides is particularly thought provoking show less