The Secret of Sarah Revere

"Father, what matters? What people think? Or what’s true?"

Sarah Revere is the daughter of the famous Paul Revere. I think this is one of Rinaldi's best, and that's saying something. She has such a gift for blending fact and fiction, reality and imagination so seamlessly that you become completely wrapped up in the story. I learn more from Rinaldi's books than the best history book could ever hope to convey; she brings these characters to life in a way few other authors can manage.

This is more than just the story of Paul Revere's ride. Told in first person from the view of his second daughter, Sarah, who was thirteen when he took he most famous ride. Like Ms. Rinaldi says in her afterward, our education of the American Revolution is usually limited to elementary school and doesn't go into a lot of details about battles, etc. I actually learned quite a bit and am thankful for her research.

Save your time. Nothing about this book was appealing save for the one exchange between Paul and Sarah Revere.

“The truth is what you make it.”

I didn’t even realize that’s what the book was about until that one line. Because despite the book’s title, secrets do not in fact seem to be a reoccurring topic. I was also hoping for a strong, sympathetic heroine out of Sarah but she hardly ever left her family’s home.

I would provide a brief synopsis of the novel’s plot, but to be perfectly honest, I don’t know what this novel was about other than Sarah and her family members having endless tedious conversations and who was speaking to whom.

Skip it.

Paul Revere's daughter describes her father's "rides" and the intelligence network of the patriot community prior to the American Revolution.