Status
Available
Call number
Call number
F Hot
Genres
Collection
Publication
New York : Clarion Books, c1988.
Description
Captured by a roving band of Sioux Indians and brought up as the chief's daughter, Rachel is recaptured by her white family and finds it difficult to adjust, as she longs to return to the tribe.
Original publication date
1991
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User reviews
LibraryThing member benuathanasia
This was the first historical fiction I truly fell in love with. An interesting, seldom seen side of American history, well told and beautifully unfolded.
LibraryThing member ladycato
The basic story: a white girl (Rachel) is kidnapped by native Americans for seven years where she is adopted by a loving family, but is then forcefully returned to her white family, which is dominated by her abusive minister father.
To be honest, this is the kind of book I would have loved at like
Considering the simplistic prose and middle grade presentation of the book, I was startled that the book mentioned Rachel getting raped repeatedly at age 10, and that another character is also raped and impregnated, and it was all described in a way that was very victim-blaming that was never challenged. As historically-accurate as that is, it also makes me cringe because I would have (and did) internalize that kind of stuff as a kid.
The villain of the piece, Rachel's father, feels like a stock character. His actions at the end don't feel like they fit at all. The hopeful ending feels shoe-horned in.
Even by 1980s standards, this feels like hack-level historical fiction for the juvenile market.
To be honest, this is the kind of book I would have loved at like
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age 10, and probably read repeatedly. As an adult, I can see it's problematic on many levels. I was relieved that it didn't go for the "Indians are bad, white Christian man is good" binary; both societies are depicted with nuance, with good and bad people in each. That said, the depictions of the Native Americans feel... like they were derived from watching a lot of westerns. Considering the simplistic prose and middle grade presentation of the book, I was startled that the book mentioned Rachel getting raped repeatedly at age 10, and that another character is also raped and impregnated, and it was all described in a way that was very victim-blaming that was never challenged. As historically-accurate as that is, it also makes me cringe because I would have (and did) internalize that kind of stuff as a kid.
The villain of the piece, Rachel's father, feels like a stock character. His actions at the end don't feel like they fit at all. The hopeful ending feels shoe-horned in.
Even by 1980s standards, this feels like hack-level historical fiction for the juvenile market.
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Pages
202