The Red Heart by JAMES ALEXANDER Thom Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Red Heart
Book Review: More Than a Culture Clash Novel
Summary: 5 Stars
This is the story of a young quaker girl taken by the Indians in a raid, and adopted first by a loving Indian woman who had lost her own children in raids by the whites. The author lets us see the struggles by the Indians to survive the attacks on their villages by the whites, while showing us the longing and anquish of the non warring quaker family for their kidnapped daughter. As the story unfolds, we see the young quaker girl, first called Waletawash(good face) then Maconakwa(Little Bear Woman) grow up and become a respected Indian woman of her adopted people. The reader sees the good and bad aspects of Indian life, including the devastation and personal losses caused by the introduction of alcohol by the whites. Although the Indians suffer many defeats, they survive with determination and hope, not only in the flesh, but in the spirit as well. In the end, with very little land left to live her Indian way of life, Maconakwa is called on to make a very important decision concerning her future and way of life for her family and the few remaining Indians, which to me was the right one. This is one of the best books I have read, and one I will read over a number of times. Thanks to the author for giving us such a wonderful story. A readerBook Review: Red Heart
Summary: 5 Stars
This is one of the best books I have read. And I did research while reading it and this is a true story. I am really dissapointed in the way the US government treated the Indians by stealing their land, burning their villages, raping and murdering their women and children. It is awesome what Frances Slocum endured with her new Indian family. I have just a big sad feeling in my heart for the awful way Thomas Jefferson, and Harrison were such criminals in the matters concerning the Indians and their homelands. I will never think of the early armies, generals, and presidents of that era in the same way. Mr. Thom is one of the best authors I have ever read. He puts you right inside the story and makes you feel that you are living it yourself. I also loved reading "Follow the River".Book Review: Red Heart
Summary: 1 Stars
I was going to buy the book because of enjoying "From Sea to Shining Sea" so much. But the review I read about how the author changed the facts to portray Native Americans thru the telescope of "political correctness" changed my mind. Please will somebody tell me it ain't so?????Book Review: Somewhat sad story. Overall enjoyable.
Summary: 4 Stars
This is the story of Frances Slocum, as well as a sad tale of the Native American people's loss of homeland and life at the hands of the `new' Americans. Based on the life of the actual historic Frances Slocum, the novel's Frances is kidnapped in 1776 from her Quaker family at the age of 5. The history has been edited, but this is a novel and doesn't claim to be nonfiction. Frances is taken to replace the dead child of an Indian woman whose own daughter was killed by whites. Frances and her adoptive family, Tuck Horse and Flicker spend many years running from war in search of a peaceful place that the Americans will allow them to call home. The storytelling is simple and well done. The descriptions of Niagara Falls, the Great Lakes and American lands are wonderful. Thom manages to give Frances the voice of a child when she is young and her voice matures as she grows. As she grows, so does the population and expansion of whites into territory once occupied by Indians. More and more information about how the Indians are being killed and pushed out of their homeland is woven into the narrative in later chapters. The history of the politics sometimes overwhelms the story of Frances, but it does explain a lot. There are occasional updates on her Quaker family's constant search for their missing relative. These updates are brief and do not interrupt the flow of Frances' life story. They illustrate how the Slocum's always kept her in their heart and thoughts and prayers. Both Frances and her family are depicted as such kind and good people, which seems too simplistic for realism, but it made for very nice reading. Because of the accounts of Native American life and the heart-touching persistence of her family, I enjoyed this story in spite of the suffering inflicted on the Indians. Recommended.
Book Review: Stunning true story
Summary: 5 Stars
The Author deserves all the praise he gets. The novelisation of this true story is handled with depth and feeling, told from the perspective of the girl Frances herself and of her family as they continually try to find trace of her during this terrible, bloody period of US colonisation.
It does appear as though the story is biased towards the Indians, but, given that the author is married to an Indian and the fact that every treaty that the US signed with the Indian tribes was broken, either in word or in deed - it's hardly surprising that the bias is toward the down-trodden.
Mr.Thom is one of those few authors who can generate a world inside one's head, and he does this without overblown descriptive passages - just the right words in the right place.
For example, in just a few sentences, you are taken to the edge of Niagara Falls and stunned by the majesty of its awesome power - and I've never seen it!
Reading this book prompted me to order more of his work.