Review by CozyBookCorner -- Strong Heart by Charlie Sheldon
Posted: 02 Mar 2021, 21:17
[Following is a volunteer review of "Strong Heart" by Charlie Sheldon.]
Charlie Sheldon brings life to his own twist on North American myths in Strong Heart. The story follows Sarah, a troubled young teen that has been left behind by her stepfather. With no other choice, she heads out to the boonies to find her estranged grandparents, Tom and Ruth. Understandably, she has a bit of an attitude about it all. Through Sarah’s adventures we learn about the Olympic Peninsula’s inhabitants, its tumultuous landscape, and its history. Sarah soon finds herself in peril; lost in the woods and thrown into a vision quest. Meanwhile a controversial mining operation is attempting to hunker down in her newfound friend’s beloved park.
I found myself entranced by the effortless scenery that Charlie built up. He never included so much that I was bored of the details, but instead created vivid mental landscapes that transported my mind right into the Olympic National Park with Sarah and the gang. I found myself yearning to go for a hike in the Rockies myself, but his book was the next best thing. Thankfully, his attention to detail did not extend to the few gruesome parts of the story. I was equally as glad that here he had simmered down the detail, so that these scenes were not so clearly depicted in my head!
A point that could be both positive and negative is that there was a fair amount of dialogue throughout the story. Personally, it made my experience feel more realistic and enhanced the mental imagery I had going on; almost as if it were a motion picture or screenplay instead. However, despite all this dialogue I never felt any closer to the individual characters. I was deeply invested in the plot and the setting of the story, but most of the characters could have been easily replaced and I would not have cared. It almost felt as though they were place holders, sufficient for moving the plot forward but nothing to get attached to.
A second negative to the story is that I felt a lack of closure at the end. Without giving too much away, I knew everything was coming to a head, but it was as if I wasn’t allowed to participate or watch. It left me with a few questions, and a slight feeling of unfulfillment. However, after realizing that this is just the first story in the series, I can understand that Charlie was building anticipation for the next addition.
I found minimal errors in the book, so I rate this book 4 out of 4. I would not rate it any lower because I was truly engrossed the entire time. Whenever they were in the park I felt submerged in nature, which was wonderful to experience considering I was actually in the middle of a city and unable to get any true fresh air. Additionally, the myth he created made me think more about North America's history, where people came from in general, and how our theories constantly evolve with new evidence. It got me excited about how far we have come, and how much we still have left to discover.
There are a few examples of both borderline and non-borderline profanity, however I found that they flowed easily in the speech and mannerisms of the characters, so it was never abrasive. In fact, the first borderline usage fit so naturally in the passage I almost missed it completely. For their inclusion, and for the slightly complicated way he jumped from past to present, I would not recommend this book to anyone younger than a young adult. Those who enjoy fiction with themes of history, nature, and casually questioning current hypothesis about man’s creation would likely enjoy Strong Heart.
******
Strong Heart
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Charlie Sheldon brings life to his own twist on North American myths in Strong Heart. The story follows Sarah, a troubled young teen that has been left behind by her stepfather. With no other choice, she heads out to the boonies to find her estranged grandparents, Tom and Ruth. Understandably, she has a bit of an attitude about it all. Through Sarah’s adventures we learn about the Olympic Peninsula’s inhabitants, its tumultuous landscape, and its history. Sarah soon finds herself in peril; lost in the woods and thrown into a vision quest. Meanwhile a controversial mining operation is attempting to hunker down in her newfound friend’s beloved park.
I found myself entranced by the effortless scenery that Charlie built up. He never included so much that I was bored of the details, but instead created vivid mental landscapes that transported my mind right into the Olympic National Park with Sarah and the gang. I found myself yearning to go for a hike in the Rockies myself, but his book was the next best thing. Thankfully, his attention to detail did not extend to the few gruesome parts of the story. I was equally as glad that here he had simmered down the detail, so that these scenes were not so clearly depicted in my head!
A point that could be both positive and negative is that there was a fair amount of dialogue throughout the story. Personally, it made my experience feel more realistic and enhanced the mental imagery I had going on; almost as if it were a motion picture or screenplay instead. However, despite all this dialogue I never felt any closer to the individual characters. I was deeply invested in the plot and the setting of the story, but most of the characters could have been easily replaced and I would not have cared. It almost felt as though they were place holders, sufficient for moving the plot forward but nothing to get attached to.
A second negative to the story is that I felt a lack of closure at the end. Without giving too much away, I knew everything was coming to a head, but it was as if I wasn’t allowed to participate or watch. It left me with a few questions, and a slight feeling of unfulfillment. However, after realizing that this is just the first story in the series, I can understand that Charlie was building anticipation for the next addition.
I found minimal errors in the book, so I rate this book 4 out of 4. I would not rate it any lower because I was truly engrossed the entire time. Whenever they were in the park I felt submerged in nature, which was wonderful to experience considering I was actually in the middle of a city and unable to get any true fresh air. Additionally, the myth he created made me think more about North America's history, where people came from in general, and how our theories constantly evolve with new evidence. It got me excited about how far we have come, and how much we still have left to discover.
There are a few examples of both borderline and non-borderline profanity, however I found that they flowed easily in the speech and mannerisms of the characters, so it was never abrasive. In fact, the first borderline usage fit so naturally in the passage I almost missed it completely. For their inclusion, and for the slightly complicated way he jumped from past to present, I would not recommend this book to anyone younger than a young adult. Those who enjoy fiction with themes of history, nature, and casually questioning current hypothesis about man’s creation would likely enjoy Strong Heart.
******
Strong Heart
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
