Review of Strong Heart

[Izzy Kruger]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Strong Heart" by Charlie Sheldon.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Get ready to be taken on a journey by Sarah. Reading Strong Heart is truly a journey worth taking. Meet Sarah Cooley, a young, ornery (to steel from the author, Charlie Sheldon), orphaned teenage girl. She shows up on the doorstep of her estranged grandfather, Tom, when he and his two friends, William “Eye” and Myra are about to take a live changing hiking trip in the Olympic National Park. Only they don’t know it yet. A story about the difference between archaeological and anthropological facts and community beliefs, and the importance of believing in magic place where the two can meet.
The book is beautifully written, with breath-taking imagery that takes you along into the landscape of the characters. The changes in style of writing within the book also help with the changes in scenes and perspectives, assisting in painting the very authentic landscape you find yourself in while reading this book. Not being from North America, and thus being oblivious to a lot of the storyline behind the indigenous people living there, I found this book very intriguing and informative. The author clearly put a lot of effort into the research behind the facts to support the storyline. It awoke a desire in me to find out more about the wonderful people and stories that originated there (If you believe Myra).
The book starts off very well, grasping me from the first page, but then the storyline becomes a bit dreary. I struggled through the middle portion of the book where the storyline shifts to incorporate a different character telling a completely different story. The way wherein this portion is written is stylistically good but does make for a difficult read. There are also a few language and grammatical mistakes in this section, which can be argued might have used to assist in the staccato feel of the communications. Sometimes when multiple characters are present during a scene the direct speech is not attributed to a specific one, and it can cause confusion in the reader.
I can easily give this book 4 out of 4 stars. It is well written, interesting and informative, and creates a genuine interest in the reader to learn more about the stories that inspired the book. Luckily there are 2 more books in the series, and I will definitely be reading them.
Recommended for all avid historical fiction and action readers, even if you don’t know anything about the North American history.

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Strong Heart
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