Review by RachelEmmanuel -- Strong Heart by Charlie Sheldon
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Review by RachelEmmanuel -- Strong Heart by Charlie Sheldon
[Following is a volunteer review of "Strong Heart" by Charlie Sheldon.]
Myth and legend blend artfully with teenage angst and coming of age in Charlie Sheldon's Strong Heart. Set in Washington State's Olympic Peninsula, the story centers around Sarah, a feisty modern teenager who is forced to stay with her grandfather Tom, a man she has never met before. While on a journey into the wilderness to pay their final respects to Tom's father, Sarah goes missing for eight days. Upon her return, she tells an incredible tale of people and creatures from bygone eras.
What starts as a predictable tale about the bond between a grandfather and granddaughter suddenly takes a shocking turn, plummeting you into what I can only compare to an episode of "Lost". Elements of time travel and time displacement and strange encounters with extinct beasts share page space with mammoth bone artifacts, DNA testing, and mining operations on protected land. Apparently kidnapped by people from prehistoric times, Sarah is taken on an unbelievable journey of self-discovery. The book leaves you with more questions than answers and but that, I assume, is the author's intention.
Sheldon does an incredible job describing the Olympic Peninsula and its rich history. The people and places from both the distant past and present-day come alive through his simple narrative. The book compels the imagination to expand, to embrace the mystery and beauty of the wilderness where the mind is not bound by the limits of the physical world and where the word impossible loses all meaning.
The book, although fictional, poses some open-ended questions about the genesis of humans in the Americas, where they came from, and how they ended up here. While not an expert in anthropology, it tweaked my interest to learn more about the origin stories of the indigenous people in this part of the world.
Ultimately, Strong Heart is a survival story. When we first meet Sarah, she is a mouthy, opinionated teenager with a large chip on her shoulder. By the end of the book, she has been transformed into a woman who has overcome adversity and emerged stronger. The reader should be forewarned that some of her experiences are a little brutal and hard to read.
The book is most suited for people who enjoy historical fiction as well as those who enjoy adventures steeped in folklore, magic, and the paranormal. While the slightly choppy style of writing may not appeal to some, the book is superbly edited and hard to put down. I rate it 4 out of 4 stars.
******
Strong Heart
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Myth and legend blend artfully with teenage angst and coming of age in Charlie Sheldon's Strong Heart. Set in Washington State's Olympic Peninsula, the story centers around Sarah, a feisty modern teenager who is forced to stay with her grandfather Tom, a man she has never met before. While on a journey into the wilderness to pay their final respects to Tom's father, Sarah goes missing for eight days. Upon her return, she tells an incredible tale of people and creatures from bygone eras.
What starts as a predictable tale about the bond between a grandfather and granddaughter suddenly takes a shocking turn, plummeting you into what I can only compare to an episode of "Lost". Elements of time travel and time displacement and strange encounters with extinct beasts share page space with mammoth bone artifacts, DNA testing, and mining operations on protected land. Apparently kidnapped by people from prehistoric times, Sarah is taken on an unbelievable journey of self-discovery. The book leaves you with more questions than answers and but that, I assume, is the author's intention.
Sheldon does an incredible job describing the Olympic Peninsula and its rich history. The people and places from both the distant past and present-day come alive through his simple narrative. The book compels the imagination to expand, to embrace the mystery and beauty of the wilderness where the mind is not bound by the limits of the physical world and where the word impossible loses all meaning.
The book, although fictional, poses some open-ended questions about the genesis of humans in the Americas, where they came from, and how they ended up here. While not an expert in anthropology, it tweaked my interest to learn more about the origin stories of the indigenous people in this part of the world.
Ultimately, Strong Heart is a survival story. When we first meet Sarah, she is a mouthy, opinionated teenager with a large chip on her shoulder. By the end of the book, she has been transformed into a woman who has overcome adversity and emerged stronger. The reader should be forewarned that some of her experiences are a little brutal and hard to read.
The book is most suited for people who enjoy historical fiction as well as those who enjoy adventures steeped in folklore, magic, and the paranormal. While the slightly choppy style of writing may not appeal to some, the book is superbly edited and hard to put down. I rate it 4 out of 4 stars.
******
Strong Heart
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
1 Cor 15: 19-20, 26 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.
But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead...The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead...The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
Latest Review: Daddy’s Baby Mama’s Maybe by Come Lamore
