Review by kegray -- Strong Heart by Charlie Sheldon
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kegray
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- Latest Review: Strong Heart by Charlie Sheldon
Review by kegray -- Strong Heart by Charlie Sheldon
[Following is a volunteer review of "Strong Heart" by Charlie Sheldon.]
Strong Heart by Charlie Sheldon is a tale about Sarah, a rebellious thirteen-year-old girl, who arrives on Tom Olsen’s doorstep as he and his friends are about to venture into the wilderness. It is revealed that Sarah is Tom’s granddaughter, and she has nowhere else to go. Tom’s Native American friends, William and Myra, convince Tom to bring Sarah along on their journey to visit Tom’s grandfather’s grave, deep in the wilderness of the Olympic Peninsula. During the trip, Sarah has strange experiences, such as seeing a bear whose species has been extinct for thousands of years. Shortly after this incident, she disappears, and the book shows her perspective of what she experienced.
One reason why I enjoyed reading this book was that I fell in love with Sarah’s character. She has the attitude and bluntness that one might expect from a teenage girl, but she is still a strong, dynamic woman. Her narration of what happened during her disappearance is one of the most captivating and interesting parts of this novel, largely due to her display of bravery and strength. I think the author did a great job crafting her character, and giving a teenage girl dimension, something that some books fail to do. I think a lot of young girls today will be able to relate to Sarah. Overall, she is funny, smart, courageous, and a fun character to read about.
One aspect of this book that I disliked was the pacing. It felt a bit slow at some points, and I found myself a bit bored during those times. As much as I enjoyed Sarah’s perspective, I think it dragged on for a little too long. As the chapters that included her story went on, I was itching to get back to the main plot. I also would have liked to see more interaction between Sarah and Tom, seeing as they are related. I feel like Sarah connected more with Myra during this novel, which is fine, but the relationship between grandfather and granddaughter was not explored as much as I hoped. However, these dislikes are relatively small and did not seriously hinder my ability to enjoy this novel.
I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars because it is a very interesting story, and it was nicely edited. I found nothing seriously wrong or bad about this novel. It kept me interested from beginning to end. I decided not to rate this book a 3 out of 4 stars, because the dislikes I mentioned earlier were not severe enough to diminish its score. The dislikes were more so things I wished the author had done, but even still, I believe this is an excellent book. I have never read a book like this one before, which I like. It was an easy, refreshing read.
I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a hearty novel with themes revolving around family, culture, and faith. Strong Heart deals with themes of Native American culture, but even if you are not knowledgeable about this culture, you can still enjoy the novel. I specifically think younger girls and Native people may find this book more impactful than others. Young girls because they will be able to relate with Sarah, and Native Americans because they are represented very well in this book. However, I loved reading this book, even though I am not a Native American or a teenage girl. I would suggest to anyone to give this book a try, it will not disappoint!
******
Strong Heart
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Strong Heart by Charlie Sheldon is a tale about Sarah, a rebellious thirteen-year-old girl, who arrives on Tom Olsen’s doorstep as he and his friends are about to venture into the wilderness. It is revealed that Sarah is Tom’s granddaughter, and she has nowhere else to go. Tom’s Native American friends, William and Myra, convince Tom to bring Sarah along on their journey to visit Tom’s grandfather’s grave, deep in the wilderness of the Olympic Peninsula. During the trip, Sarah has strange experiences, such as seeing a bear whose species has been extinct for thousands of years. Shortly after this incident, she disappears, and the book shows her perspective of what she experienced.
One reason why I enjoyed reading this book was that I fell in love with Sarah’s character. She has the attitude and bluntness that one might expect from a teenage girl, but she is still a strong, dynamic woman. Her narration of what happened during her disappearance is one of the most captivating and interesting parts of this novel, largely due to her display of bravery and strength. I think the author did a great job crafting her character, and giving a teenage girl dimension, something that some books fail to do. I think a lot of young girls today will be able to relate to Sarah. Overall, she is funny, smart, courageous, and a fun character to read about.
One aspect of this book that I disliked was the pacing. It felt a bit slow at some points, and I found myself a bit bored during those times. As much as I enjoyed Sarah’s perspective, I think it dragged on for a little too long. As the chapters that included her story went on, I was itching to get back to the main plot. I also would have liked to see more interaction between Sarah and Tom, seeing as they are related. I feel like Sarah connected more with Myra during this novel, which is fine, but the relationship between grandfather and granddaughter was not explored as much as I hoped. However, these dislikes are relatively small and did not seriously hinder my ability to enjoy this novel.
I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars because it is a very interesting story, and it was nicely edited. I found nothing seriously wrong or bad about this novel. It kept me interested from beginning to end. I decided not to rate this book a 3 out of 4 stars, because the dislikes I mentioned earlier were not severe enough to diminish its score. The dislikes were more so things I wished the author had done, but even still, I believe this is an excellent book. I have never read a book like this one before, which I like. It was an easy, refreshing read.
I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a hearty novel with themes revolving around family, culture, and faith. Strong Heart deals with themes of Native American culture, but even if you are not knowledgeable about this culture, you can still enjoy the novel. I specifically think younger girls and Native people may find this book more impactful than others. Young girls because they will be able to relate with Sarah, and Native Americans because they are represented very well in this book. However, I loved reading this book, even though I am not a Native American or a teenage girl. I would suggest to anyone to give this book a try, it will not disappoint!
******
Strong Heart
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: Strong Heart by Charlie Sheldon
