A piece of history

As the end of the semester nears, I am finding myself spending more time reading academic writing, but I managed to squeeze in Pamela de Leon’s The Savage River Valley, which I received for review for the Historical Novels Review Online.

My official review will be published by HNR online, but here is a more personal reaction.

When I started reading The Savage River Valley, I did not think I was going to enjoy it. I found myself losing patience with the meandering tone of the preface/first chapter, but the narrative soon picked up after the second chapter. The blurb on the back cover makes the story sound like a paranormal historical novel–Clara, a woman from 21st century New York spiritually travels back in time to the year 1601 to witness a Mohican death ceremony.  However, Clara’s spiritual quest reads like a secondary subplot, rather than the focus of the novel. The narrative really comes alive when the reader is introduced to the Mohicans, particularly the children of Tah-neh-wa–Minnah and White Feather. The description of Mohican life is rich in detail and well-written. Minnah is an interesting and sympathetic character, her ability to see beyond the mundane allowing her to perceive the bonds that connect her family to the land and the danger that will come from across the great water.

De Leon also adds an element of mystery to the tale, shifting the narrative from life among the Mohicans to life aboard a Dutch trading vessel bound for the shores of the Hudson, the greed, scorn, and lust of the sailors a marked contrast to the Mohican’s harmonious, co-existence.

I have mixed feeling about the novel; I found myself engrossed by the historical plot, but felt that Clara’s part in the narrative seemed superfluous. I would have preferred the novel without the spiritual quest. It reminds me of when I watched “Julie and Julia,” I preferred the Julia without the Julie.

Tags: historical fiction, native american fiction, pamela de leon, review book, the savage river valley