Uncertain Glory
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
Joe Wood has dreams. Big dreams. He wants to be a newspaperman, and though he’s only fourteen, he’s already borrowed money to start his own press. But it’s April, 1861, and a young nation is teetering on the brink of a civil war. As effects of war begin to spread over Joe’s hometown of Wiscasset, Maine, he must juggle his personal ambitions with some new responsibilities. He has to help Owen, his young assistant, deal with the challenges of being black in a white world torn apart by color. He needs to talk his best friend, Charlie, out of enlisting. He wants to help a young spiritualist, Nell, whose uncle claims she can speak to the dead. And when Owen disappears, it’s up to Joe to save him. Lea Wait skillfully draws on the lives of real people in Maine’s history to tell this story of three young adults touched by war and the tension it brings, forcing them into adulthood—before they may be ready.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this excellent historical coming-of-age novel set at the dawn of the American Civil War, 14-year-old Joe Wood struggles to keep his inherited newspaper, the Wiscassat Herald, afloat even as his Maine hometown is rocked by reports of war from down south. Joe has 13 days left to raise the money needed to pay his startup loans, and it's looking grim until the onset of hostilities means there's plenty of news to report. Meanwhile, he's also investigating the legitimacy of a young spiritualist who's holding sessions with the townsfolk and communicating with the dead. When friends, neighbors, and family are torn apart by conflicting loyalties and patriotism, Joe's caught in the middle. It's a lot of plot to pack into a somewhat slim story, but Wait (Finest Kind) skillfully weaves the strands together in a fast-paced and authentic tale. It's a fascinating look at small-town life during a pivotal moment in American history, made all the more believable by Joe's easy, affable narration and Wait's drawing on actual people (including Joe) and events. Ages 10 14.
