A Sea So Far - Softcover

Gr 7 Up-It is 1906, and most of San Francisco lies in ruins. Mobs of people, some piteously injured, others dragging a variety of belongings, roam the streets in an effort to avoid a horrendous fire, reunite with loved ones, and put their lives back together. Told through the alternating viewpoints of two strong-willed, but otherwise rather different teens, this story will be appealing to those who like plucky heroines in period pieces. Well-read Kate, an orphan, hopes to graduate from high school and somehow see her mother's native Ireland. Jolie, suffering severe heart problems from a bout of scarlet fever, is the daughter of a prominent and wealthy doctor who loses her mother in the quake. Dr. Logan, in denial about the seriousness of his daughter's condition, promises Kate a large financial incentive to accompany the girl to Ireland to visit an estate to which Jolie's aunt has made her heir. Kate agrees, planning to desert her companion once she is safely with her aunt. However, as Kate becomes more aware of Ireland's problems and Jolie's decline, she finds herself indecisive. Although Thesman flirts with didacticism in her discussion of the harmful effects of women's corsets and clothing styles, in other period details she is perfectly fluent. With vivid settings and well-developed characters, the story conveys the importance of educated women helping their less fortunate "sisters" escape the burdens of society's conventions through economic innovation. This is an enjoyable read with a poignant ending.

Cindy Darling Codell, Clark Middle School, Winchester, KY

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Thesman (Tree of Bells) starts out strong but later falters in her tale of two teenage girls, opposite in personalities and backgrounds, brought together after the San Francisco earthquake of 1906. At first the narrative alternates focus among three characters: 15-year-old Kate, the orphaned daughter of Irish immigrants, who must leave high school to support herself, her aunt and 16-year-old Jolie, a coddled invalid whose mother dies in the quake. The opening quickly sets up the contrast between the girls' two worlds, with the errant poor dragging their sparse belongings while the Russian Hill wealthy seem to be holding an outdoor tea party, comfortably ensconced in their furniture as they watch the rest of the city burn. Thesman effectively weaves together these separate strands, even arranging a chance sighting before the girls meet. Kate, ever practical and lured by the promise of a journey to Ireland, takes a job as Jolie's companion, even though she finds Jolie "the most spoiled, rude, insufferable snob she had ever met." The girls do develop a friendship, but as the novel progresses, the relationship seems a bit melodramatic and does not demonstrate the intimacy that the narrative claims. Unfortunately, in the end, both the plotting and character development come to seem implausible. Ages 10-14.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.