HISTORICAL FICTION

Peck, Richard.  2003.  THE RIVER BETWEEN US.  New York:  Dial Books.
ISBN:  0803727356

PLOT SUMMARY

   THE RIVER BETWEEN US is a story within a story.  In 1916, a young boy and his father and little brothers take a trip from St. Louis to visit his grandparents in Grand Tower, Illinois, a small town on the eastern banks of the Mississippi River.  "All I knew of Dad's people was that they'd lived through the Civil War.  Imagine an age when there were still people around who'd seen U.S. Grant with their own eyes, and men who'd voted for Lincoln".
   Grandmother Tilly tells the story of two events that changed the lives of her, her twin brother Noah, and their little sister Cass:  the Civil War and the arrival of two mysterious young women, Delphine and Calinda, on a riverboat from New Orleans in 1861.  As Grandma Tilly's story comes to a close, the young boy is surprised to learn the true identity of the travelers from New Orleans and their place in his family history.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

   Richard Peck composes a cast of vibrant characters and a captivating plot in this piece of historical fiction that won the Scott O'Dell Award in 2004.  Tilly's voice is a mix of humor and rustic reality, "She (Cass) was only twelve and looked ten.  She'd just about give up on school, the winter took so much out of her.  And thin?  Not much more than breath and britches."
   The settings are illustrated with vivid descriptions:  "To me a riverboat was a palace.  The pair of flaring gold chimney stacks belched flame-colored smoke into the night.  Below them the decks glowed like a gingerbread wedding cake."  The plot takes engaging turns and dips, not unlike the Mississippi River itself.  Mr. Peck manages to braid war and women in war, race relations, politics, family secrets, and moral attitudes into a spellbinding historical novel.
   Mr. Peck includes a note at the end of the story explaining his research.

REVIEW EXCERPTS

Kirkus Reviews:
"A rich tale full of magic, mystery, and surprise."

Library Media Connection:
“Peck is at his best in this richly layered drama full of intrigue and mystery that reveals the harsh, complex realities of war.”

CONNECTIONS

*This book has many connections to history, including the American Civil War (1861), World War I (1916), and historical connections to the French/Creole in the south.

*This book would be a good subject for a map reading lesson, identifying locations mentioned in the story.