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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
I really enjoyed this when I first read it, and even on a couple of subsequent rereadings. It *is* an interesting story, told well, as most of RMB's stories are.
BUT...I just finished reading Octavia Butler's "Kindred", which, based on non-fictional sources I've read, is a MUCH more accurate contemporary depiction of what slavery was actually like (although it, too, is historical fiction). The slaves in "High Hearts" are certainly not thrilled to be slaves, but they love their white masters, and the white people (with a few exceptions) are all basically just misguided, benevolent matriarchs/patriarchs -- no whippings, no deprivation, and they really seem to believe that the slaves are better off under their care than they would be as free people.
Brown's afterword, too, reeks of Southern white apologist; as herself -- not even in the context of the story -- she insists that the Civil War was not about slavery, and that if it had been, there wouldn't have been so many poor white people fighting for the South...but even a cursory bit of actual research (using non-Southern sources) should be enough to dispel that notion.
So I give it two stars because, as I said, it was an engaging story, but for someone who was supposedly big into the civil rights movement in the '60s, Brown is incredibly tone-deaf about the South's role in the Civil War.
BUT...I just finished reading Octavia Butler's "Kindred", which, based on non-fictional sources I've read, is a MUCH more accurate contemporary depiction of what slavery was actually like (although it, too, is historical fiction). The slaves in "High Hearts" are certainly not thrilled to be slaves, but they love their white masters, and the white people (with a few exceptions) are all basically just misguided, benevolent matriarchs/patriarchs -- no whippings, no deprivation, and they really seem to believe that the slaves are better off under their care than they would be as free people.
Brown's afterword, too, reeks of Southern white apologist; as herself -- not even in the context of the story -- she insists that the Civil War was not about slavery, and that if it had been, there wouldn't have been so many poor white people fighting for the South...but even a cursory bit of actual research (using non-Southern sources) should be enough to dispel that notion.
So I give it two stars because, as I said, it was an engaging story, but for someone who was supposedly big into the civil rights movement in the '60s, Brown is incredibly tone-deaf about the South's role in the Civil War.
Book Riot 2015 Challenge: Book by an author who identifies as LGBTQ
PopSugar 2015 Challenge: Book I started once and never finished
High Hearts is a book I've owned for a long time but never picked up. It's one of Brown's early works, but I suppose I was turned off from reading because I didn't like her most recent non-mystery efforts. As with Stephen King, until I rediscovered him, I decided Rita and I needed a break.
I chose High Hearts to fulfill a few reading challenges because I don't like to DNF a book unless there's a good reason. The first time around, years ago, I wasn't in the frame of mind to read Civil War fiction. This time around, though, I lost myself in the story and enjoyed it. Having lived near and visited frequently the settings of this book, I've come away with greater interest in my adopted state's history.
I'm also encouraged to pick up Dolley, one of the few non-mysteries of Brown's I haven't read.
PopSugar 2015 Challenge: Book I started once and never finished
High Hearts is a book I've owned for a long time but never picked up. It's one of Brown's early works, but I suppose I was turned off from reading because I didn't like her most recent non-mystery efforts. As with Stephen King, until I rediscovered him, I decided Rita and I needed a break.
I chose High Hearts to fulfill a few reading challenges because I don't like to DNF a book unless there's a good reason. The first time around, years ago, I wasn't in the frame of mind to read Civil War fiction. This time around, though, I lost myself in the story and enjoyed it. Having lived near and visited frequently the settings of this book, I've come away with greater interest in my adopted state's history.
I'm also encouraged to pick up Dolley, one of the few non-mysteries of Brown's I haven't read.