Finding Her Way

Rating:
Summary: Finding Her Way will make young adults appreciate Thoreau
Review: I seriously struggled through Thoreau in both high school and college. After reading Finding Her Way, I was actually enthused about picking up Thoreau for a new reading. Ms. Faigen has accomplished her goal in a literary and entertaining way; to make the ideas of Thoreau accessible to young readers, and give them an appreciation for a critical period of thought in American history.

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Summary: Historical fiction for the younger reader
Review: The Curtis family lives on a farm at the edge of Concord, Massachusetts, in the 1840s. Twelve-year-old Rachel Curtis is beginning to balk at the traditional female role being thrust upon her, and she also happens to be a talented artist. She'd rather sketch the woodgrain pattern of a log than do household chores. (Who wouldn't?) She's encouraged to pursue her craft by a local teacher and by several famous residents, and although Rachel's family members are cautiously supportive, they cannot afford to send her to Boston, New York or Paris to study with an artist. Rachel is lucky enough to meet Henry David Thoreau at his Walden Pond cabin, and he in turn introduces her to Margaret Fuller. Through Margaret's connections, the young girl begins a correspondence study with an artist in New York. By the end of the book, Thoreau's made arrangements with the William Emerson family to house Rachel in the big city while she continues her personal study. We're satisfied at the end of the book that Rachel will realize her creative dreams.

What's missing here is an appendix that provides factual information about Thoreau and Fuller and indicates to the uninitiated reader that the two of them are not fictional characters. Even D.B. Johnson provides such notes at the end of _Henry Hikes to Fitchburg_ and _Henry Builds a Cabin_, his picture books based on Thoreau's life. Faigen should probably also take an opportunity to explain that many of the lines that come out of Henry's mouth here are quotes adapted from _Walden_. Young readers could then be directed to read that classic if they were intrigued by his character's behavior and opinions in this book. Since Margaret Fuller is the lesser known of the two celebrities featured, it would be a valuable service to the readers to tell of her good writing work and her fateful death at sea, since that would happen sometime in the next few chapters if Rachel's world continued.

_Finding Her Way_ is still a fine introduction to the life of the times and the transcendental movement. But even if no one read an "Afterword," I think one should appear.

Rating:
Summary: A must for pre-teens
Review: Wonderfully inspirational for all readers but a must for pre-teens. Anne Faigen recreates nineteenth-century rural Massachusetts with historically accurate detail while drawing the reader in with issues resonant and ultimately relevant to today. Readers will find themselves rethinking their own attitudes and values toward autonomy, self-development, gender and the environment while empathizing with the lively character of Rachel Louisa Curtis. The fact that we are introduced (or reintroduced) to the writing of Henry David Thoreau and Margaret Fuller is the other truely rewarding payoff.