Review: A Frontier Trail of Tears
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 01 19, 2013
"Sarah's Valley" by Sharon Mierke offers an exploratory and in some ways profound glimpse into the lives of the pioneers who ventured westward during the nineteenth century. Although the language is simple enough for this work to be read by anyone aged 10 and up, some of the subject matter might be considered more appropriate for those a few years older. This is by no means a romantic, quixotic story, but rather one rife with hardships and trials. Although there is an inspirational, adventurous vein running through it, this tale is often distressing. Employing the technique of mise-en-abime, Mierke frames one story within another. The book opens with a narrative by sixteen-year-old Patrick Smithson, who is traveling to a new job and who meets an old man by the name of Winnipesaukee along the way.Winnipesaukee spends the night relating a story about Frank and Sarah Lawdry, a brother and sister who, in their teens, leave their home on the East coast to travel westward during the mid-nineteenth century. As with any pioneer account, their journey is fraught with tragedy and adversity, and their expedition is years in the making. They encounter a variety of people along the way, both kind and malevolent, and the Native Americans play a predominant role. Throughout the narrative, Sarah and Frank mature and develop as they truly discover themselves and realize what they want from life. Readers will become engaged in their story, and although it becomes far less detailed and the time gaps increase as the book progresses, this is definitely a literary work that will leave an impression.