Review by JeriMorris -- Strong Heart by Charlie Sheldon
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JeriMorris
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Review by JeriMorris -- Strong Heart by Charlie Sheldon
[Following is a volunteer review of "Strong Heart" by Charlie Sheldon.]
Getting ready to go on a hiking trip to visit the resting place of his grandfather with his Native American friends, William and Myra, Tom is met with an unexpected knock on the door. Standing in the pouring rain, is a twelve-year-old girl claiming to be Tom’s granddaughter. Tom believes he should cancel the hiking trip to figure out how to deal with his newfound granddaughter. Tom’s friends convince him taking Sarah would be beneficial for both. Giving Tom some much needed time to get to know his granddaughter, and to give Sarah some guidance through her troublesome preteen life. Sarah starts out like a normal preteen, complaining about the harshness of camping on the trial without the niceties of city life. Tom finds Sarah difficult to get along with when she pushes back about her problematic past. Tom realizes he should have never taken the trip with her. Trying to wedge his way into his granddaughter exterior, the group is met with immense conflict and find themselves running to get out of the park alive and together.
Each of the characters were written with stimulating personalities. Sarah is written as a wayward preteen who is great at getting under her grandfather’s skin. Tom is perceived as steadfast old man set in his ways, who wears himself out trying to get Sarah to see things in his point of view. The relationship between Tom and Sarah makes me smile. They make it seem that they will never get along with each other, but you can slowly see the love between them grow. Myra and William, father and daughter, prove to be just as steadfast as Tom. Reading the character development between each one was my favorite part of this book.
This book has an incredible story line! I was amazed by the connection to the history of the land and the people who had inhabited the area thousands of years ago. Every scene was perfectly described. The surroundings, the atmosphere, the warmth, the mood of the characters puts vivid images in the readers’ mind. As great as the detailing of the surroundings were, I felt the descriptions were a little over done. Every time the group progressed up the trail, there seemed to be a thorough description of every rock and tree. The drawn-out elements made the story seem disjointed at times. There would be some great dialogue between characters, and it would get interrupted to describe every new surrounding. I love the outdoors and learning about areas that I have never been and enjoyed picturing the landscape. While I enjoyed visualizing the park, the details seemed to be in between intense parts of the storyline, making it a bit disjointed to the reader.
I rate Strong Heart by Charlie Sheldon a 3 out of 4 stars. I did not feel this book deserved a two rating because it was very beautifully written. The knowledge of the area shined through. The author did a fantastic job researching the setting of his story along with learning about the native people of the area. This book was well edited, with minimal spelling and grammatical errors. As much as I enjoyed this story, I believe it did not earn a four rating. The transitions into Sarah’s story were rough. There could have been a better set up to her starting her story. The story started immediately after more detailed descriptions of the surroundings. I feel it would have been easier on the reader if there was more dialogue between the group about her starting her story before she just dives in. The ending was disappointing for me. There was no closure for the reader. The two main conflicts in the story were not solved. I had many questions regarding the outcome of the characters.
This wonderful story would be great for those who like to read about nature and Native American history. Some history buffs are picky about what type of history they read about. Those who enjoy any type of history will enjoy this read. There is little vulgarity in this book, making it a good read for young adults who are still finding out their genre they like to read. For the reader who sticks to dripping romance novels, or those who do not care to read about the outdoors should steer away from this one. Though I believe most anyone would enjoy this book if they gave it a chance, I also know many people to be picky readers who do not branch out from their comfort zone very well.
******
Strong Heart
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Getting ready to go on a hiking trip to visit the resting place of his grandfather with his Native American friends, William and Myra, Tom is met with an unexpected knock on the door. Standing in the pouring rain, is a twelve-year-old girl claiming to be Tom’s granddaughter. Tom believes he should cancel the hiking trip to figure out how to deal with his newfound granddaughter. Tom’s friends convince him taking Sarah would be beneficial for both. Giving Tom some much needed time to get to know his granddaughter, and to give Sarah some guidance through her troublesome preteen life. Sarah starts out like a normal preteen, complaining about the harshness of camping on the trial without the niceties of city life. Tom finds Sarah difficult to get along with when she pushes back about her problematic past. Tom realizes he should have never taken the trip with her. Trying to wedge his way into his granddaughter exterior, the group is met with immense conflict and find themselves running to get out of the park alive and together.
Each of the characters were written with stimulating personalities. Sarah is written as a wayward preteen who is great at getting under her grandfather’s skin. Tom is perceived as steadfast old man set in his ways, who wears himself out trying to get Sarah to see things in his point of view. The relationship between Tom and Sarah makes me smile. They make it seem that they will never get along with each other, but you can slowly see the love between them grow. Myra and William, father and daughter, prove to be just as steadfast as Tom. Reading the character development between each one was my favorite part of this book.
This book has an incredible story line! I was amazed by the connection to the history of the land and the people who had inhabited the area thousands of years ago. Every scene was perfectly described. The surroundings, the atmosphere, the warmth, the mood of the characters puts vivid images in the readers’ mind. As great as the detailing of the surroundings were, I felt the descriptions were a little over done. Every time the group progressed up the trail, there seemed to be a thorough description of every rock and tree. The drawn-out elements made the story seem disjointed at times. There would be some great dialogue between characters, and it would get interrupted to describe every new surrounding. I love the outdoors and learning about areas that I have never been and enjoyed picturing the landscape. While I enjoyed visualizing the park, the details seemed to be in between intense parts of the storyline, making it a bit disjointed to the reader.
I rate Strong Heart by Charlie Sheldon a 3 out of 4 stars. I did not feel this book deserved a two rating because it was very beautifully written. The knowledge of the area shined through. The author did a fantastic job researching the setting of his story along with learning about the native people of the area. This book was well edited, with minimal spelling and grammatical errors. As much as I enjoyed this story, I believe it did not earn a four rating. The transitions into Sarah’s story were rough. There could have been a better set up to her starting her story. The story started immediately after more detailed descriptions of the surroundings. I feel it would have been easier on the reader if there was more dialogue between the group about her starting her story before she just dives in. The ending was disappointing for me. There was no closure for the reader. The two main conflicts in the story were not solved. I had many questions regarding the outcome of the characters.
This wonderful story would be great for those who like to read about nature and Native American history. Some history buffs are picky about what type of history they read about. Those who enjoy any type of history will enjoy this read. There is little vulgarity in this book, making it a good read for young adults who are still finding out their genre they like to read. For the reader who sticks to dripping romance novels, or those who do not care to read about the outdoors should steer away from this one. Though I believe most anyone would enjoy this book if they gave it a chance, I also know many people to be picky readers who do not branch out from their comfort zone very well.
******
Strong Heart
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: High Flying by Kaylin McFarren
