Review by Aknitter09 -- Strong Heart by Charlie Sheldon

[Aknitter09]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Strong Heart" by Charlie Sheldon.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Strong Heart by Charlie Sheldon is, in essence, a book about connecting with past generations. It has many strong themes and includes many genres. Strong Heart revolves around Sarah, a teenager with attitude problems, and her grandfather Tom. Tom takes Sarah on an adventure in the woods, and Sarah finds more than she bargains for when she chose to run to her grandfather. For Sarah, Tom, and Tom’s friends, there is no going back after their trip. Throughout this book, we see Sarah and Tom’s relationship evolve with the help of some friends and a little help from the past.

Overall, I rate Strong Heart 3 out of 4 stars. I found the plot line and the premise very enjoyable. The scenes from the past are well incorporated into the future. The transition between time periods, past and present, was very smooth and clearly defined. I also appreciated the scientific aspects incorporated into this book. Strong Heart not only focuses on ecological and political issues very present in the Pacific Northwest today, it also focuses on the debates of human migration throughout time.

Strong Heart kept me reading once I began. The flashbacks of the past were particularly haunting and very interesting. I was easily able to picture myself as an ancient person sailing to a new home. I could not wait to hear more of Sarah’s story, as well as the past girl’s. I never felt as though a piece did not belong in the story. I often felt as though I needed more background on Sarah or on Tom and his relationship with Sarah’s mother, but otherwise this book was very cohesive.

As the story progressed, I really wanted more background or more action. I wanted to know about Tom’s antique from his grandfather. I think this book could have had a smoother progression if a few more specific flashbacks about Tom were added in. I also felt as though we did not see Sarah’s and Tom’s relationship played upon enough. Sarah and another character named Myra seemed to bond more than Sarah and Tom did.

All in all, I really enjoyed this book. I felt as though Sarah’s teenage attitude was very well expressed. Tom also felt very natural to me. All of the scientific aspects of the book were well researched and well presented. I just wanted more in the story. I did not want to stop reading or reading about the relationships between the characters!

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Strong Heart
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