In the summer of 1960, 13-year-old bookish Sophie Fairchild Martineau is dumped at her mother’s childhood Louisiana home, Oak Cottage, where Sophie’s grandmother has taken to her bed, sighing for the Good Old Days before the War of Northern Aggression. In the stifling humidity, Sophie vents her silent resentment by clearing an overgrown maze, part of the once proud Fairchild plantation. After she wishes impulsively for a grand adventure, she is transported to Oak Cottage in 1860. Here, the story takes a startling turn as Sophie is mistaken for a slave by her ancestors. The vivid characters come to life through Sophie’s nuanced observations, and the tension heightens as her compassionate understanding of her fellow slaves deepens. Sophie’s shift back to her own time is abrupt, but the juxtaposition of the skillfully drawn settings allows readers to draw conclusions about racial equality, human dignity, and the innate drive to control one’s own life. This multilayered story combines fantasy, clever literary allusions, and societal observations into a unique coming-of-age story.
In the summer of 1960, 13-year-old bookish Sophie Fairchild Martineau is dumped at her mother’s childhood Louisiana home, Oak Cottage, where Sophie’s grandmother has taken to her bed, sighing for the Good Old Days before the War of Northern Aggression. In the stifling humidity, Sophie vents her silent resentment by clearing an overgrown maze, part of the once proud Fairchild plantation. After she wishes impulsively for a grand adventure, she is transported to Oak Cottage in 1860. Here, the story takes a startling turn as Sophie is mistaken for a slave by her ancestors. The vivid characters come to life through Sophie’s nuanced observations, and the tension heightens as her compassionate understanding of her fellow slaves deepens. Sophie’s shift back to her own time is abrupt, but the juxtaposition of the skillfully drawn settings allows readers to draw conclusions about racial equality, human dignity, and the innate drive to control one’s own life. This multilayered story combines fantasy, clever literary allusions, and societal observations into a unique coming-of-age story.
