A BOOKLIST EDITOR’S CHOICE BOOK OF THE YEARAmbitious and masterfully-wrought, Lauren Francis-Sharma’s Book of the Little Axe is an incredible journey, spanning decades and oceans from Trinidad to the American West during the tumultuous days of warring colonial powers and westward expansion. In 1796 Trinidad, young Rosa Rendón quietly but purposefully rebels against the life others expect her to … to lead. Bright, competitive, and opinionated, Rosa sees no reason she should learn to cook and keep house, for it is obvious her talents lie in running the farm she, alone, views as her birthright. But when her homeland changes from Spanish to British rule, it becomes increasingly unclear whether its free black property owners—Rosa’s family among them—will be allowed to keep their assets, their land, and ultimately, their freedom. By 1830, Rosa is living among the Crow Nation in Bighorn, Montana with her children and her husband, Edward Rose, a Crow chief. Her son Victor is of the age where he must seek his vision and become a man. But his path forward is blocked by secrets Rosa has kept from him. So Rosa must take him to where his story began and, in turn, retrace her own roots, acknowledging along the way, the painful events that forced her from the middle of an ocean to the rugged terrain of a far-away land.
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A stunning, original epic that ranges from Trinidad to the western frontier of the early United States, skipping through time and between characters to build a multi-layered, rich, heart-breaking history of violence, passion, and questing for one’s own true identity. Unlike any other book I’ve read this year.
September 25, 2020
So many feelings!
A story that puts you right into the souls you’re reading about! So many feelings reading this. This was an Amazing read.
I received a free electronic ARC of this excellent historical novel from Netgalley, Lauren Francis-Sharma, and publisher Grove Atlantic – Atlantic Monthly. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have read this novel of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work. Lauren Francis-Sharma brings us a very well researched, historically accurate view into life in both Trinidad and Montana in the early years of the 1800s. Her characters are personable and honest, with that extra spice that brings them to life in the pages of this book.
Book of the Little Axe covers the period of 1796 – 1830, and follows Rosa Rendon from her family home on the Isle of Trinidad in the Caribbean as it goes through the growing pains of European control, first Spanish then the French, and finally British rule, and the effects that had on the Rendon family, father Demas a free black, mother Myra, a free mulatto, and their three children, oldest daughter Eva and youngest son Jeremias light complected like their mother, middle daughter Rosa black-skinned like her father. With each rollover of political control of the island, the family loses rights and property, eventually leading to the breakup of the family.
We follow Rosa with Creadon Rampley, who worked for the farm and blacksmith shop run by Demas in Trinidad, as they travel across the sea, across Mexico, and through the territories of the US to Kellyspell, a discarded military post located to the west of Apsaalooke Territory, in what would become Oregon Country. Rampley knew of the fort as he helped build it, and was there when it closed down. Rosa’s father trusted him to get her to a safe place where Rosa would be able to be as independent as she wanted to be. That was never going to happen in Trinidad. There is a time of healing for both Rosa and Creadon at the old Post Kellyspell before Rosa meets Edward Rose and Rampley chooses to move on. Our tale is told from several first-person accounts and jogs back and forth through time but this is handled well and not too distracting. We hear from Rosa and her son, Victor, and the Creadon Rampley contributions are via his journal which Victor finds in the old military post where he and his mother find refuge after a vicious attack on them while Victor is seeking a vision quest. During his pre-teen years, Victor lived with the Amerindian tribe who called themselves Apsaalooke and were identified by the white man as the Crow tribe.
During Victor’s time with the tribe, his mother Rosa was married to Edward Rose, a man of mixed heritage who had earned a place as a revered Apsaalooke war chief. Victor does not carry the black skin of his parents, looking more like his Aunt Eva and Grandmother Myra. He and Rosa spend months at the deserted military post while Victor heals broken bones and a heart that mourned his best friend, who was a part of the party who attacked them and raped his mother.
There is a LOT of history here, but it isn’t pressed on the reader, just there if they find it interesting.
It is a compelling read for those of us who treasure history but also entertaining for the mystery fans out there.