Samantha, a young Chinese-American girl, loves music, her father, and the city of New York. Set in 1840s Missouri, young Samantha wants with all her heart for her and her father to move back to that magical city to open a conservatory, her on the violin and him on the banjo/piano. A tragedy strikes, and instead of having her dreams come true, her worst nightmare does, and she is forced to flee the small Missouri town and hit the Oregon Trail with runaway slave Annamae. Posing as boys so as to not be noticed or captured, their experiences along the trail change both of the young women in ways they never thought possible.
This is a YA novel, so it is very simplistic and easily understandable. However, Lee tackles the subject matter in a grown up way that makes it feel as though you're reading a Louis L'Amour Western! In school, I've studied a lot about the Oregon Trail, and I also have read many historical fiction novels about it, including The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck. While not going into the gory details as Steinbeck and L'Amour do, Lee outlines the challenges and hardships faced by the Argonauts setting out West for gold very well, and in a way that is more appropriate for younger audiences.
Lee's character development was great with the main character Samantha, but I was often left wanting to know more about the not-so-major characters, such as her companion Annamae, and several other acquaintances she makes along the way. This, to me, is an easy mistake for authors to make, especially when narrating the story in first-person from just one main character. Also, the fact that this is Lee's debut novel makes me a lot more forgiving.
My favorite part of the book was the descriptive nature of the story. Every single description was both historically accurate and pleasing to the mind. Whether it was the fur of a horse, the color of a friend's eyes, or the texture of the camp food, every sense was pleased. The descriptions of wagons, the trail itself, the people, and their possessions were also historically accurate, which I was not expecting from a YA novel.
I loved the themes used in this novel, as well. There are a lot of hidden themes that are really beautiful, such as gender equality, the importance of relationships in a family, life not always going as planned, but working out in the end, etc. The messages portrayed by Lee through her storytelling were very inspiring and beautiful.
All in all, this book is great for all ages. It's historical fiction, so I think you will really enjoy it if you love history like I do! Some of the character development was weak, but the way she tells the story is its most redeeming quality, and for that..
I recommend 7/10.
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