Calico Captive.Elizabeth George Speare Elizabeth George Speare (November 21, 1908 – November 15, 1994) was an American children's author who won many awards for her historical fiction novels, including two Newbery Medals. . 1957/ 2001. Read by C.M. Herbert 5-1.5 hour tapes. Black-Audio. #2868. 0-7861-2106-8. $39.95. Vinyl; plot, author notes. JS This classic novel, based on a 1907 diary, is a lively period piece with a serious caveat. Teen Miriam Willard of Charlestown, New Hampshire Charlestown is a town in Sullivan County, New Hampshire, USA. The population was 4,749 at the 2000 census. Charlestown includes the villages of North and South Charlestown. The town is home to Hubbard State Forest and the Student Conservation Association. , her brother, pregnant sister-in-law, and their three children are kidnapped by Native Americans and deposited, after a harrowing journey, in Montreal. It is 1754, the French and Indian War French and Indian War North American phase of a war between France and Britain to control colonial territory (1754–63). The war's more complex European phase was the Seven Years' War. rages, and the city is rife with anti-English sentiment. Her brother is imprisoned im·pris·on tr.v. im·pris·oned, im·pris·on·ing, im·pris·ons To put in or as if in prison; confine. [Middle English emprisonen, from Old French emprisoner : en- and Miriam, her sister-in-law, and two little girls are purchased by the French, who hope to receive ransom from their families. The women and girls become attached to wealthy households, though their status as near-slaves means they are treated capriciously. Miriam learns to sew fashionable gowns and enjoys the courtship of a nobleman. The young son melds with the Indians. Herbert's reading is professional and sympathetic. A problem arises in the depiction of the Native Americans, whom Speare characterizes as enigmatic aliens. Miriam expresses surprise to see human qualities and comes close to respecting them, but she repeatedly labels them as filthy and as savages. Native American Studies Native American Studies is an academic discipline that studies the experience of people of Native American ancestry in America. Closely related to other Ethnic studies disciplines such as African American studies, Asian American Studies, and Latino/a Studies, Native American students will be interested to learn what was deemed acceptable as late as 1957. Teen listeners will enjoy the story if someone helps them put the racism in context. Edna M. Boardman, Bismark, ND |
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