By Ann Rinaldi
“Teya, are you using books from your school curriculum for you blogs?”
Shhhhhhh…
Thirteen year old Sarah Revere is under no illusions as to her father’s role in the start of the Revolutionary War. She knows that he harbors a secret he has shared with no one. What no one knows is that she has one herself. When a man shows up on her doorstep, wishing to interview her father, she must delve into her memories back two years to recall the circumstances of her secret and the events that would shape American history.
I had previously read (and reviewed!) Ann Rinaldi’s Girl in Blue and enjoyed it, so thinking that I might like The Secret of Sarah Revere didn’t seem like much of a stretch of the imagination. Hmmm… I ended up with very mixed feelings about this book, so let’s start with the positive.
The Good: It is a very easy read, the language is accessible and while it fits the period it’s still simple to understand. Sarah is also a very good, well rounded character; she is portrayed as very smart and intelligent but still sounds her age. She also manages not to sound unbearably and annoyingly young. Finally there is a very strong sense of family. This sounds really lame and trivial, but Sarah’s family is depicted as very loving and normal without being too trite and clichéd or too overly dramatic or soap opera-esque.
The Bad: The timeline is really hard to follow. I had to wait until the end of the book to fully comprehend when everything happened. You’re not really sure what happens when she’s eleven and what happens when she’s thirteen and it’s all extremely confusing. The other thing was that I found it really hard to keep track of who was who, and, more importantly, who was affiliated with whom. You sort of figure it out in the end but it’s very confusing and distracting while you're reading.
The Ugly: Her secret is somewhat inconsequential. I’m sorry, but if you include the word secret in the title of your book I’m going to expect the secret to be huge. I got to the end with no idea what the secret would be, and it was finally revealed and my first thought was “…Meh…” and then my second thought was “Really? That’s it?” Way to ruin the suspense Ann Rinaldi.
Over all I was largely underwhelmed by this book. Confusing? Yes. Disappointing? Yes. A pathetic secret? Yes. Overall average? Yes. Excuse me now. I need to go read myself some John Green.
Feisty Chick-O-Meter: 7/10
Age rating: 12+
Rating: 5/10
Book or audiobook: Book
Stand alone or series: Stand alone
Length: 336 pages
