Sunday, March 17, 2013

A Clearing in the Wild by Jane Kirkpatrick



Part historical fact and part fiction, I found A Clearing in the Wild an interesting book that is based on the move of a religious communal group led by Wilhelm Keil from Bethel, Missouri to Washington in the 1850’s. A bit of a history buff myself, I did a little research on this group and found they were similar in some aspects to a group who founded the Amana Colonies in Iowa. It seems German communal groups were not uncommon during this time in our history.
Emma is an outspoken young woman who finds it difficult to assume the role assigned to her, that of a demure, quiet woman who does not speak out and follows the dictates of her father, husband or leader. When a group of men is selected to scout out new territory in Washington, she begins a campaign to go along. Newly married, Emma and Christian have spent more time separate than together due to Wilhelm’s various jobs for Christian. She argues that she can cook for the men, take care of them when they are sick, do their laundry and be with her husband so they may be a family. The leader reluctantly agrees and allows her to travel with them. A Clearing in the Wild is the story of that journey, the hardships and triumphs of finding choice land that they can build on and begin a new colony. Jane Kirkpatrick has done an excellent job of allowing us to take this journey with the scouts and experience the triumphs and heartaches they faced. Even when Wilhelm declared the land they chose as undesirable, Emma convinces Christian that God did not make a mistake and there is a future for them in the land that will allow them to fulfill the godly principles their group held sacred.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review

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