Book: A Girl Called Samson
Author: Amy Harmon
My rating: All the Stars and Stripes
Hi there! Your local bookworm here! I took an unintentional hiatus from writing book reviews, y’all. But I’m back! And I want to recommend the best historical fiction I’ve read in a while! A Girl Called Samson was the perfect book to read around the 4th of July. It’s set during the American Revolution and it is steeped in patriotism.
Deborah Samson is an indentured servant from a young age. At 11 years old she is taken to serve the Thomas family (a mother, father, and ten sons). As she grows up, the American colonies begin a battle for independence that requires much of everyone. Especially Deborah and the boys she came to love as brothers. After years of sacrifice and loss, Deborah disguises herself as a soldier and enlists in the Continental army. Her athletic build, and the skills she’s learned serving on a farm with ten boys make her disguise believable. But as the war rages on, Deborah sees and experiences things that change her forever, including falling in love in the most surprising way.
Ok bookworms, I really thought this book was going to be difficult for me to get into, but I was enchanted from the beginning! I want to compare this to Mel Gibson’s, The Patriot…but with a generous bit of Mulan mixed in. Deborah is a lovable and admirable main character. She’s hardworking, competitive, inquisitive, and quick witted. As she watches all ten of the Thomas brothers March off to war, not only does she mourn their absence, but she longs to join them. She’s not content to sit at home Weaving blankets for the troops when she also knows how to shoot, throw a hatchet, and run fast. So, it only made sense that she would disguise herself as a young man to enlist. Then there were all the supporting characters in the story, so richly portrayed by Amy Harmon. Even characters that weren’t on the page for very long were still vividly written. I loved the Reverend Conant (her benevolent father figure), Jeremiah (her favorite Thomas brother), Elizabeth (her pen pal turned best friend), and of course John…I’ll let you figure that one out when you read it.
Besides the stellar cast of characters, this was a masterpiece of historical fiction. References to battles, historical figures, and places had me back in my American history classes trying to piece together the actual historical context of the story. Amy Harmon did a lot of research on Deborah, and although this is a work of fiction, you can tell that it was crafted with respect for the truth that inspired this novel.
I am still in awe of how the author tied history, religion, patriotism, gender roles, and love together so flawlessly and beautifully. A lot of the time, wartime fiction can become a glossy romanticized version of events. But I think Amy managed to capture the messiness and hardships colonists endured. It’s not a story that presents the American Revolution as perfect, but rather as miraculous.
This really did give me The Patriot mixed with Mulan vibes. There’s a scene where she uses a hatchet in a battle that could literally be plucked from The Patriot movie. And then all of the painstaking lengths that she goes to in order to hide her femininity from her fellow soldiers – straight up Mulan. “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” could be Deborah’s theme song, y’all! I cannot recommend this highly enough! Here are my only two warnings for you:
- I did cry toward the end, and I don’t get moved to tears by books very often.
- Don’t get overly attached to any characters, this is a war story and no one is safe.
Krystle Goodman is a crazy cat lady, who loves to drink exorbitant amounts of coffee, and read a shocking amount of books. She lives in Benton with her husband Josh, her son Roman, and their two cats Roxanne and Abby. When she isn’t reading, you’ll find her cooking, painting, or watching true crime shows. Watch for Krystle’s book reviews every other Friday. Send fanmail to: [email protected]
See more of Krystle’s reviews at www.mysaline.com/krystle.