The River Between Us by Richard Peck

A. Bibliography

Peck, Richard. The River Between Us. Dial Books. 2003. ISBN # 0-8037-2735-6.

Peck, Richard; Read by Lina Patel, Daniel Passer. The River Between Us [audiobook]. Listening Library. 4 CD's. n.d.

B. Plot/Summary

The story begins at the start of the Civil War with a 15-year-old girl named Tillly Pruitt who takes in two mysterious women, Delphine and Calinda, from New Orleans when they get off the boat in a Mississippi River mud town called Grand Tower, Illinois. Tilly's twin brother, Noah, falls in love with Delphine and goes off to fight in the war. Tilly and Delphine travel to find and nurse Noah back to health when he becomes sick. During this time, Delphine's secrets are revealed.

C. Critical Analysis

The characters are well developed, mysterious, and interesting. The dialogue among them is believable and realistic.

The plot reveals an fresh storyline with several unexpected twists and turns that keeps the reader engaged.

The setting is placed during the Civil War and Peck does an amazing job with the descriptions of the locations as to make the reader feel as though they are there.

The themes of family, race, war, and history or intricately woven throughout the book with the use of the characters, plot and setting as not to over indulge or moralize the story.

The style is very interesting with this story because the beginning of the book is from the point of view from a young boy in the early 1900's visiting his great uncle and great aunt. The great aunt Tilly tells the young boy about the story so the point of view then shifts to Tilly for the majority of the book, until it shifts back in the last chapter. This can be confusing for some readers if they are not following along very closely.

The audiobook version of this book was very helpful for readers who have comprehension problems or difficulty reading foreign words. The four CD, unabridged version, contained two readers for the two different points of view. The female reader did a wonderful job with reading. She included various voices for different characters as well as accents. The French accent for Delphine was excellent. The male voice was soothing and easy to understand.

D. Awards/Review Excerpts

National Book Awards, 2003

Parents' Choice Award, 2003

Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction, 2004

Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, August 15, 2003 (Vol. 71, No. 16))

"A rich tale full of magic, mystery, and surprise."

CCBC (Cooperative Children's Book Center Choices, 2004)

"...mesmerizing historical novel that doesn't hesitate to confront big issues, such as race, politics, war, and moral attitudes."

E. Connections

* other books on the Civil War

Annie, Between the States by L.M. Elliot

Private Captain: a Story of Gettysburg by Marty Crisp

Death on the River by John Wilson

*other books by Richard Peck

A Year Down Under

Strays Like Us

A Long Way from Chicago