Edith Shay - Softcover

Grade 6-8-Katherine Lunden has always longed to go to faraway places. In 1865 when she is 16, she leaves her Wisconsin home, makes her way to Chicago, and finds a lost suitcase bearing the name of Edith Shay. In the big city, Katherine takes a job as a seamstress, and on a whim, assumes the name on the suitcase as her own. She becomes homesick very quickly, but her parents write that their home is now closed to her because she has betrayed them by leaving. Too proud to return home, she decides to go to Richmond, VA, to return Edith's suitcase. On the way she is robbed and learns that not everyone can be trusted. Still, she then takes a job with an unscrupulous Scrooge-like man. Throughout her travels, Katherine is told that she needs a husband and family. She discovers, however, that she can be self-sufficient despite the conventional wisdom of the day. Although this story is set as the Civil War is ending, it is more of a character study than a historical novel. There are a number of period details, especially about the role of women; the clothing of the day; and of Chicago, Washington, and Richmond as they looked then. Largely, though, this is the story of a young woman who goes against the customs of her time. Readers learn of her hopes and dreams, her insecurities and her strengths. And while Katherine does travel far and have many adventures, there is more introspection than action. The book's main appeal will be to readers who can identify with her independent spirit.
Bruce Anne Shook, Mendenhall Middle School, Greensboro,
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Gr. 6^-10. Restless and unenthusiastic about the prospect of a future in her small 1860s Wisconsin settlement, young Katherine Lunden longs for the possibilities and sophistication of the city. Her powerful wanderlust steers her to an unplanned train journey to Chicago and a new life under the assumed name of Edith Shay, whose lost suitcase Katherine discovers in the station. Shay's identity captivates Katherine. She fantasizes about the life of the woman with the Richmond address and about the possibility of meeting her and returning the suitcase to her. Does a glamorous new life await our heroine in the big city? Hardly. "Edith" begins a series of grueling jobs just to scrape by. To be sure, a few kind and strong souls help her out--Mrs. O'Dell in Chicago, the proprietress of the seamstress shop where Katherine works, and then later Mrs. Rayburn in Philadelphia, where Katherine works as a cook for a while on her way to Richmond. The messages of strong women breaking with tradition and getting along in the world are a little heavy-handed, but readers, especially historical fiction fans, will enjoy the story of Katherine's day-to-day adventure of managing in the world. Anne O'Malley