I don't recall ever reading many historical fiction novels before I set my eyes on A Northern Light. Of the ones I have read--The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman being one of them--I have never cared more for the characters than I have for the characters of A Northern Light. They were very complex characters that had many obstacles to overcome and decisions to make. Mattie, the narrator, has to overcome sexism and her responsibility to her family in order to accomplish her dream of becoming a writer. Weaver, Mattie's friend, has to overcome racism in order for his dream of becoming a lawyer to come true. They have to decide if they must become independent on their own or remain dependent on their families. They must decide to keep promises or break them.
Mattie, her family, her friends, and her neighbors were all very believable characters with complex lives. They each led a difficult life but tried their best to overcome each obstacle. Their problems are a real eye opener for young adult readers. Poverty, familial responsibilities, sexism, and racism--many people experience these aspects of life. This novel gives readers insight into each aspect and helps readers learn how people can be affected by them. The reactions of each character to each difficulty is realistic and makes a reader think of the world we live in now and how it's not all the different from the world in this novel.
A Northern Light definitely provides a great example its genre, historical fiction. It is set in the early 1900s, a time when $25 was an amount of money only rich people could afford to spend freely. Many aspects of the story show distinct details from this distant time in America's past. Details such as the food that was most commonly eaten by people who lived in farm communities, the transportation used in that time, and chores that every member of the family had to do to take care of a farm. Such enriching details help readers imagine with ease the life that Mattie has.
The most interesting aspect that Donnelly added to this historical fiction novel was the true story of Grace Brown, a woman who was murdered by the man who impregnated her. Grace's story was probably what kept me reading the most, even though most of it came from letters she left with Mattie. I desperately wanted to know what happened to Grace and I loved reading Grace's letters along with Mattie. However, I feel bad that Grace's story seemed more important to me than Mattie's. Maybe it was because Grace's story greatly affected the ending of Mattie's story.
A Northern Light seems to be a massive story that involves the lives of many characters. I'm not sure many adolescents would be interested in reading it, unless they are interested in murder mysteries and life in the early 1900s. I think my first thoughts of it was that I liked the characters, but I disliked how long the novel was. As a writer, I think what I would take from this novel is the realistic aspects of life and how there are always obstacles to overcome in one's life.
Works Cited
Donnelly, Jennifer. A Northern Light. Orlando: Harcourt, 2004. Print.
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