The characters are also stereotypically American: strong-willed, independent and outspoken, they strike a sharp contrast to our demure protagonist, whose highest virtue is silence. She despises both the heat and the snow, the mud, the dust, the architecture and the people of Ohio.

Already homesick, Honor spends most of the novel in culture shock. This is in comparison to the close-knit Quaker communities of England, comfortable with their bedrock of history, tradition and mild climate.Īfter a tragic turn of events, Honor finds herself having to rely on the kindness of strangers in this strange new land. America is presented as brash, practical and selfish. Billed as a historical novel, the domestic detail and life on a Quaker farm certainly shine through, but we felt the book could have dwelt more on establishing a sense of place, as well as being more adventurous in exploring the issue of slavery at a pivotal point in American history.Īfter travelling to the United States, it turns out that life in Ohio is far less rosy and significantly less stable than life in the sleepy coastal town Honor and her sister hark from. Set in the 1850s, The Last Runaway is told from the perspective of young Quaker woman called Honor Bright, who sails with her sister for a new life in Ohio. We had to take February off for Rural Reads this year, which allowed us plenty of time to stew on our latest book: The Last Runaway. Its author, Tracy Chevalier, is probably better known for her other historical novel Girl with a Pearl Earring, since adapted into a movie. Written by Adam Koszary, Project Officer.

The last runaway book review