REVIEW--Three Rivers Rising

Yep, that just happened.  I just took over a week off from blogging.  Completely unintentional! But a busy Christmas week allowed me to focus completely on my boys and our holiday.  I hope you had a relaxing, celebratory week as well!

But I'm back with a review!  Today's review is over the book Three Rivers Rising by Jame Richards.  I noticed this book in my library because it is a novel-in-verse, and those always spark my interest.  And this one is based off a true event, a dam breaking in Johnstown, PA in 1889, which resulted in a very tragic flooding of the city.  So let's get started!

• Standalone novel
• Historical fiction

The Gist:

Three young women have very separate lives in Johnstown, PA.  

Celestia is 16-years-old and from a wealthy family.  But she thinks she is willing to be disowned from her family when she finds love with Peter, a hired boy at her country club.

Maura is a train conductor's wife and is dedicated to making their house (with its ever-growing family) a home.

Kate lost her love in a tragic accident and now works nonstop as a nurse to block out her emotions.

All three women will find their lives completely changed--and connected--when the dam in Johnstown, PA, breaks and drops millions of tons of water down on the city.

What I Loved:

• A really interesting part of history that honestly isn't well-known.  I liked getting a new perspective of this event.
• There were some sweet love stories in this book, especially between Celestia and Peter and Maura and her husband.  Sweetness in the midst of sadness.  
• The variety of voices was great; I loved getting the different perspectives, like Celestia's father's point of view.

What I Didn't Love:

• I would actually prefer regular prose for this book instead of the novel-in-verse.  The verse just didn't develop the characters enough for me.  I wanted so much more from these characters, especially Maura and Kate.
• A kind of forgettable book...sorry, it just was.  Nothing to get me super-excited about the book, and I can tell when I booktalk it that my students find it a bit forgettable, too.

My favorite quote:

"I would rather have no husband than the wrong husband."

So...an ok book that was interesting, but definitely not a re-read for me.  Three high heels!

And yes, I'll be back with an outfit inspired by the outfit!