Shelterwood by Lisa Wingate
- Erin
- Apr 9, 2024
- 2 min read
5/5 Stars
As Lisa Wingate was quickly becoming one of my favorite authors, Shelterwood sealed the deal and put her in the top. I love Wingate’s storytelling capability and writing style, and Shelterwood is no exception. She brought to life a piece of history I was not familiar with and did so in a fascinating way. This historical fiction novel is interesting, captivating, well-researched and nearly impossible to put down!
Shelterwood is set in Oklahoma across two storylines 90 years apart – 1909 and 1999. In 1909, we learn of 11-year-old Olive “Ollie” August Radley, and her life with her mother and new stepfather. There are two Choctaw children living in her home, and she is forced to flee with the youngest, 6-year-old Nessa, after the oldest, Hazel, disappears. In 1999, we learn of newly hired, widowed Park Ranger Valerie Boren O’Dell and mother to a young boy named Charlie. The newest ranger and a woman on the predominantly male force, Valerie is met with resistance and skepticism, but she meets these head on with courage and determination. As I began this book, I wondered what these two very different and decades apart lives had in common. But Lisa Wingate did what Lisa Wingate does best and wove these two different yet related stories together seamlessly, interestingly, and beautifully. Her ability to tell two stories in this fashion is one my favorite things about her as an author. It is an absolute gift to be enraptured in her books.
Wingate explores a difficult topic but one that is not well-known, at least where I am from – the corruption of well-to-do people and politicians in Oklahoma deceiving and stealing land rights from the native Five Tribes (Cherokee, Chickasaw, Creek. Choctaw, and Seminole). It is a difficult topic especially because advantages were often taken of orphans. Injustice is heartbreaking but it is especially so when children are involved. But Wingate tells their stories through the lives of Ollie, Nessa, and other children like them that they meet on their journey.
Through the pages of this book, the reader will learn about and fall in love with the “elf children”. I felt great compassion toward these dear little ones, and great anger toward the adults who wronged them. The reader will also learn of Kate Barnard, a little-known name in Oklahoma history. Kate was small in stature but won political office and had a larger-than-life impact on the lives of the orphaned native children. A headstrong woman well ahead of her time, Barnard was a force to be reckoned with and one I am very interested in learning more about.
The book culminates in a satisfying ending. It was a well-researched page turning historical fiction novel which I will highly recommend to anyone who asks. I have thoroughly enjoyed every Lisa Wingate book I have read, and I am so very pleased to say that Shelterwood is no exception.
Thank you NetGalley, Ballentine Books and Lisa Wingate for the privilege to read an advanced copy of this wonderful novel!
Shelterwood is due to be released Jun 4, 2024, but is available for pre-order.
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