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damarisr's review against another edition
emotional
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
bickie's review against another edition
4.0
Highly recommended age-appropriate treatment of a Cherokee family's experience with forced relocation/removal in 1838.
achilleanshelves's review against another edition
4.0
This was such an emotionally-packed book. It took me on a crazy ride of emotions but the most prominent one was definitely heartbreak. The atrocities Mary and her family - and millions of Indigenous people - went through is something that is finally being discussed in the media and books like this help to normalise having conversations about serious issues about the rights of Native people; this book is so important and so worth a read.
ajeversole's review against another edition
5.0
As someone who is a direct descendant of people who made it through the long walk, this book was both meaningful and gut wrenching.
Despite growing up in Oklahoma, on the Cherokee Nation Reservation as one of its citizens, I was never taught about the removal in this sort of detail while at school. It was all hand me down stories from our family. I am grateful for Andrea in sharing a history that is probably scary for the target demographic. I think it comes across in an age appropriate manner.
I hope many students and educators read this story and share it in order to bring some reality about the hardships the Cherokee and other removed tribes faced at this point in history.
Wado, Andrea for writing this!
Despite growing up in Oklahoma, on the Cherokee Nation Reservation as one of its citizens, I was never taught about the removal in this sort of detail while at school. It was all hand me down stories from our family. I am grateful for Andrea in sharing a history that is probably scary for the target demographic. I think it comes across in an age appropriate manner.
I hope many students and educators read this story and share it in order to bring some reality about the hardships the Cherokee and other removed tribes faced at this point in history.
Wado, Andrea for writing this!
roseaboveitreads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
hlparis's review against another edition
4.0
This is part of the Girl Survives series that is much needed. For years, there has been a series that features mostly male children surviving historic events. This story of Mary and her family is well researched and very moving, yet I know it only scratches the surface of what the experience of Trail of Tears was like for Native Americans.
Rogers is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma. In the back of the book, she includes a note about the Trail of Tears, a glossary of Cherokee words used in the book and even a few discussion questions. This would be a great teaching tool for the classroom and is perfect for middle-grade students. It's a short book packed with information and a devastating yet insightful story about Indian Removal in the US. Too many people don't understand (or even know about) the Trail of Tears and this is an excellent primer for discussion about a part of our history that absolutely should be taught.
Someday I would like to read more about this topic. In recent years, I have been making a point of reading more books about the Native American experience and point of view since I did not read any for so many years and really didn't get taught anything in school that I can remember.
Rogers is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma. In the back of the book, she includes a note about the Trail of Tears, a glossary of Cherokee words used in the book and even a few discussion questions. This would be a great teaching tool for the classroom and is perfect for middle-grade students. It's a short book packed with information and a devastating yet insightful story about Indian Removal in the US. Too many people don't understand (or even know about) the Trail of Tears and this is an excellent primer for discussion about a part of our history that absolutely should be taught.
Someday I would like to read more about this topic. In recent years, I have been making a point of reading more books about the Native American experience and point of view since I did not read any for so many years and really didn't get taught anything in school that I can remember.
funny_bunny_reads's review against another edition
dark
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
amarieads's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
elsanore's review against another edition
3.0
I listened to the audio book of Mary and the Trail of Tears with my two children as part of our Build Your Library homeschool program. This is the first fictional account I have read about the Trail of Tears, and I am glad it exists, especially that it is written by a member of the Cherokee nation. I had a difficult time connecting with the story, but my children liked it well enough. The concise author's note was the best part.
panda_incognito's review against another edition
4.0
This book tells the true story of Cherokee Removal through the fictional experiences of a young girl, and even though it is very grim, the episodic, rather rushed nature of the story helps buffer the effect of the many deaths that occur, since readers have little time to grow attached to characters. Also, many deaths occur in summarized exposition, with the author giving a sense of the general devastation occurring in disease-ridden internment camps.
This fictional narrative is strongly based in recorded history, and the author's note at the end provides additional context and information. The author also writes about what it meant to her personally to write this book, since she is descended from indigenous ancestors involved in this historical injustice. In the story, she passingly mentions that enslaved Africans were also involved in the Trail of Tears, but she never explains why or what their roles were, and even though she mentions them again in the author's note as an overlooked part of this time in history, she still doesn't provide any context for this, which is a gap that I wish she had filled.
She also mentions that white people who had intermarried with indigenous people were involved in the Trail of Tears. I am glad that she mentioned this, since so many historic mixed-race marriages and children are completely lost to time and unacknowledged. If a child or adult is interested in learning more about this dynamic from a different time period and geographic location, I would recommend the American Girl historical mystery [b:Trouble at Fort La Pointe|1566834|Trouble at Fort La Pointe|Kathleen Ernst|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1185299283l/1566834._SX50_.jpg|669471], which is about a girl with a white French father and Ojibwe mother.
Overall, I enjoyed Mary and the Trail of Tears and would recommend it. It is very historically accurate, which is essential in a story like this, and I appreciated the additional context offered at the end about how there were many white people who opposed the injustice of Indian Removal, including Davy Crockett, who is also mentioned in the story. It's helpful and balanced to explore horrific injustices like this without the unintentional message that everybody in majority culture went along with this or agreed with it at the time.
This fictional narrative is strongly based in recorded history, and the author's note at the end provides additional context and information. The author also writes about what it meant to her personally to write this book, since she is descended from indigenous ancestors involved in this historical injustice. In the story, she passingly mentions that enslaved Africans were also involved in the Trail of Tears, but she never explains why or what their roles were, and even though she mentions them again in the author's note as an overlooked part of this time in history, she still doesn't provide any context for this, which is a gap that I wish she had filled.
She also mentions that white people who had intermarried with indigenous people were involved in the Trail of Tears. I am glad that she mentioned this, since so many historic mixed-race marriages and children are completely lost to time and unacknowledged. If a child or adult is interested in learning more about this dynamic from a different time period and geographic location, I would recommend the American Girl historical mystery [b:Trouble at Fort La Pointe|1566834|Trouble at Fort La Pointe|Kathleen Ernst|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1185299283l/1566834._SX50_.jpg|669471], which is about a girl with a white French father and Ojibwe mother.
Overall, I enjoyed Mary and the Trail of Tears and would recommend it. It is very historically accurate, which is essential in a story like this, and I appreciated the additional context offered at the end about how there were many white people who opposed the injustice of Indian Removal, including Davy Crockett, who is also mentioned in the story. It's helpful and balanced to explore horrific injustices like this without the unintentional message that everybody in majority culture went along with this or agreed with it at the time.