Horn Book Review
Each of the fictional diaries recounts a year in the life of an eighteenth-century girl. Thirteen-year-old Hattie records her family's journey on the Oregon Trail as part of a covered-wagon train. Clotee, a twelve-year-old slave girl, meditates on the meaning of the word 'freedom' and learns about the Underground Railroad. The girls' voices are believable, and the stories are affecting. A historical note concludes each book. From HORN BOOK 1997, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
School Library Journal Review
Gr 4-7A 13-year-old girl keeps a diary of her family's trip west on the Oregon Trail. She includes joys as well as sorrows, but there are many more of the latter. A woman steals from the other pioneers, children get lost, people die from eating poisonous plants and drown while crossing rivers. But Hattie's personal growth and the sense of community portrayed bring an optimistic note to the journey. Although competently written, the characters and plot in this "diary" are not fully developed. Still, the details of life on the trail will be fascinating to young readers, and teachers will find this title useful for social studies units. Back matter includes historical notes, black-and-white photographs of wagons and pioneers on the trail, a recipe for Johny Cake, the words and music for "Skip to My Lou," and maps of the route taken by the families.Connie Parker, Cuyahoga County Public Library, Cleveland, OH (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
In a work subtitled ``The Oregon Trail Diary of Hattie Campbell,'' Gregory (Earthquake at Dawn, 1992, etc.) reconvenes the Dear America series in 1847, as Hattie, her parents, and her two younger brothers begin the long trek from Missouri to Oregon by wagon train. At first the adventure is exciting, but as the days, weeks, and months pass, Hattie realizes what a dangerous and tedious trip it will be. They cross the prairies, hastening the journey as news of the fate of the Donner party reaches them, but death, disease, weather, and the terrain take a terrible toll. The Campbells lose neighbors and friends until they almost believe they cannot bear to continue. Continue they do: Eight months after they set out, the remaining wagons arrive in Oregon City, just in time for Christmas. Through Hattie's diary, Gregory brings the rigors of the trip to life, but she also includes the details that kept the settlers going--the friendships and camaraderie that developed and the joyful events (a wedding and some births) that occurred. Gregory brings a sobering dose of reality to an era that's often romanticized; this is a fine glimpse of history on a human scale. (b&w photos, map) (Fiction. 8-14)
