Genre 5 Book 1 – Historical Fiction

1. Bibliography
Peck, Richard. 2003. THE RIVER BETWEEN US. New York: Dial Books.
ISBN 0142403105

2. Plot Summary
Peck writes an intriguing novel set during the Civil War. The story begins in 1916 where Dr. William Hutchings is loading up his three sons into his Model T for a trip to see his parents. As they reach their destination, the story switches from the present to being told from Grandma Tilly’s recount of their lives during the Civil War.

In a small town located in somewhere in between the north and the south, fifteen year old Tilly Pruitt and her family lead a quiet life. Tilly is fearful about the impending war because she knows that her twin brother Noah is planning to join the forces.

One day a steamboat arrives and two unfamiliar women walk off with nowhere to stay. Tilly’s mother offers them both room and board at her house. As the whole town whispers behind their back, Tilly and her family learn a lot from these two women that come from New Orleans. Noah finally goes off to war, and his family is desperate for his return.

Tilly worries constantly about her brother and also of her sister who see visions of the past and future. As the story unfolds, one learns of Noah’s fate and the true identity of the two mysterious women who stepped off of the steamboat.


3. Critical Analysis
Written in first person narrative first by fifteen year old Howard Hutchings and then switching to Tilly (his grandmother), Peck does an excellent job of transitioning the story from present time to the past. Without even realizing it, the reader is cast right into Civil War times and what people where going through.

The characters are appealing to the reader while being unusual. Tilly’s mama wanted desperately for her son to avoid the war, and her heart was broken when he left: “Her eyes lost their faint glint of hope and went dead”. (95) Then there was Cass and Calinda who both held special powers to see visions of what was to come. Delphine was a confident young lady with an interesting past. One has to read through the book to fully understand this interesting character.

Peck used figurative language to emphasize the gravity of the war. “It was an army that didn’t know how to be an army, and it treated its soldiers like beasts of the field”.(97) Vivid descriptions of the soldiers and battlefields drew pictures with words to help the reader get a true picture of the setting. Although this is a serious novel for the most part, Peck does insert some humor such as the description of Calinda helping Delphine into her corset: “Delphine wore not a stitch but white cotton stockings, her drawers, and corsets”.(43)
THE RIVER BETWEEN US is a well written novel that truly illustrates the struggles of family members living through the Civil War. Adding to the tragedy was the setting of a small town in the middle of the north and south where brothers fought against brothers and fathers against sons.


4. Review Excerpt(s)
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “In this thoroughly researched novel, Peck masterfully describes the female Civil War experience, the subtle and not-too-subtle ways the country was changing, and the split in loyalty that separated towns and even families.”
BOOKLIST: “A final historical note and a framing device--a grandson writing 50 years after the story takes place--make the reading even better, the revelations more astonishing.”

5. Connections
Any classes studying the Civil War would find this book interesting. Comparing and contrasting the characters would also be a great lesson.
Have students use the Internet to locate resources related to the Civil War. You could assign relevant topics to assigned pairs or small groups. Provide rubrics to be used to evaluate the web pages.
Related Titles (Civil War)
ACROSS FIVE APRILS by Irene Hunt
THE BLUE AND THE GRAY by Eve Bunting
BRADY by Jean Fritz
BULL RUN by Paul Fleischman
LINCOLN: A PHOTOBIOGRAPHY by Russell Freedman
PINK AND SAY by Patricia Polacco
SOLDIER’S HEART by Gary Paulsen