Bold Crossings by Lance Osborne | Book Review | #HistoricalFiction 1830’s Texas
Book Details
Bold Crossings by Lance Elliot Osborne
Published by BOOKBABY on 02/01/2014
Genres: Historical Fiction
Format: eBook, Paperback
Pages: 275
Source: Received from the author or publisher for review.Based on true tales of survival and adventure, a settler boy's journal, and the tape-recorded reminiscences of a venerable Comanche woman, "Bold Crossings" is the multicultural story of early teens who survive countless hardships and buck traditions as they come of age on the deadly plains of 1830's Texas.
Malcolm Hornsby is a lanky 13-year-old who longs for more than life on a farm. More than anything, he wishes to read books and work with his hands at modern machines of iron and steel. Instead, he travels with his family 800 miles, from bucolic Mississippi to the middle of the most hostile territory in America and home to the Penatuka, fiercest of the Comanche bands.
Wukubuu is a Penatuka of 13 full seasons who prefers the hunt and ways of healing to the tedium of working skins. After one too many adventures goes wrong, she loses hope of ever seeing her family and band again. That is, until she crosses paths with a lanky 13-year-old Taiboo who is good with his hands and simple machines…including locks.
Get ready to experience the 19th century like never before in this uniquely American historical novel. Author Lance Elliot Osborne has masterfully crafted this book with thorough research and compelling storytelling. "Bold Crossings" is a must-read book filled with timeless themes that transcend any era of history.
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Purchase Links for Bold Crossings
Click here for –> Amazon – OneLink for all countries.
Waterstones The Book Depository
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My thoughts on Bold Crossings
While Bold Crossing started a bit slow for me, I think it was because I was getting used to the epistle style of the book. It’s written from a dual point of view in alternating journal entries featuring two young people in the early days of wild Texas. One is a young girl from the Penatuka tribe of the Comanche. Her counterpart is Malcolm, the same age, but recently immigrated to Texas on the hard trail from Mississippi.
Once I settled into the story, I was captivated. Wukubuu and Malcolm both struggled with the direction of their life. Wukubuu was learning the healing arts from her grandmother and had no desire to marry and be subject to her husbands rule. Malcolm longed to read and work with machines rather than farming the new homestead in Texas.
It’s difficult to remember that Bold Crossings is fact-based fiction. Every word of this story built a picture of the past that played like a movie in my head. The author’s amazing research into the era brought the period to life.
I absolutely adore learning new facts from historical fiction. The entirety of this book is a learning experience. I now know new phrases in many languages including Comanche, Spanish, French, and Gaelic. Thank you Mr. Osborne for including the glossary, although I could have used a pronunciation guide, too. The story presents a view of early Texas that is vivid, real, and far different from what I learned in school many…many years ago.
The book has themes that are just as relevant today as they were back then. Battles of race, women’s rights, and family strife are sadly still being fought today. We need to do better. The polar-opposite lives of the two protagonists in reality show that we aren’t that different from each other. I am struck by how the author was able to weave so many lessons into this story while presenting it as gripping fiction.
It’s rare these days for a book to get the best of my emotions, but I lived every bit of this tale along with the characters. And I’m not ashamed to say I was crying my heart out by the end. Bold Crossings gets my highest recommendation as an emotional, entertaining, and educational historical fiction novel.
I received a digital copy of the book from the author or publisher to review. This is my honest, unbiased opinion.
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About Lance Elliot Osborne
Lance Elliot Osborne lives with his family in the Texas Hill Country west of Austin and Hornsby's Bend.
He's had stage plays produced in Austin and written optioned screenplays, all historically based. He's a stickler for thorough research and ensuring accurate inclusivity in his works.
Bold Crossings is his debut historical novel.
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Purchase Bold Crossings online from a local Bookshop!
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Amazon Easy Info Links
Click here for –> Amazon – OneLink for all countries.
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Thank you, Gina. We read a few pages to over 50 H.S. Seniors yesterday in their English classes and they seemed to truly love Wukubuu’s and Malcolm’s adventures. I’m so glad that the book is appealing to YA as well as adults. Have a balmy, relaxing time under the palms! 🌴🌴🌴🌴
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