“The nuns use this as their measuring stick: who your people are. Well, what if you don’t have no people? Or any you know of? What then? Are you doomed?”
This is the nagging question of fifteen-year-old Nell’s life. Born with a cleft palate and left a foundling on the doorstep of a convent, she yearns to know her mother, whose name, she knows, was Jane.
When the Mother Superior tries to pawn her off to a mean-looking farmer and his beaten-down wife, Nell opts for the only alternative she can see: she runs away.
A chance encounter with a dime novel exhorting the exploits of Calamity Jane, heroine of the west, gives Nell the purpose of her life: to find Calamity Jane, whom Nell is convinced is her mother.
Her quest takes her down rivers, up rivers and across the Badlands to Deadwood, South Dakota, and introduces her to Soot, a big, lovable black dog, and Jeremy Chatterfield, a handsome young Englishman who isn’t particular about how he makes his way, as long as he doesn’t have to work for it. Together they trek across the country meeting characters as wonderful and bizarre as the adventure they seek, learning about themselves and the world along the way.
You’ll take Nell with you to that special place in your memory where you keep the best characters. She’ll stick with you, beat you down, buoy you up, and teach you a thing or two about life. You’ll wonder at her stubborn determination, her patience and her courage, but you won’t forget her. Not for a long time.
Gail Silverman –
An amazing story of a little baby dropped off at a convent with a pocket and a picture inside of her mother and father. Nell leaves the convent at a young age to look for Calamity Jane who she believes is her mother. She meets a young man who she falls in love with. His name is Jeremy! He is a wanderer and stays will Nell until she reaches the town where she believes her mother is. Along the way there are so man any adventures, some good and some dangerous. Nell was born without a roof in her mouth which made her face look distorted. When she went to Iowa she met a Dr. performed surgery along with his apprentice who fixed her. She turned out beautiful! There is so much to this story and I thank Judith Redline Coopey for writing this great book !
Genna –
This story is about feeling disconnected from society because of a profound disability and the way in which children and adults alike can view such people. However Nell is determined to search for who she thinks is her mother and we follow her journey across America as she pursues her goal. Her journey is not an easy one but she learns some of life’s lesson along the way understanding and trusting some but not all of those people she encounters during her journey.
I enjoyed reading this book and would recommend to anyone interested in a story about a young woman finding herself and her place in the world.
Kary Paige –
Coopey is such a good writer and thoroughly entertained me reading about the delightful characters in this story. Nellie is inspirational and really placed others before herself. The quest Nellie was on captured her tenacity and determination while also providing history of the U.S. I only wish at the end of the story when young Jeremy hands over flowers to Nellie, that there was something about “another” Soot type dog following him up the path. This book brought tears to my eyes and made me laugh many times while reading it. I’m passing its title on to book clubs and think it would make an entertaining read right along with Lorna Landvik’s novel “Oh My Stars”. Can’t wait to read Coopey’s “Redfield Farm” which I just purchased for my Kindle. I hope this author continues to write more wonderful stories for us faithful readers.
Renebean –
This is a story about an orphaned girl who has a cleft palate and was left on the doorstep of a convent. She is teased by tormented by neighborhood boys and not treated very nicely by the nuns so she runs away. This leads her on quite an adventure. I loved this book, and I love how this author writes. You can feel every emotion and at times I laughed out loud. It has at times a silly story line but it makes you a believer and the ending is warm and memorable.
Alexandra S. Morgan –
This story follows the adventures of a young woman as she searches for a loved one. She has almost no information, but that doesn’t stop her from trying to locate her mysterious missing mother. Along the way, the girl meets a lot of interesting people and sees quite a bit of life. I thought it had an almost tongue-in-cheek ‘tall tale’ quality that was very entertaining. All road stories need
a sidekick, and Jacob provides a lot of amusement in that role. All in all, a good debut novel. Suitable for YA readers.