Dancing at the Rascal Fair by Ivan Doig

Would you be willing to move to a country you have never seen to live on your own- without your parents? 19 year old best friends, Angus McCaskill and Rob Barclay, move from Scotland to the U.S. to become homesteaders in Montana. It is the turn of the century (the 20th century that is), and the novel follows the two young men as they go through their initial experiences as sheep ranchers, marry, have kids, and ends during WWI. The story is told from Angus’ viewpoint. To make ends meet when sheep ranching won’t, he takes a job as a school teacher. He falls in love with another teacher, Anna. When their relationship doesn’t work out, Angus, desperate to get over her, marries Rob’s little sister, Adair. When Rob realizes that Angus is still in love with Anna, not his little sister, the men’s friendship will be tried.

This is a great book for those interested in the Old West and immigration stories. It has just enough romance, but the focus is on Angus’ and Rob’s overall experiences as they grow from greenhorns to experienced homesteaders. The story is truly a piece of art and something you will want to read again and again. This is actually the prequel to Ivan Doig’s English Creek so if you must read books in the order they came out, you might want to start there first. This book is a true hidden gem, and one you will want read again. Found in the adult section.

Book; 14+; ISBN 9780684831053; Boston: G.K. Hall, 1987

Troy by Adele Geras

This story retells the Iliad through the eyes of teen servants to Hector, the ruler of Troy. While the Trojan war wages on, Xanthe and her sister, Marpessa are caught up in romantic triangles (yes there is more than one triangle) partially created by the goddess, Aphrodite. Xanthe falls in love with the soldier, Alastar, when he is brought in with injuries from the war and she nurses him. However, bored Aphrodite decides to have some fun and makes Alastar and Marpessa fall in love with each other. Then, there is the stableboy, Iason, who is in love with Xanthe—not that she notices. Starting to feel a little like Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream? There are appearances by other gods and goddesses and plenty of war, including the infamous Trojan horse.

This is a fun summer read for guys and girls. The romantic plot is predictable, but the new setting makes for an interesting story. There are some inconsistencies in the story, but if you are not looking for them, you probably won't notice. At times the love triangle can get a little convoluted. In spite of it's flaws, it is still a good read and may be a good pick for a book report or just to supplement your learning of the Trojan War.

Book; 12+; ISBN 978-0152045708; San Diego: Harcourt, 2002

Ophelia by Lisa Klein

You may know the character Ophelia from Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet. However, you do not need to have read or know the story of Hamlet to enjoy Ophelia. Ophelia lost her mother at a young age and lives with her father and older brother. When Ophelia’s father goes to work for King Hamlet, the family, Ophelia, her father, and her older brother, move to Elsinore Castle. Ophelia has been allowed to sit in on her brother’s tutoring sessions and, thus, has more education than most girls in the 16th century. Eventually, this attracts the queen’s attention, and Ophelia becomes one of her ladies in waiting. This puts Ophelia into closer contact with Prince Hamlet. The two fall in love and begin a forbidden affair—Ophelia is too far beneath Prince Hamlet’s status to be considered an appropriate match for him. The two lovers decide to elope, but the murder of Prince Hamlet’s father gets in the way. Prince Hamlet is consumed with the desire to avenge his father, and Ophelia is forgotten. However, Ophelia knows too much about the suspected murderer, and, despite her hope of regaining Prince Hamlet’s attentions, decides she must run away from Elsinore to save her life.

This is a fun read. Whether you are familiar with the Shakespeare play or not, you will enjoy it. It does get a little slow in parts, but mostly kept my attention through to the end. The author diverges a little from Shakespeare's story, mainly to give Ophelia life beyond when she has died in the play, and this will keep those familiar with the story on their toes. The purpose of the book is to give Ophelia more of a voice than she had in Hamlet.

Book; 12+; ISBN 9781582348018; New York: Bloomsbury, 2006

A Northern Light by Jennifer Connelly

What do you do when you've made a promise to someone, but you could possibly find that person's killer by breaking that promise? In 1906, sixteen year old Mattie Gokey has big plans for her future but lots of obstacles in her way. Mattie is a writer who wants to go to college—provided she can pass her high school exit exams and find out how to pay her way to New York City. Oh, and she will be leaving behind her sisters and father who have come to rely on her after the death of her mother. Then there is the cute guy on the neighboring farm who is catching her eye. Will Mattie make it to college or stay in her rural town to take care of her family and marry the hottie? However, that is not the entire story. Mattie takes a job at a nearby hotel where a female guest gives her several letters with instructions to burn them before anybody can see them. The next day, the guest is found drowned in the lake, and her male companion is also presumed dead. Mattie is torn between reading the letters and fulfilling the guest’s last wish to burn them.

The story is set around an actual murder case and mixes romance, history, and mystery. This book is a page turner! It is not a light read, but I still recommend it for summer and travel. There are tons of copies available in the bookstores, which makes me thing that many others are enjoying this book as much as I did.

Book; 13+; ISBN 9780152053109; San Diego: Harcourt, 2003

The Morning Gift by Eva Ibbotson

20 year old Ruth Berger is left behind to brave the Nazis when her plans to escape Vienna and meet up with her Jewish family and fiancée go wrong. Luckily for her, an old family friend, a professor at the college where her father taught, comes to her aid. They come up with the idea to wed, move to Great Britain to get her out of Nazi territory then have their marriage annulled so she can then go to her family and fiancée. However, this story is a romance so things cannot be as simple as that! Of course, Ruth and her rescuer (I don’t want to give his identity away) become attracted to each other. They also have trouble getting their marriage annulled. Complicating matters is that Ruth becomes his student when she enrolls in college in England. There are plenty of obstacles in Ruth's path, and it is never quite clear until the end just who Ruth will end up spending her life with- or even what she wants.

This book has a slow start (it begins when Ruth is a little girl and goes into her family’s background), but it is well worth sticking with. You’ll be into it by the third chapter, I promise! The story never gets too dark in spite of the serious time in which it is set. Ibbotson is excellent at getting her readers emotionally involved into her stories and you will find yourself rooting for the protagonists and wanting to boo at the antagonist, a very annoying student at Ruth's college. This book is both light enough to be a summer read and meaty enough to satisfy readers looking for something to bite into and think about.

Book; 14+; ISBN 978-0142409114; New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1993

A Countess Below Stairs by Eva Ibbotson

Anna, who was a Russian countess until the Russian Revolution forced her aristocratic family to flee to England, decides to find work as a house servant to help support her family and allow her brother to remain in school. To keep her job, Anna must keep her aristocratic upbringing from her employers and also keep her job secret from her own family. Even though Anna is almost penniless, her new co-workers soon figure out that Anna was born into a higher class. However, Anna manages to keep her job by showing her wiliness and determination to work just as hard as everyone else. Complicating matters is the young master of the house, Rupert, the Earl of Westerholme. Rupert has recently returned from the Great War (that’s World War I) with the guilt of his brother’s death. Anna is attracted to Rupert, but he already has a fiancée, the horrible Muriel. To Rupert, Muriel is sweet, perfect future wife. To the house servants and Anna, Muriel is a cruel woman and a horrible snob. Unknown to Rupert, Muriel is into eugenics, a plan to breed people to create a superior race and eliminate undesirable traits. Sound a little like the Nazis? Hitler and his followers tried to implement eugenics in their quest for the perfect, Aryan race.

A Countess Below Stairs is a bit predictable, but still enjoyable. It’s a great read for hard times when you need a lift. There are enough twists to keep a reader interested, and readers of this book usually end up coming back for more Eva Ibbotson books. Whether you are interested in this book as a romance or as historical fiction, you will enjoy it.

Book; 12+; ISBN 978-0380613748; Leicester: Ulverscroft, 2007