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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2871.Burning_Bright?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="Burning Bright" border="0" src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/photo.goodreads.com/books/1188251198m/2871.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2871.Burning_Bright?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">Burning Bright</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1973.Tracy_Chevalier">Tracy Chevalier</a> 
 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/16243468?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a>
 rating: 4 of 5 stars This was a nice book. I picked it up because I had enjoyed <a href="/search/search?q=The Girl with a Pearl Earring&t=title">The Girl with a Pearl Earring</a>, and it didn't disappoint. The story is that of a family of country folk (from Dorsetshire, specifically) who move to London to get away from the scene of the tragic early death of one of the sons, in 1792. The father, Thomas, was a chairmaker and had received an off-the-cuff offer from a circus owner (Astley) to come to London and work for him. Thomas took him literally and the family packed up all their possessions and rode into town. Fortunately for them, Astley was as good as his word, even if he didn't remember giving it. He set the family up in a house and they began carrying on as before, the men making chairs and the women making buttons. Eventually Thomas ends up working for Astley, as you would expect. This precipitates an event involving Jem's sister that will cause great distress. 
 
 Throughout all this, the son, Jem, has befriended a local streetwise girl, Maggie, who's under virtually no supervision, so she sort of rules her world in a way not many kids can. Jem, on the other hand, is a fairly docile, rule-following type who enthusiastically helps his father in his chairmaking. Despite the differences, the two quickly become friends. Their friendship drives the rest of the story. 
 
 An important background figure who occasionally makes it to the foreground is William Blake, which I think adds a nice touch to the book's historical cogency. The other background character that becomes important at the end of the book is the French Revolution. 
 
 All in all, a nice historical novel rich in detail, and a cute little story of young love to go along with it.
 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/159587?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>

Kelly's review
rating:
recommended for: people who like historical fiction with love story overtones, set in England

This was a nice book. I picked it up because I had enjoyed The Girl with a Pearl Earring, and it didn't disappoint. The story is that of a family of country folk (from Dorsetshire, specifically) who move to London to get away from the scene of the tragic early death of one of the sons, in 1792. The father, Thomas, was a chairmaker and had received an off-the-cuff offer from a circus owner (Astley) to come to London and work for him. Thomas took him literally and the family packed up all their possessions and rode into town. Fortunately for them, Astley was as good as his word, even if he didn't remember giving it. He set the family up in a house and they began carrying on as before, the men making chairs and the women making buttons. Eventually Thomas ends up working for Astley, as you would expect. This precipitates an event involving Jem's sister that will cause great distress.

Throughout all this, the son, Jem,...more

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