The Mapmaker's Children - Book Review

​I recently finished a book called The Mapmaker’s Children by Sarah McCoy. I found it to be surprisingly interesting. I am not sure why I believed it would be dull, but perhaps it is due to following the lives of two rather nondescript women.
 
The first of those women is the daughter of John Brown, both a fervent abolitionist and devout religious leader. The historical figure of Sarah Brown was both historical and human. The author takes the two dimensional individual and assigns her female characteristics that bring her struggle to the forefront as she moves through life after the death of her father. Given the nature of her work in the Underground Railroad, and the affection she feels towards a man from the south, the reader can expect some suspense while reading. What she may not expect is the unusual turn at the end of the book.
 
Sarah Brown is offset by another character living in modern times named Eden. Living in self-pity, Eden will come to find a deep connection with the Browns and the Underground Railroad as she explores her own home. While the reader might not take to Eden at first, I believe the character will grow more and more with the observer.
 
The Underground Railroad is in fact an interesting subtheme of the text, allowing the reader to revisit what was learned in school. The primary theme is in fact satisfaction, and draws the two women together through the passing of time, binding them together in their humanity and femininity.
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I love books – isn’t that a bit obvious? It is never my intention to read a certain number of books or to accomplish something in particular. If I dislike a book, I file it. Yet last year, I found out that I read more than 50 books. I was surprised, and feeling much smarter than the year before!
 
When I was younger, I loved fiction – particularly historical fiction. Due to poor decisions and life traps, I spent several recent years reading anything but fiction. I wanted to discover the problems I hoped to help, and I hoped to find the solutions to the bad decisions I made.