The Last Runaway in Aussie Readers

May 17, 2013 Kate Forsyth rated it it was amazing

Shelves: historical

I love Tracy Chevalier so much. She's what I'd like to be. Each book is very different from what has come before, each is beautifully written - walking that fine line between the high style of the literary novel and the accessiblity of the popular - and she is interested in the subjects that interest me. I've always been intrigued by the Quakers and I've always wanted to know more about the Underground Railway that helped runaway slaves escape. I've even thought I might one day write a book abou ...more

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Dec 19, 2012 Shelleyrae at Book'd Out rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: provided-by-publisher, arc-are

Girl with a Pearl Earring, was a bestseller for Tracy Chevalier so when I received a copy of The Last Runaway I was looking forward to read it. Set in the 1850's, this novel follows Quaker Honor Bright, accompanying her betrothed sister, on her journey from England to a new life in America. When tragedy strikes, Honor must continue to Ohio on her own where she struggles with an unfamiliar society, far from her family and friends.

Unfortunately I was rather underwhelmed by The Last Runaway. The la
Girl with a Pearl Earring, was a bestseller for Tracy Chevalier so when I received a copy of The Last Runaway I was looking forward to read it. Set in the 1850's, this novel follows Quaker Honor Bright, accompanying her betrothed sister, on her journey from England to a new life in America. When tragedy strikes, Honor must continue to Ohio on her own where she struggles with an unfamiliar society, far from her family and friends.

Unfortunately I was rather underwhelmed by The Last Runaway. The larger themes examined are the difficulties of choosing between principles and practicalities, passion and duty, but the contradictions are only cursorily explored.

Honor lacked the spirit I expected from a lead character, even as a Quaker woman of her time. She makes little effort to connect with her new life and her passive demeanor is uninteresting. Her letters home reveal more of her character, but it's only a glimpse without sharing nay real insight. For me, Honor's rebellion against her husband and the Society by not speaking for six months, came across as a passive aggressive ultimatum rather than the spiritual choice Chevalier intended.

I thought most of the characters in The Last Runaway tended to be fairly one dimensional, including Honor's new husband and mother in law. I really liked Belle though, a milliner who welcomes Honor into her home during her journey and is instrumental in supporting the Underground. Belle's brother Donovan, a slave hunter, is perhaps the most complex character in the novel but he remains largely incidental to the story.

Much is made of Honor's role in the Underground Railway in the synopsis, however her actual interaction with the escaping slaves was minimal. She leaves food out under upturned crates and whispers instructions to those that occasionally pass through but it is passive assistance, even with the threat of the Slave Fugitive Act. While there are glimpses of the fear and desperation of the escaping slaves, it seems almost irrelevant somehow.

The ending was quite the surprise however, not what I was generally expecting though it was not quite enough to redeem the book either.

For me The Lost Runaway was not much more than okay. It gave a brief glimpse into life during a specific time and place but without the depth I thought the subject deserved and the author capable of.

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Feb 13, 2013 Tien rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, own, usa, moving-mountains

This book reminds me somewhat of Caleb's Crossing by Geraldine Brooks though not as heartbreaking. The beginning of this book, “She could not go back,” was gut-wrenching but not heartbreaking. There were many instances in the books where it tugs your heart and at times, squeezes it, but no heartbreaking moments.

Honor Bright is likeable enough as a character though I don’t love her. She’s running away from England due to a heartache and whilst, I understand that she misses home so much, it was st ...more

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Jan 06, 2013 Tango rated it really liked it

Tracy Chevalier is one of my favourite authors and this is another fine book. The Last Runaway tells the story of Honor Bright a young quaker woman who leaves England to make a new home in America. Honor faces a number of challenges along the way including the death of her sister, asssting runaway slaves, an overbearing mother in law and ultimately finding her own voice and purpose.

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