Brigid "Bridie" Gallagher has experienced nothing but hardship in her eleven years.  The potato famine in Ireland killed her father and brothers, then her mother died in America, leaving Bridie orphaned, alone, and locked in a debtors' prison.  When she's freed, it's only to become a servant for an abusive family.  Fed up with being mistreated, Bridie flees.  In Seneca Falls, New York, she meets Rose Wilson, a Black girl her own age.  Rose finds her new friend a position in the household of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, a well-known abolitionist and feminist.  Bridie has never met a stranger woman than her new employer.  The more time she spends with her, however, the more Bridie learns about Stanton's advocacy for women's rights.  However revolutionary her ideas might be, both Bridie and Rose become supporters of the cause.  Like Stanton, they want their voices to be heard, even if not everyone is willing to hear them.  Change doesn't come without a fight and the two girls are ready for battle!  Aren't they?

With the recent 100th anniversary of the passing of the 19th Amendment of the United States' Constitution, Starting from Seneca Falls by Karen Schwabach is a timely novel aimed at helping young readers learn about the struggle that finally resulted in women being granted the right to vote.  While this might not seem like a terribly exciting topic for a middle-grade book, it's still an important one.  Not only does Schwabach bring 19th Century America to life with vivid period detail but she also introduces readers to important historical figures like Stanton, Frederick Douglass, and Lucretia Mott.  Although Bridie and Rose are fictional, they're sympathetic and likable, making them easy heroines to root for.  Starting From Seneca Falls addresses a lot of issues—maybe too many—which makes the story feel a bit unfocused.  Without a concrete story goal, Bridie's tale is especially loosey-goosey.  Still, I enjoyed this novel overall.  It discusses important topics in a story that moved along swiftly enough to keep my attention.

(Readalikes:  Hm, I can't think of anything.  You?)

(Image from Barnes & Noble)

Few people stand out in 1890 Atlanta as much as 17-year-old Jo Kuan.  Although she was born in the U.S., her distinctive features proclaim her Chinese heritage for all to see, marking her as a foreigner despite her American speech and mannerisms.  The fact that she's a bit of an opinionated "saucebox" doesn't help her blend in.  Besides Old Gin, the elderly Chinese man who has raised her, Jo has no family to shelter her.  In fact, she and her adoptive father are squatters, living in hidden abolitionist tunnels beneath a printing shop.  

When Jo overhears her unknowing landlords discussing their failing newspaper's need for an "agony aunt" to up the rag's sales, she gets a brilliant idea.  Using a secret identity, she soon becomes an advice columnist by night.  Her day job as a lady's maid to a wealthy, obnoxious debutante gives her an insider's views into the glitzy lives of Atlanta's elite.  Using this insight as well as that she's gained from her own daily struggles, Jo uses the column to school the city about gender equality, racism, women's suffrage, and the cruel hypocrisy lurking under so many Southerners' genteel facades.  Soon, the whole city seems to be up in arms.  Everyone's dying to know the true identity of the outspoken "Miss Sweetie."  While Jo desperately tries to keep her secret under wraps, she finds an intriguing clue to the mystery of her unknown parentage.  Juggling her controversial advice column, a dangerous investigation into her own past, and even a surprising romance, Jo has more on her plate than she can handle.  Can she find the answers she's seeking?  Will Atlanta learn anything from Miss Sweetie's pleas for fairness?  Or will the lynch mobs come after her next?

The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee is a quick, enjoyable read about one young woman's fight to belong in a world where she doesn't fit in for a multitude of reasons.  It touches on a number of issues, maybe too many for one book, but still, it's a thought-provoking historical novel.  Which isn't to say it's preachy or heavy-handed.  It's not.  In fact, it's funny, engrossing, and compelling.  Jo is the kind of heroine who's easy to like and root for—she's smart, loyal, hard-working, and brave.  She's surrounded by equally interesting characters, who make for a colorful, fun cast.  With all these elements combining against a vivid historical backdrop, it shouldn't be difficult to see why I enjoyed The Downstairs Girl so much.  It's one of my favorite reads of 2019 and I highly recommend it for both adult and teen historical fiction lovers.

(Readalikes:  Reminds me of Dear Mrs. Bird by A.J. Pearce)

Grade:

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

for brief, mild language (no F-bombs), violence, innuendo, and references to sex and prostitution

To the FTC, with love:  I bought a copy of The Downstairs Girl from Amazon with a portion of the millions I make from my lucrative career as a book blogger.  Ha ha.

(Image from Barnes & Noble)

As the daughter of an illustrious duke, Lady Amanda Cumberland enjoys a life of wealth and privilege.  In London for her first Season, the 16-year-old should have only one thing on her mind—fun.  With two handsome, eligible lords courting her, her days have become infinitely more exciting, but still, something is missing.  Lady Amanda longs to do something real.  When she hears a stirring speech by Henry Hunt championing equal rights for all, his words sink deep into her soul.  She vows to do all she can, even if it must be done secretly, to help common Englishmen—and women—achieve the dreams of freedom and equality.  

Lord Nathaniel Halloway is known as the biggest rake in London.  It's a facade he's carefully cultivated to hide his true passion—aiding the lower classes in their fight for freedom.  His role in the campaign is bigger than anyone could guess; if the other members of the ton found out, the consequences would be unimaginable.  Lord Nathaniel must play his part in their glittering world of excess and abandon in order to divert high society's fickle attention away from his true activities. 

With her father pressuring her into choosing a husband, Lady Amanda must do some pretty play-acting of her own.  Both play their roles to near perfection.  Will their frivolous masks keep them from uniting—not just in a noble cause but in a love that could burn brighter than anything they've ever known?  

I've been known to enjoy a fluffy Regency romance now and then, but I like them even better when they've got some substance behind them.  The Nobleman's Daughter, a debut novel by Jen Geigle Johnson, offers up just that.  Using England's turn-of-the-century fight for equal rights as a backdrop, the author creates a tension-filled romance that keeps the reader enthralled as it winds down to its inevitable Happily Ever After.  The story's predictable; it's also exciting, fun, and engrossing.  Nothing overly original, but it's enjoyable overall.  

(Readalikes:  Reminds me of Regency romances by Jennifer Moore)

Grade:

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

for violence and scenes of peril

To the FTC, with love:  I received a finished copy of The Nobleman's Daughter from the generous folks at Covenant.  Thank you!

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(Image from Barnes & Noble)

Until 9/11, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire had the dubious distinction of being the worst workplace disaster in New York City's history.  And yet, I knew little about it.  Uprising, Margaret Peterson Haddix's excellent novel about the incident, changed that.  The affecting tale puts a very human face on the fire—its causes, its effects, and the disastrous toll it took on the city's most vulnerable citizens.  It's a fascinating story based on horrifying true events.

Uprising features three very different young women: Bella Rossetti, a starry-eyed Italian immigrant whose dreams of a shiny new American life are quickly being shattered by the grimy reality; Yetta, a 14-year-old Jew from Russia, who attends union meetings in an attempt to create a better working environment for her and the other girls at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory; and Jane Wellington, a bored society girl who seeks illicit excitement at the front of the picket line, only to find herself sucked into a cause that will change her forever.  The fates of the three intertwine in the days leading up to the tragedy.  

On March 25, 1911, Bella, Yetta, and Jane are all inside the Asch Building when fire breaks out in its upper floors.  Through their eyes, we see the panic that ensued.  Workers, who were regularly locked inside the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory to prevent theft, struggled to get out of the burning building.  With bulky sewing equipment to dodge, one fire escape for the whole structure, and few other safety features, it was a death trap.  The blaze spread rapidly, ultimately leading to the deaths of 146 terrified employees.  In grim detail, Haddix brings these events to vivid life, creating a picture that will linger in readers' heads long after they finish Uprising.  It's no wonder this preventable tragedy continues to haunt us—even 100 years later, the horror of it all is difficult to process.  Haddix recounts it brilliantly in this mesmerizing, compelling tale featuring a trio of brave, resilient young women who symbolize the real people who suffered poverty, pain, and privation in pursuit of the American dream.  If you're up for a gripping, very affecting historical novel, look no further than Uprising.

(Readalikes: Reminded me of These Shallow Graves by Jennifer Donnelly and of A Fall of Marigolds by Susan Meissner)

Grade:

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

for violence, sexual innuendo, vague references to prostitution, and scenes of peril

To the FTC, with love:  Another library fine find