Yvette - Bookworlder

The Memory Weaver is a work of historic fiction based on the life of Eliza Spalding Warren. In it, Eliza tells us of her life starting at age fourteen when she was first approached by Mr. Warren, as she continues to call her husband even after marriage.   And while this is partly the story of their marriage, it is primarily the story of how past traumatic events affect Eliza as she struggles to deal with the difficult men in her life and the hardships found in the Oregon Territory of the mid to late 1800s.

At age ten, Eliza had been held as a hostage in the aftermath of what is sometimes called the Whitman Massacre.  Memories of events before, during and after the massacre are incorporated throughout the novel as are entries from her mother’s journal.

This is a gently paced novel, giving time for the explorations of memory and Eliza’s gradual journey toward coming to terms with her memories. It is a story of how memories can hold us back, how they can be altered by time and perception, and how they can also (as the author wrote when signing my copy) “nourish and transform.”

I will definitely be reading more by Jane Kirkpatrick in the future.  

An expanded review can be found on my WordPress based blog: http://wp.me/p5Tcfi-4M

This review refers to both a purchased paperback copy and a review ebook copy that was read courtesy of the publisher through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.