Across Five Aprils
For those not inundated by American history (which is only a subset of the population), this title's mere mention of a time period may seem cryptic. But to those who have read any amount of history textbooks, one particular five-year period that started and ended in April comes to mind: The Civil War. A time of division among families, but also unity within communities, as neighbors rely on each other in order to survive economic pressure, or in the case of the family Across Five Aprils, literally marrying off their daughter in order that she will be better fed. From a small town grumbling about General Grant’s incompetence, to the main character sending a letter to Abraham Lincoln, hoping to save his deserter brother from escaping execution, many events that were either plausible or certain at that time take place in the Creighton household. Different brothers set off to join different armies, as one remarks that he doesn’t support slavery, but he does believe in the Confederates' right to separate from the Union, just as the colonies did from England long ago. From Jethro Creighton's perspective, the war results in one brother being disowned, another dishonored, and another dead, and he wonders whether it is all worth it. But when he reads the Gettysburg address for the first time, that doubt is dispelled. The Chase verdict is that with every character having a distinct tone of dialogue and their own opinions to express, the constant references to the antebellum period are merely the icing on the cake that made this novel the best-known historical fiction about the Civil War. However… I personally did not enjoy Jethro’s character, as his skewed view makes it difficult to draw your own conclusions. With a slow pace, the powerful ideas are diluted by bloated length. I do not personally recommend this book to anyone with a limited amount of time, but I hope you take the time to further explore some of the topics introduced in this article.