It’s been a while since I have done a book review, so I thought it might be time. Most of the books I review tend to stay toward a more whimsical and fantastical nature, but for this review I’m doing a slight shift to historical fiction. While it’s a more grounded tale, it is sure to still delight the inner princess.
The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly is an upper middle grade historical fiction about young Calpurnia Tate growing up in 1899 Texas and recently won a Newberry Honor (2010) . Rather than strive for societies expectations of her, Callie Vee (as she is fondly called by her family) finds herself yearning for a higher education and a life of academic pursuit. She is guided by her eccentric grandfather who fosters her budding curiosity for science and shows her another path than the one her mother has planned. It also needs to be said, that I think this book may have the prettiest book cover I’ve ever seen. Happily, the content is just as lovely.
I usually keep to fantasy and also avoid anything too overly feminist in nature, mostly because I feel that much literature considered “feminist” can often have too much bitterness and negativity for my liking. Luckily, this wasn’t the case with Calpurnia. Never once did I feel like I was being bashed over the head by the author’s views and/or propaganda. It was such a subtle and delightful picture into a distant time, and seamlessly woven to ensure that the reader doesn’t feel bogged down with a message, but rather can just appreciate the story and its characters for who they are. Calpurnia is a lively and interesting character without coming across as annoying. Furthermore, the subject matter itself is intriguing, refreshing and new. It is mildly reminiscent of the American Girl series, but has more depth and detail.
The only negative I can say about the book is that the author spends too much time telling us what’s going on rather than showing us. I felt it could have done with more dialogue and less narration, but otherwise it was a good read.
I highly recommend this to anyone looking for a heroine more grounded in reality than the usually fantasy heroine. Doubly so if you enjoy science. Calpurnia may not be a princess in name, but like the rest of us, she’s definitely one in spirit!
