Maggie Elizabeth Harrington
by D.J. Swykert
180 Pages
Connect with author D.J. Swykert
Synopsis: Maggie Elizabeth Harrington is the story of a young woman in the 1890s, whose world is a remote northern Michigan mining town, where she tries to save a pack of young wolves from a bounty hunter. A terse historical love story of a young woman’s struggle with environmental and moral issues concerning the slaughter of wolves, and the church’s condemnation of her love for a young man are as real in today’s global world as they were for young Maggie more than a century ago.
Review
Set in 1893 Michigan, Maggie Elizabeth Harrington is barely 13 years old and has already known more heartache than most twice her age. She lives with her father and grandmother. Her mother died during childbirth. Maggie's father works long hours in the mines and does not hesitate to kill helpless kittens simply because he doesn't want to feed them.
This is a powerful story, told through the perspective of a thirteen-year-old girl. Seeing the world through her eyes invites the reader to remember a time in our own lives when we thought all problems could be solved. Nothing was too big and just because something had always been done, didn't mean it should be done. Maggie questions everything, then replays it over and over until she works it out within her own mind. She's fiercely independent, determined to make her life her own on her terms, her way. She even questions why grown-ups make Heaven so complicated.
This book is not a feel good, Maggie gets everything she's ever dreamed of kind-a-story. "Life isn't fair" plays out in full, turn of the century color as Maggie Harrington tries to save the orphaned wolf pups and love Tommie Stetter too. Maggie's connection to the wolf pups comes from deep within, more than an attempt to be politically correct. She can relate to them. She truly understands their loneliness, their fear, their need for love and guidance. It's no different than her own.
This story transcends time. Yes, it's set it 1893. But it could very well be 1993, 2023...the needs are the same no matter the era. Maggie Elizabeth Harrington is a short, fast read with a strong central character wise beyond her years. Grab a copy and a quiet corner
Happy Reading,
