![]() Simon's story is somewhat more plot-driven, with him trying out various roles to earn a living, with his character developing his own definition of freedom amid tremendous adversity. The narrative follows their parallel lives during the year from the Union arrival at City Point until the end of the siege of Petersburg, with Simon making his own difficult way in freedom along the front lines with Union troops and Edward weathering the challenges of living in a city under siege on the losing side of the conflict.Įdward's character arc shows demonstrates his bewilderment about what he perceives as Simon's betrayal, his conflicted feelings toward the armed struggle, and his increasing understanding of the inhumanity of his family's treatment of Simon's family. Edward, thinking that Simon's companionship was simple friendship all along, is astonished that Simon chooses not to come to Petersburg with his family, instead striking out on his own, not knowing what lies ahead. With their father serving with the Confederates and Union troops commandeering their land and mansion, Edward's family flees to wealthy relatives in Petersburg, taking with them some of the people they hold in slavery while others, including Simon, seize the opportunity to liberate themselves. Re-reading this Carolyn Reeder middle grades historical fiction with my 6 year old son and the addition of 20 years of increased sensitivity to the depiction of slavery in books for children, I'll say that this 1997 novel holds up pretty well, both historically and in terms of including and often centering the perspective of enslaved people in the narrative, with a few discordant notes that deserve explanation to younger readers.Īcross the Lines follows the lives of 12-year-old Edward, the son of a Virginia plantation owner, and his closest friend Simon, a boy who was enslaved by Edward's family until he liberated himself on the day that Union troops arrived in City Point, Virginia. ![]() Overall this book is just ok at best and it really isn't worth the time or effort it takes to read it. ![]() I would not recommend this book, in the hours it would take you to read this book you could be doing something else that is more productive, like maybe finding a better book. The story gets a little bump in excitement at the end when Edward has to cross over enemy lines to save his brother but other than that there is very little excitement throughout the book. ![]() Edward for the bulk of the story just stays in his Aunt's house to keep away from the war and Simon spends most of his time in a Union camp. The boys both have internal conflicts that they solve in the end, but they mostly just do pretty normal day-to-day things, without any real suspense or surprises to keep the reader interested. Though the story starts interesting the next 200ish pages are dull. After this, the author follows the lives of the two boys separately. Edward and Simon are good friends and treat each other with respect, but when the Union army takes over Edwards family's plantation, Simon runs off to obtain his freedom. Throughout the story, two main characters are followed: Edward, a twelve-year-old boy from a wealthy southern family, and is his slave, Simon who is of similar age. I like that the historical fiction genre has interesting stories with truthful backgrounds, however, Across the Lines was anything but interesting. I generally take a liking to books, movies, and tv shows that are historical fiction. Though I thought the story taught some valuable lessons, it was a boring read. Across the Lines by Carolyn Reeder is a novel about the lives of two young boys from different backgrounds during civil war times.
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