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A review by soulwinds
A Country of Our Own: The Confederation Diary of Rosie Dunn by Karleen Bradford
4.0
4.5 stars for A Country of Our Own
Thoughts and Plot
In 1866 Rosie is all but forced to take her sister's place as a housemaid when the Bradley family up and move to Ottawa because the queen deemed it to be the capital of Canada. Rosie's sister is to be wed and cannot move with the family. But Rosie's parents need to income in order to feed and clothe all their children, so off Rosie is shipped to Ottawa with the wealthy Bradley's to live in a decent house in the middle of a mud-hole they call a street.
The only part I couldn't get over is the passing entry about the indigenous people asking for compensation for being moved off their land and onto a reservation in Ottawa and how the 'Missus' gaffed and said why should they as they"did not own the land just because they lived here." Seeing how they were there first...possession is 9/10s of the law, so to speak. While true that pople thought that way it really annoyed me and still does because that is how people think. Sure they were living here, but we'll just move them and take their land cause they don't own it. Disgusting. But I digress.
Rosie is brought alive by her all too human feelings of loneliness, happiness, and homesickness upon moving away. But the Bradley's are kind and tell her how helpful she is, and she is glad to be of use to the kind couple. Along with the cook, Brutus the dog, and eventually her cat, Rosie cuts out a nice life for herself. She makes friends with Briney, Jean-Louis, and eventually Bessie to take off the edge of missing her family. Together they weave a believeable story about a young lady who grows up away from her family, in service, during the birth of a country.
In Conclusion
A lovely and believeable story about a young lady during confederation in service to a politician. The book includes a lovely epilogue and historical notes.
Age range: middle school and up!
As the rest of the country gears up for Confederation, Rosie's life is about to be pulled apart.
It's 1866. The year before Confederation. And the year Rosie's life turns upside-down.
Karleen Bradford draws on her own experience as the wife of a diplomat in Ottawa and embassies around the world to craft this authentic portrait of a young girl displaced in the whirlwind of government
Thoughts and Plot
In 1866 Rosie is all but forced to take her sister's place as a housemaid when the Bradley family up and move to Ottawa because the queen deemed it to be the capital of Canada. Rosie's sister is to be wed and cannot move with the family. But Rosie's parents need to income in order to feed and clothe all their children, so off Rosie is shipped to Ottawa with the wealthy Bradley's to live in a decent house in the middle of a mud-hole they call a street.
The only part I couldn't get over is the passing entry about the indigenous people asking for compensation for being moved off their land and onto a reservation in Ottawa and how the 'Missus' gaffed and said why should they as they"did not own the land just because they lived here." Seeing how they were there first...possession is 9/10s of the law, so to speak. While true that pople thought that way it really annoyed me and still does because that is how people think. Sure they were living here, but we'll just move them and take their land cause they don't own it. Disgusting. But I digress.
Rosie is brought alive by her all too human feelings of loneliness, happiness, and homesickness upon moving away. But the Bradley's are kind and tell her how helpful she is, and she is glad to be of use to the kind couple. Along with the cook, Brutus the dog, and eventually her cat, Rosie cuts out a nice life for herself. She makes friends with Briney, Jean-Louis, and eventually Bessie to take off the edge of missing her family. Together they weave a believeable story about a young lady who grows up away from her family, in service, during the birth of a country.
In Conclusion
A lovely and believeable story about a young lady during confederation in service to a politician. The book includes a lovely epilogue and historical notes.
Age range: middle school and up!
As the rest of the country gears up for Confederation, Rosie's life is about to be pulled apart.
It's 1866. The year before Confederation. And the year Rosie's life turns upside-down.
Karleen Bradford draws on her own experience as the wife of a diplomat in Ottawa and embassies around the world to craft this authentic portrait of a young girl displaced in the whirlwind of government