Reply To: The Ballards

January 20, 2025 at 8:59 am #33189

I didn’t have a favorite when it came between Hannah and Molly’s suitors. I liked how we are introduced to Moses when he attends the autopsy with Martha and is trying to impress her. And Hannah seemed like a level-headed young woman. And Dolly is quite independent and well suited for Barnabas. Their conflict later in the book added an extra bit of drama that was entertaining.

At first I didn’t like Jonathan very much and yet he is the most complex of the children (as Jane points out), given the events in the book. He’s also a curious blend of his parents – almost like their strong independence and stubbornness seen in its extremes. I liked his story arc towards maturity because it contrasted those of the other children, who all had more conventional paths. What struck me as odd was that killing a man wasn’t what really made him grow up, it was being responsible for his baby.

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