Jame Richards

Celestia Whitcomb is a young woman from a wealthy family who spends summers at the hunting and fishing club in the mountains above Johnstown (it was this club that was responsible for the dam that broke, causing the flood). Celestia falls in love with Peter, a boy from town who works at the club for the summer. Of course, their secret romance could have dire consequences if they are discovered by Celestia's family. The author also shifts perspectives occasionally to focus on a few other individuals whose lives are affected by the flood.

It's obvious that the author has done her homework, and there's an author's note at the end, explaining where and how she deviated from the actual history. I have to admit that I am not a big fan of verse novels. This is about on par with other verse novels I've read -- a slightly more spare way of telling a story, enjoyable, but I think I would have liked it better fleshed out in prose. That's just me -- I know lots of people are really fond of the format. For those people, I think this would be a very good read.… (more)