Reading this book made me yearn a bit for my childhood. In the very first chapter, Abilene jumps from the train that is taking her to her new town. She wants to see it ‘before it sees her.’ I’ve never jumped from a train, but back in the old days in the 70’s there were only 4 TV channels and kids were made to play outside and find adventure on their own. I was blessed to have such a childhood, and Abilene’s childhood summer made me remember that.

While Abilene’s story is set in the 1930’s, part of her adventure takes her into the past of 1917 and 1918 as well. Abilene is shipped off by train by her father to the town of Manifest, Kansas to live with Shady, one of the town’s ministers. She attends the last day of school, makes a couple of friends, and discovers some letters and artifacts in her new home. She takes these discoveries to the town diviner, Miss Sadie, who tells her stories of the town’s past, with two boys in particular being the stars.

This started out just to be an average read for me, but I liked it more and more as I read on. With old newspaper clippings from the ‘Reporter About Town’ interspersed throughout the book, and stories of drought, immigration, World War I, bootlegging, and the Spanish Flu, I could clearly imagine this book being turned into film. I can just see the dusty old town now. Recommended for MG and YA historical fiction fans.

This story is a little slow at the start but once it picks up you do not want to put it down. I love the way the story comes together at the end.

Enjoyed the book. It provided a nice twist to story and thought the writer did an excellent job narrating from a child’s perspective.