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Yes, Susan Meissner is one of my most favorite authors. Yes, this is as good as her others. Yes, this got me searching into "real history to verify, "Oh my HECK! Did this really happen?" Yes, it did.
As Bright as Heaven is set in Philadelphia, a city that was particularly hard hit by the Spanish Flu Epidemic of 1918. The Bright family has just relocated to the city with great hopes, dreams, and a job as an undertaker. Then the flu hits. The three small girls of the family experience the trauma and upheaval that follows. In reality, over 12,000 people died in Philadelphia alone. Unbelieveable.
So, I started googling. Salt Lake City avoided much of the devastation that was more common in cities back east, but by the end of its epidemic, Salt Lake City experienced a total of 10,268 reported cases, nearly nine percent of its population. Of those who fell ill, 576 residents died as a result of influenza or pneumonia!(Salt Lake Tribune, 1 March 1919) Wow.
Meissner's latest novel does exactly what great historical fiction should do: tell a real story through the eyes of fictitious characters and send the reader to historical sources to learn more about history!
And now I just wait for her NEXT book!
1 comment:
Susan Meissner is one of my most favorite authors too. Loved this book! Her latest book, The Last Year of the War was pretty good too. Not my favorite of her books, but an enjoyable read.
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