Cynthia J Hurn
The Shimmering
language
( Jan. 31, 2018)
The Shimmering, a spellbinding story of the American West, connects four modern-day British kids with three pioneer children in a metaphysical, time-traveling tale. It all begins with eight-year old Erynn whose curiosity is piqued by Gran’s stories about real people who lived long ago, especially Jake, Anna and Ben Lillie. These three pioneer children had lost their parents in a river-crossing accident on the Oregon Trail and no one knows what happened to them. Desperate to find out, Erynn seeks help from a Native American spirit who guides her through the ‘shimmering’ and back to the 1845 wagon train. But Erynn's siblings are determined to bring their sister back to present day England. One by one, they slip through the shimmering, hoping to find Erynn and bring her home. But when they see the plight of the pioneer orphans, the Hanlon kids pledge to stay with them until they reach their destination.
The time-traveling kids must hover like spirits for they are invisible to the pioneers as they walk beside their covered wagons for 2,400 miles. They trudge through Indian Territory with its wide prairies, scorching deserts, rugged mountain ranges and white water rapids. They see huge herds of wild buffalo, pass haunted rocky outcrops, encounter poisonous rattlesnakes, swarming insects and many other dangers. Friendships with Native Americans are forged and numerous lessons learned. The Lillie children’s grit and determination conquer enormous obstacles, but will they get to Oregon? Will they even survive?
Author Cynthia J Hurn - a masterful storyteller - weaves this fiction from extensive research into archive collections of early pioneers. Her characters transform into vivid, lovable people who stay in your heart long after the story ends. Without relying on gratuitous scenes of sex or violence, Hurn delivers edge-of-your-seat drama interspersed with a healthy dose of fair-play, humor and wisdom in panoramic scenes that make you feel as if you, too, have slipped through The Shimmering.
The time-traveling kids must hover like spirits for they are invisible to the pioneers as they walk beside their covered wagons for 2,400 miles. They trudge through Indian Territory with its wide prairies, scorching deserts, rugged mountain ranges and white water rapids. They see huge herds of wild buffalo, pass haunted rocky outcrops, encounter poisonous rattlesnakes, swarming insects and many other dangers. Friendships with Native Americans are forged and numerous lessons learned. The Lillie children’s grit and determination conquer enormous obstacles, but will they get to Oregon? Will they even survive?
Author Cynthia J Hurn - a masterful storyteller - weaves this fiction from extensive research into archive collections of early pioneers. Her characters transform into vivid, lovable people who stay in your heart long after the story ends. Without relying on gratuitous scenes of sex or violence, Hurn delivers edge-of-your-seat drama interspersed with a healthy dose of fair-play, humor and wisdom in panoramic scenes that make you feel as if you, too, have slipped through The Shimmering.
- Pages
- 267