Book Review: The Stone Traveler by Kathi Oram Peterson

A teenage boy from our time, troubled by his childhood and seeking to shut it out through outrageous behavior.  A desperate but determined girl from the past, trying to rescue her brother from a terrible fate and live up to the expectations of her father.  Brought together in a miraculous way, Tag and Sabirah may hold the answers the other seeks, but first, they have to overcome their fears and become the heroes of their own story.

Tag's father and brother left, leaving Tag and his mother alone.  He has very little memory of that time.  All he knows is that one day, he had a father and brother.  The next, he didn't, and his mother was crying all the time.  As years passed, she moved on and was able to support Tag, and even began dating again.  But he still carries the scars of deep emotional pain, and he shows those scars on the outside in the way he dresses and treats people.

Sabirah is the daughter of Samuel the Lamanite.  She knows the words her father spoke were true, and she's fought for his cause her entire life.  But as enemy factions seek to lead the believers astray and even destroy them, her mission becomes more difficult.

Step back in time with "The Stone Traveler" and visit the land of Jacobugath right before the coming of Christ to the Americas.  Peterson has done a beautiful job of painting pictures in the mind's eye of the tropical forests, the unique creatures that inhabit the land, the foods created from the plants and meats available, and the clothing worn by the Book of Mormon peoples.  I found myself easily visualizing the entire scene as I read.

There were a few spots where Sabirah's voice and Tag's seemed similar enough that I momentarily forgot whose head I was in, but I considered that a minor thing.

Having enjoyed Peterson's other novels, I can say that I saw growth in this author from her first book to now.  Her descriptions are richer and deeper, and I believe she has done what all authors should do - continually sought to hone her craft.  If every author were to expand and develop their talents from one book to the next as Peterson has done, it would be a beautiful thing for the world of literature.  I did find several sentences that ended with prepositions, and, being an editor, I'm apt to notice things like that, but I'm more than willing to put that aside in my overall enjoyment of the book.  Well, well done, Kathi.

I received a copy of this book from the author, but this gift did not influence my opinion of the book.  If I had been paid off, I wouldn't have mentioned the sentences that ended in prepositions.  Just so you know.


Now, hold your horses ... I'm not done yet!!


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