While my son was at Boy’s Camp last week, I needed to find a quick read for the 2 nights I was reading only to my daughter. This book clocks in at 67 pages (plus illustrations), so it was the perfect fit for our needs. We’ve read other JourneyForth Books and have enjoyed them (like the Derwood, Inc. series), so had no misgivings about giving it a shot.

This story is set in 18th Century Williamsburg (still under British rule) and follows the woes of a family whose patriarch is falsely accused by powerful citizen of intentionally maiming him, thrown into “gaol,” and threatened with the gallows. From the perspective of the youngest son, Truxton Pilcher, we learn the fears of the family left behind, the worries they face whenever they visit Father and question him about the forthcoming trial, and the hard work they’re left to deal with at the pewter foundry. Truxton isn’t convinced that Gyles’ destiny should be left in the hands of the Governor without any attempted intervention, so he puts his fascination with birds to good use, employing his hobby in an attempt to request from the governor special consideration for his dad.

This book is way less about birds than I might have guessed and more about the legal goings on of Colonial America. It’s an interesting peak into this period of history, something that you could certainly see playing out as you walk the streets of an historical site with volunteers walking around in authentic colonial dress—which appears to have been the very spark that got the author’s creative juices flowing (65).

The one issue I have with this book came at the climax of the story where Gyles Pilcher, standing on trial, says to the judge: “I should like to claim the benefit of clergy” (53). My daughter immediately asked me what that meant, and, wondering the same thing, I told her, “I’m not sure, but they’ll explain it.” And then the story didn’t explain it. Gyles Pilcher is then branded on his hand and freed to lie in bed suffering while his brand heals, and then the story ends. I was left a bit miffed and had to awkwardly tell my daughter that I wasn’t sure what had happened.

In the backmatter of the book, though, after discussing her inspiration for the story, etc. the author does finally tell us:

The benefit of clergy was allowed for certain serious crimes. If the person could prove in court the ability to read, he could claim the benefit one time. The fleshy part of the left thumb was branded with an “M” for murder and a “T” for other felonies. This was apparently an old law that came from the time when people who could read were very uncommon and therefore valuable. (66)

Such useful information! And such useful information that really should have been added to the story within as few paragraphs as possible of the event happening to Gyles. It was a very interesting story, to be sure, but the editors should have noticed that most people wouldn’t know the details of this archaic colonial law and that it requires explanation in the text, not in the backmatter.

Thanks to a friend, we’ve now got a whole shelf of Journey Books in our house, so we’ve got plenty more stories to read through, and I won’t let one little frustration get in the way of reading some good, godly stories from a trusted source. Still, this one wasn’t my favorite for that one pretty important flaw.

©2023 E.T.

Read More from JourneyForth Press:

• With Wings as Eagles by William Pinkston (1983)
• These Are My People by Mildred T. Howard (1984)
• Medallion by Dawn L. Watkins (1985)
• Derwood, Inc. by Jerri Massi (1986)
• A Dangerous Game by Jerri Massi (1986)
• Treasure in the Yukon by Jerri Massi (1986)
• With Daring Faith by Rebecca Henry Davis (1987)
• Courage by Darkness by Jerri Massi (1987)
• Some Summer! by Jean Vandervenne (1987)
• Llamas on the Loose by Jerri Massi (1988)
• The Runaway Princess by Milly Howard (1988)
• Abandoned by Jerri Massi (1989)
• A Question of Yams by Gloria Repp (1992)
• Brill of Exitorn by Peggy Downing (1994)
• Peanut Butter Friends in a Chop Suey World by Deb Brammer (1994)
• The Lost Prince by Peggy Downing (1995)
• Tales from Dust River Gulch by Tim Davis (1996)
• Camp Sierra Secret by Esther G. Wilkinson (1996)
• Chickadee Winter by Dawn L. Watkins (1999)
• Songbird by Nancy Lohr (2000)
• Nix by Penny McKnight (2006)
• Shield by Dawn Watkins (2008)