Recently, I finished reading “The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle,” by Avi. I found it an engaging novel chronicling Charlotte’s journey on the Atlantic Ocean towards America. The author does a wonderful job of adding action to the story, especially given the fact that it takes place on a ship in the nineteenth century, which meant that they were completely isolated from the rest of the world. No additional people can be added to the ship; it’s almost like a separate world. However, the author continues to introduce more information, and it is quickly obvious that all is not as it seems. Although Charlotte expected a fun, safe voyage at first, the families who were supposed to travel with her never arrived, and instead, Charlotte was placed into a dangerous environment where she was accused of murder and, through her actions, indirectly killed a man. It a suspenseful, exciting story throughout, beginning with the second mate’s warnings that it was dangerous for Charlotte to be on the ship. I would date it 9.7/10 and recommend it to anyone interested in reading a good book.
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