Diana Reep Uses Spanish-American War as Backdrop for #YAlit novel

Fact is, we haven't had enough YA historical fiction on this blog. Diana Reep is here to fix that, sharing some background about her novel, The Dangerous Summer of Jesse Turner. Hold onto your hats: we're in for some rough riding.

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Teddy Roosevelt’s Volunteers

By Diana Reep

I appreciate the chance to talk about my teen historical adventure, The Dangerous Summer of Jesse Turner. I prefer to write fiction based on action-packed exploits in the past. The Spanish-American War of 1898, although brief, certainly fit that requirement and also was crucial in creating an independent Cuba. My research partner and I were discussing the 1890s in general when we realized the war was a perfect setting for a teen adventure.

President McKinley sent the regular U.S. Army to Cuba, but the First U.S. Volunteer Cavalry Regiment formed by Lt. Col. Theodore Roosevelt captured the attention of the public. Volunteers for the Rough Riders, as the regiment was called, came from across the nation—cowboys, students from Yale and Harvard, farmers, and Indians from the western territories.  The challenge in historical fiction is to create vivid characters who live their own lives within the framework of historical events. 

The diversity of Rough Rider volunteers made it easy to develop three teens from different backgrounds who find friendship and loyal comrades amid sudden bloody conflict. Choosing the teen to narrate the story was also easy. Jesse Turner is from a small town in the Missouri area where the famous outlaws Frank and Jesse James and the Younger brothers once lived. Attaching his family background to the outlaw history means he has to face a personal enemy among his fellow Rough Riders along with the deadly hazards of combat. His pals, New Yorker Will and Ben, a Comanche from the territories, share his dangers and struggle with their own personal tests.

The fun in research for me is finding stories that lie beneath the general surface record.  For instance, although the volunteers were called Rough Riders, they had to leave most of their horses behind in Florida because the decrepit merchant ships taking them to Cuba were overloaded with troops. Of the horses that did sail to Cuba, most drowned in attempting to land on the beaches. So, the Rough Riders walked through the jungle and fought on foot. Battles often get the most attention in history books, but just as important were the daily frustrations the volunteers had to face—ugly land crabs, heat, rotten food, fever, torrential rains, and constant wet feet.

Readers who like fast-paced action-adventure will find it in The Dangerous Summer of Jesse Turner. As a writer I hated to leave Jesse, Will, and Ben, and they remain my favorite characters.  

Blurb:  When sixteen-year-old Jesse Turner lies about his age and joins Colonel Theodore Roosevelt’s Rough Riders, he expects to prove himself in battle. What he doesn’t expect is a fellow volunteer determined to kill him for something his outlaw father did in the past. Jesse and his new friends, New Yorker Will and Ben, a Comanche from the Indian Territories, share the hazards of a volunteer military force unprepared for war and the reality of deadly combat. Facing dangers from all sides, the three teens depend on friendship, courage, and integrity to get them through the bloody action of the Spanish-American War.

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Purchase The Dangerous Summer of Jesse Turner at Barnes and Noble and Amazon

Learn more about Diana Reep here. 

Anola Pickett, The Unexpected Historical Novelist

Today's guest, Anola Pickett, has made an essential discovery: Not only does history not need to be boring to learn, but it can be an absolute joy to teach, especially when presented as fiction for kids. She shares the journey of discovery she undertook to research and write her novel, Whisper Island.

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No one is more surprised than I am that I now write historical fiction for young readers. When I was in school, I found history and geography classes dry and boring, based on memorization of dates and places. Fortunately, I audited a college course in Elizabethan England because it tied in with my English major. The professor was a witty, engrossing teacher who led her class into the lives of the English during that period. It was fascinating to study history through people rather than the pages of a text. To see them and hear their language brought their story to life for me.

I’ve tried to do the same in my historical novels. By exploring a piece of American history through the eyes and ears of my characters, I hope I’ve brought a time and place to life for young readers.

My research has taken me to Cache Valley in Utah, the Blackfoot reservation in Montana, and the barrier islands of North Carolina. I’ve photographed those places and visited the local museums. I’ve read books, newspaper and diaries to gain a sense of place and culture. Most importantly, I’ve listened to many people happy to share their family and community stories. Each experience has given me a real and specific sense of history.

The journey to my new novel, WHISPER ISLAND, began several years ago when I visited the Outer Banks and heard a park ranger speak about notable shipwreck rescues along the North Carolina coast. The details of a 1913 story caught my fancy. The captain’s wife was the first to be conveyed off the ship. All the way to shore, she wailed about the loss of her clothes and finery, completely overlooking the fact that men were risking their lives to save hers. The captain was the last off the ship, and he carried his St. Bernard in his arms. He later gave the dog to the surfmen who rescued his crew and family.

I let that little story noodle about in my imagination while I tried to build a plot around it. A girl character named Primmy stepped into my imagination one day, and I decided to make her the main character. But one character and an interesting historical fact do not make a novel. I needed more.

Another trip or two to the Outer Banks, especially to the Chicamacomico Life-Saving Historic Site, led me to the important, but mostly forgotten, work of the U.S. Life-Saving Service. A group of courageous, determined men, they went to the aid of ships that wrecked on the shoals off their coast. They went out no matter the weather or time of day. Theirs was truly a 24/7 job.

Language is an important window into a time and place. While researching life on the Outer Banks in the early 1900’s, I came across a book titled Hoi Tide, which explored island language. Some words intrigued me, so I used them to introduce my chapters. If you read the book, you’ll learn the meaning of meehonkey and mommucked, for example.

Now I had more information about a group of brave men. I knew more about island language. But I still had no real plot, so I continued to dig into the USLSSS history. When I learned that females weren’t allowed to serve as Life-Savers, I’d found a problem for Primmy to solve. She’s only twelve, but Primmy’s spunky and determined to prove her mettle. Read WHISPER ISLAND to find out if she succeeds!

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Learn more about Anola Pickett on her website.

Purchase Whisper Island on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and elsewhere.