Historical fiction based loosely on the story of Caleb Cheeshahteaumuck, the first Native American to attend Harvard College. The style is reminiscent of Year of Wonders - narrated by a young girl who befriends Caleb as a child and then follows him to Harvard. In a way the book is just as much about Caleb's struggle between 2 cultures, as Bethia's struggle with her longing for education and her role as a woman in a puritanical society. 
 I don't particularly care for this time period and did find myself skimming some of the longer religiously orientated passages however the story was engaging and I read the majority of the book in one setting. It is not particularly fast moving but the writing - as always - draws the reader in, and there were some lovely evocative descriptions of life 'in the wilderness' of Marthas Vineyard. It was also interesting to learn more about Harvard College in its early days. 
 While People of the Book remains my favourite, Brooks delivers another well written, thought provoking novel.