Brooks, Martha Queen
of Hearts
Farrar Strauss see macmillan
children 2011 214p 17.99 978-0-374-34229-6 jr/sr VG-BN Historical
Portrayal
of teen’s journey through a tuberculosis sanatorium in the 1940s. Marie-Claire Cote, 15, grows up on a property
not far from the Pembina Hills Tuberculosis Sanatorium in Manitoba, Canada, in
the 1940s. Being in close proximity to
the TB facility makes everyone in the community very aware of this highly
contagious disease. When Oncle Gerard
returns to the Cote farm and is diagnosed with TB, the family is able to
recognize the first symptoms of tuberculosis as they begin to present in the
Cote children.
Eleven-year-old Luc is the first to become ill, then Marie-Claire, and finally Josee, age five. All three children are immediately consigned to the Sanatorium. An unwilling patient, Marie-Claire resists life in the “San.” When Luc dies and Josee recovers, Marie-Claire realizes she must change her attitude in order to help fight her way back to a normal life. She grudgingly accepts her roommate Signy’s overtures of friendship and even manages to find a boyfriend.
This coming of age story is memorable for its emotional honesty and lack of sentimentality.
Brooks writes convincingly of the confined, tedious routine of a TB patient. Brooks grew up in a sanatorium; her father was the medical superintendent. She doesn’t shy away from discussing “survivor’s guilt,” or the themes of death, dying, and the meaning of friendship.
Eleven-year-old Luc is the first to become ill, then Marie-Claire, and finally Josee, age five. All three children are immediately consigned to the Sanatorium. An unwilling patient, Marie-Claire resists life in the “San.” When Luc dies and Josee recovers, Marie-Claire realizes she must change her attitude in order to help fight her way back to a normal life. She grudgingly accepts her roommate Signy’s overtures of friendship and even manages to find a boyfriend.
This coming of age story is memorable for its emotional honesty and lack of sentimentality.
Brooks writes convincingly of the confined, tedious routine of a TB patient. Brooks grew up in a sanatorium; her father was the medical superintendent. She doesn’t shy away from discussing “survivor’s guilt,” or the themes of death, dying, and the meaning of friendship.
1.
Tuberculosis -- Fiction.
2. Hospitals -- Fiction.
3. Coming of age -- Fiction. Hilary Welliver
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