| Plot Summary of The Deserter |
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Dunne, Jun 2003, 23.95, 256 pp.
ISBN: 0312301863
Many Harvard men died at the Battle of Gettysburg as part of the valiant 2nd Massachusetts Volunteers and in fact the university honors these heroes with a memorial hall listing them. However, not everyone behaved courageously as Mary Kelly tells her husband, Homer, a professor at the school. Her great-great grandfather Seth Morgan apparently deserted, but though her family refuses to talk about his cowardly behavior, Mary needs to know the truth about Seth.
Mary and Homer begin their investigation into her roots by visiting her sister Gwen, who lives in the ancestral home where family items have been stored for years in the attic. They learn that third cousin removed Ebenezer Flint took everything while Gwen and her husband was away. Deciding to continue their quest, Mary and Homer visit the college archives and follow that up with a trip to Gettysburg. From there they go to DC to visit Ebenezer as a story unfolds of cowardice, treachery, and murder on the eve of the pivotal Civil War battle.
Though the prime plot is the modern day inquiries into the Morgan family roots, intermingling throughout the tale is a superb subplot focusing on the key characters involving what happened to Seth. Thus, readers, once adjusted to the flashbacks, receive two delightful tales, of which either could have stand-alone. The prime protagonists, past and present, come through as genuine so that the audience receives a wonderful historical tale inside a fun contemporary investigation into that past.
Harriet Klausner
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Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of The Deserter |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Composition of Book
descript. of violence and chases - 10%
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 40%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 20%
Tone of story
- suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
Time/era of story:
- present (2000-2010)
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Crime Thriller
Yes
Crime plotlets:
- wrongly convicted clearing his name
General Crime (including known murderer)
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- teacher
How much violence does he/she use?
- none
Ethnicity/Race
- White/American
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
Main Adversary
Identity:
- none
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- Northeast
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths?
- 1
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
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