Streams to the River, River to the Sea is a fictionalized account of Sacagawea's life. It begins with a fictional description of her life beginning as a pre-teen when she is captured by an enemy tribe and literally groomed to become the chief's son's wife. A half-French trapper named Touissaint Charboneau wins her in a gambling game and decides to make her his second wife. Shortly before she gives birth to their first child, the Lewis and Clark Expedition shows up at the village where Sacagawea lives.
From there on, the book mostly follows the known account of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, but tells it from Sacagawea's perspective.
Things I particularly love about this book:
+ the extremely well-researched depiction of American Indian life
+ getting to see a real-life adventure through the eyes of a young woman
+ Sacagawea herself.
Things I'm not so fond of in this book:
+ the portrayal of Sacagawea as a young teen, maybe 14 or 15 -- she was actually more like 19 at this point in her life
+ the portrayal of romantic feelings between Sacagawea and William Clark -- they're not historically accurate, they're based on a novel from the early 20th century that has since been debunked by historians as having fabricated a lot of things, including the supposed romance between Sacagawea and William Clark
If This was a Movie, I Would Rate It: PG-10 for a non-detailed depiction of childbirth, cruelty to animals, and for the portrayal of domestic abuse. No bad language or spicy scenes, but does contain some frontier violence.
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