All Through The Night

 

Sleep my child and peace attend thee,
All through the night
Guardian angels God will send thee,
All through the night
Soft the drowsy hours are creeping,
Hill and dale in slumber sleeping
I my loved ones' watch am keeping,
All through the night

These lyrics weave their way through this book in telling the story of the early days of the Civil War.  Cadence Piper and Joshua Ivy are two very relatable characters who populate this plot.  Joshua is a doctor at the Judiciary Square Hospital in Washington DC.  Dorothea Dix is the head of nursing supplying nurses to the hospital and she has a prejudice against young, pretty, unmarried women as nurses and turns Cadence away.  Cadence has a stutter and a singing voice that mesmerizes everyone around her, but her desire is to work as a nurse in the hospital.  

Joshua has secrets that he has kept from his staff and from those around him.  He is an abolitionist who frequents the slave market to buy and free slaves.  He also provides a way north so that they will not be brought back into slavery.  

Both Joshua and Cadence need approval, but they look for the approval from all the wrong places.  In finding the right approval through God, they are free to work and to will their lives accordingly. 

Cadence and Joshua cross paths several times in the early pages of this book: first, when Cadence encounters a small child crying in an alleyway.  She sings a song to the child and gives her a memento to give her comfort.  About this time, Joshua shows up to take the girl home.  This seemingly meaningless encounter plays a significant part later on in the story.  

This is one of the most interesting historical books about the Civil War that I've ever read. Tara Johnson uses historical figures in cameos throughout the book:  Dorothea Dix, Fannie Crosby, Abraham Lincoln; and they only add to the story.  Her research into the era, the people, and the times is impeccable.  This is a five-star book, with two thumbs up, and a hairpin memento.  

Tyndale House and NetGalley.com provided the copy I read for this review.  All opinions expressed are my own.