I finally wrote up a review of this book! It's an old favorite! I wrote it up for my blog, Books from Bleh to Basically Amazing (and, it looks/reads better there, because all the HTML is viewable! :) )Time Enough for Drums is the one of three reasons I decided in 8th grade that it was okay to read and enjoy more than murder mysteries. (Robin McKinley is reason one and two but more on that later.) Because this book is one that I credit with vastly expanding my literary horizons, I'm going to tell you that this book is basically amazing (5 stars). However, I understand and recognize that if I were to read this for the first time now, I imagine my rating would be more along the lines of pretty awesome (3.5 to 4 stars). Time Enough for Drums is enchanting. Jemima, (Jem) our heroine, is a strong, well crafted character. Although she is young, she has strong convictions, intense loyalties and a vast capacity for love and other emotions. When war breaks out between the colonies and the British, Jem knows which side she'll be rooting for. Her and her family and strong patriots who believe in what the colonists Americans are fighting for. Imagine the outrage when headstrong 15 year old Jem is forced to suffer through tutoring sessions with that horrid Tory John Reid. Although John has been a friend of the family for some time, Jem is none too fond of him. He is a strict tutor who demands respect and compliance and tells her what to do. Plus, he's a Tory.I'll admit, this book is fairly predictable. It isn't terribly hard to figure out some of the major plot points, but in this story, that almost seems irrelevant. It doesn't matter that the storyline flows in a relatively straight and predictable manner, because Jem has such a hard time walking along it and that is where we find the great elements of this novel. There are also enough offshoots and unexpected moments that the story never feels trite or contrived. It is in large part due to those small side routes that we are able to see a true change in Jem from the spoiled and stubborn young 15 year old girl who will abandon her lessons at the drop of a hat (or the whinny of her horse) into a responsible, mature and determined young woman. War changes people. It changes some for the better, while bringing out the worst in others. Jem is one of the strong ones, truly changed for the positive and I consider myself lucky that I was able to watch her grow and learn what it means to be an adult.Jem finds herself in many tough situations that really challenge her thinking, and force her to evaluate who she is, what she wants from life and what she is willing to sacrifice in order to achieve it. Some of the decisions Jem is forced to make are incredibly hard and have the potential to be seriously detrimental to the people she loves and cares for. These decisions were handled in an honest and realistic manner that made Jemima's character all the more real.I also believe Rinaldi did a wonderful job contrasting the colonists with the British without turning the British or the British sympathizers into villains or stock characters. They were people too standing up for what they believed in, and trying to act as they found best. Rinaldi is also a master at knowing just how much information to include. She added just enough of the history within the story that I learned something but I never felt overwhelmed by all the details shoved into every single crack and crevice in the story. It always makes for awkward reading when you come away with the feeling that the author just had to show off how much research they did. This tends to bog the book down heavily and really disrupt the flow of the story. There was none of that in this book. Rinaldi transports the reader back in time, allowing us to experience life along with Jemima. There were moments after reading this book (every time) where I halfway expected to walk out of my house into the cobblestone streets in my petticoats and bonnet to fetch fresh fruits from the market. And I was almost always disappointed when I realize I'm a few hundred years late. (And then I remember indoor plumbing and tic-tacs and I'm happy again.)Time Enough for Drums is a story that I connect with on several levels. I love Jemima's strong patriotism, her desire to do what she believes to be right and her fierce devotion to those she loves. I respect the choices that characters make when they are fighting to preserve what is most dear to them. And yes, there's also that part of my that just loves the happy ending.One of the most amazing scenes in this book is when Jemima stands at the bottom of the Courthouse steps listening to community members read the Declaration of Independence. Although she doesn't stay for the entire reading (sigh... what a bummer) the emotions of the nameless characters experiencing it with her seep from the pages. You can feel the excitement and the energy is almost tangible. Perhaps it is because our Independence Day just passed, but at this moment, if I were able to visit one day or one event in history, I would choose to attend one of the readings of the Declaration of Independence. It is such an important and decisive moment in American history. It means so much to me personally, but I can't even begin to imagine how much more it meant to the people it was written for. They felt the bonds of tyranny and this document was the first blow to those chains. How powerful would it have been to have listened to those words read for the first time, and truly begun to believe that you could be free.Although it is not the most complex story I've read about the revolutionary war, nor the most intense, it is one that has stayed with me over the years because of the emotions it invokes. It leaves me with a strong feeling of love and support for my country. (As well as the strong desire to hug my sister and tell her how much I love her.)
Great historical fiction read, for kids ages 10-14. Use to teach the American Revolution unit in history class.Time Enough For Drums was set in the 1700s during the Revolutionary War time. I like being able to see the War through a different perspective. Jem, a 15-year-old girl is telling the story. I thought the book was interesting because it also noted significant historical events while still keeping you hooked. During the end of the book, though it started getting very sappy and a lot of disappointments happened all at once. It was very clever of Ann Rinaldi to do it through a regular colonist’s perspective because I got to see what one person would think of George Washington and what they felt during the war. Overall, I think Time Enough For Drums was a good read, while also giving you historical facts about the war. --by 5th grader Veronica
What do You think about Time Enough For Drums (1988)?
Ann Rinaldi has become a household name in YA historical fiction, and this is one of her most acclaimed books. It’s been on my reading list for some time. The year is 1775, and fifteen-year-old Jemima Emerson is a headstrong young lady. She’s not a bad child; she simply doesn’t think before she acts, and Mr. John Reid, her tutor (and a hated Tory), is determined to turn her into a lady. She resists with everything she has.But war has a way of making one grow up. Jem’s brother, Daniel, fulfills a commission under General Washington. Her merchant father sacrifices much to supply the army. Her mother writes essays under a pseudonym that appear all over the American colonies. And her boyfriend, younger brother, and servant all leave to fight. Her sister moves away and marries a British officer. All these events have consequences. Then the dangers of war come directly to Jem’s home town of Trenton along with the occupying British army. In the meantime, the tutor Jem so despises ends up being more than he seems.This is a tremendous coming of age story that takes place during the American Revolution, one of my favorite historical time periods. There were so many forces at work, so many players, so many changes, and so much at stake. It’s fascinating! Ms. Rinaldi does a tremendous job boiling it all down and illustrating how all those factors came to affect one family. And the independence theme comes through loud and clear, both on a national level and a personal one.Ms. Rinaldi’s greatest strength, however, is the strong characters she creates. Jem is a complex girl living in a complex time, and John Reid is the perfect counterpoint for her. Just like Jem, I couldn’t stand him at first. But the interaction between them kept me turning pages, even if the romance that develops between them was a bit predictable. Their strong bond serves to emphasize the horribleness of war.I would rate Time Enough for Drums in the 12+ YA category because of that same horribleness. It’s not overwhelming, but it’s all-encompassing. War is always terrible, and in this case, the details are probably best left to an older audience. It also has a few mild profanities.Highly, highly recommended historical fiction.
—Michelle Isenhoff
I found this to be very enjoyable and engaging. The short chapters made it hard to put down; I kept telling myself I'd read just one more chapter! The heroine sometimes did stupid things, such as disobeying her father, but she gets a little better as the novel progresses. I didn't expect this to be as much of a romance as it was. (view spoiler)[I really enjoyed that aspect of the story (although it is a bit crazy that Jemima was so much younger. I wonder why the author made there be such an age gap?). The romance was—thankfully—very clean, and the man she loves is upright and honorable. I enjoyed the entire progression of the relationship, but I especially loved the snappy bantering near the beginning. I do wonder, though, about John's true feelings for Becky. It was hinted that they had been courting before the book started, and it made me wonder if Jemima was just a rebound for him. I don't think that was meant to be the case, but it would've been nice if the author had thrown in a few passing lines to resolve that.It was interesting that the family attempted to remain friends with their Tory acquaintances, and to not let politics destroy their friendships. I also liked the fact that they were against slavery (a sentiment I haven't heard much about during this time), and eventually freed their slaves (although I wondered what took them so long!). I was quite into the story before the setting and era finally clicked, and I realized that a major military incidence in this book was the one immortalized in the famous Washington Crossing the Delaware painting. It was fun to be able to connect the historic event with the fictional story (something that Ann Rinaldi is very good at). I am curious to know if the manner in which John spied was accurate. It seems that anyone in their right mind—British or American—would be a bit suspicious of a man who went from Tory to Patriot to Tory again. (hide spoiler)]
—Audrey
I read this novel after completing Rinaldi's, The Last Silk Dress, and honestly it felt like the same story only transferred into the American Revolution time period. However, it was very enjoyable. Jemima is a young woman attempting to be accepted as a lady, however she is very stubborn in her rebel ways. She loves the patriot cause, and is disgusted by the politics of her Tory tutor, until she comes accross documents proving that John is actually a spy for Washington. Holding this precious information and his life in her hands makes them grow close, and eventually blossoms into a romance. The novel addresses issues of war, and difficulty in labeling people as the enemy, as well as the courage and danger in standing up and fighting for one's beliefs. Her mother secretly right Patriot news pieces, that when discovered costs her father his life and sends her mother into an emotional collapse. I love historical fiction, so this was right down my ally. It was alot of fun to read, and it brought to my memory loads of facts I recalled learning years ago in American History!
—Jessica
