Pocahontas by Susan Donnell

Pocahontas by Susan Donnell



465 pages
Publisher: Berkley
Category: Adult

Summary (from the book):
"The Princess from Virgina
To her father, the great chief Powhatan, she was Pocahontas, "Little Mischief" - the cherished daughter destined to marry a mighty warrior from another tribe.
To the English colonists at Jamestown, she was all that stood between them and starvation - and constant warfare with Powhatan's armies.
To the aristocrats of London, she was Princess Rebecca, toast of the town, confidante of lords and playwrights, and a fierce defender of her people.
To John Smith of the Virginia Company, she was the greatest love of his life..."


I got this book from my grandma's house about two years ago and can not part with it. I don't think it's being printed anymore actually. My copy was printed in March of 1991 so it's a well loved book of mine (translation: It's falling apart).

From the few reviews I've found on this book, it seems people either love or hate it. Some hate how Donnell didn't stick to historic fact and assumed the John Smith was Pocahontas's soul mate. I fall into the category of people that love this book.

Donnell weaves a captivating story about the young Powhatan Princess's life. She tells a more realistic story then Disney did. The story starts when Pocahontas is 12, which strikes me as a little gross, but it's a fact. The details are amazing. Donnell really made me feel like I was in Virginia.

The characters are almost all well developed. I really like how Pocahontas's character progressed. John Smith was a nice solid character and it was easy to tell why he took certain courses. Since the book switches point-of-view every chapter or so, almost nothing remains a mystery - which isn't always a good thing. Even though I knew how the story would end, I would have liked a few more surprises.

The book was a little long-winded at times. It's no where near as bad as The Lord of the Rings, but it tends to drone. Occasionally I'd wonder why the ending wasn't getting any closer. I think her publisher's should have put their foot down and omitted the 2.5 chapters with the Spaniards which did nothing but make the book thicker.

There is a few sex scenes in this book so I don't think anyone under the age of fourteen should read this. There aren't that graphic, but I don't think tween need to be reading this book and giggling out "Hehehe she wrote that "He spilled his seed in her womb hehehe!" There is little to no profanity in this book which is a good thing.

Overall, Donnell did her research with this book. You will learn about so many different aspects of how people lived during that time. I think that everyone should read this book at least once for whatever the reason. You could like or not. It's worth the risk. Hunt it down at your local library or pick it up at Amazon for cheap.

4/5 or B