If Ever I Return Again

by Corinne Demas

I could not write for many days. Write! I could not walk or eat or even talk except to moan and wish that I were home or dead or anywhere but here aboard this ship. Twelve-year-old Celia Snow regrets the day she convinced her parents to allow her to accompany them on her father's whaling expedition in 1856. She thought it would be exciting, exotic, and thoroughly grown-up. Instead, she is terribly seasick and, even worse, homesick. But what's done is done, and Celia knows she cannot expect to see her home on land again for several years. As the months go by, the excitement of the expedition turns the miserable voyage into a true adventure. On the day Celia sights her first whale and watches the boats row out to the hunt, she realizes that she will see and experience more aboard the Jupiter than most girls will in a lifetime. She will learn to navigate, and she will see the incredible beauty of the Sandwich Islands and feel the biting cold of the Arctic. Best of all, she will fall in love. While life aboard ship is not easy, Celia learns everything she can about being a captain's daughter. In her heart, though, she still dreams about the day she will return home again. But when disaster strikes, Celia must gather all her courage, strength, and newfound knowledge in one desperate attempt to salvage the expedition and the lives of those she loves. When we left New Bedford it was cold but clear, a fair wind, Papa said. Mother was in her cabin arranging things, but I wanted to be out on deck. I kept my eye on the sweet shoreline till it disappeared from me, bit by bit, till it was just a line. I held it there in my memory long after it was gone. Papa passed me his spyglass and through it I could see what had been lost before. Sometime in the world maybe there will be a spyglass so strong I could see not just New Bedford, but all the way back home, to you in Eastham, or even as far as our cousins in Salem, and beyond. Books for the Teen Age 2001 (NYPL)

Genres: Historical Fiction

197 pages, Library Binding

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Corinne Demas is the award-winning author of thirty-nine books, including six novels (Daughters, The Road Towards Home, The Writing Circle), two short story collections, a memoir (Eleven Stories High, Growing Up in Stuyvesant Town, 1948--1968), a poetry chapbook, and numerous books for children (The Littlest Matryoshka, Saying Goodbye to Lulu, The Disappearing Island, The Perfect Tree). She is a Professor Emerita of English at Mount Holyoke College and a Fiction Editor of The Massachusetts Review. Along with her family, two donkeys, and a precocious puppy, she divides her time between Western Massachusetts and Cape Cod, two settings that have inspired her books.

Reviews

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

In 1856, twelve-year-old Celia Snow leaves her little brother and a comfortable life in a small New England seaport village to join her father, a sea captain, and her mother on a whaling voyage that could last up to four or five years. Desperatley lonely on the monotanous journey, with whales few and far between, Celia writes long, detailed letters to her cousin Abigail, back home. She describes the daily routine of life on board a whaling ship, a stay on the beautiful Sandwich Islands (now Hawaii), where her mother's difficult pregnancy leads to the birth of a frail baby girl that does not live long, a whaling venture into the Arctic, a first love, and more, as she matures over two long, difficult years filled with hardship, illness, and even death. This book would most likely appeal to girls who enjoy other historical fiction such as the Dear America books. In addition, for another story about a young girl's experiances on a whaling voyage, take a look at Hurricane: Open Seas, 1844, written by Kathleen Duey and Karen A. Bale.

[Miss Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

gr 5-8 197 pgs


the whaling ship the Jupiter, 1856. Told through the letters that 12 year old Celia Snow writes to her cousin about her experiences aboard her father's whaling ship. Celia is excited that she is considered old enough to travel with her mother and father while her younger brother is left with her cousin. Celia describes daily shipboard life, how they harvest the whale oil from the whales they catch, traveling around the horn, a stop in the Sandwich Islands (Hawaii) etc

Good adventure story

[Lonette · Rating 3 out of 5]

The main character, a twelve year old girl, learns a lot about life, sailing, and relationships as she spends two years aboard a whaling ship of which her father is captain. Her views of the world, whaling, and most especially her mother, who is traveling with them, change during the course of this journey.

[Morgan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Didn't like this book. The heroine of the story and her father have a twisted view of God. They believe that He created them and everything, but that prayer is futile and that He (God) leaves it up to them to determine the course for their life. The only things you can trust in is yourself. It left me with a bad taste in my mouth. Would not recommend.

[Amanda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Kind of a rash decision but I was very bored. Every journal talked about how much she missed home and it didn't feel like it was going anywhere...
It's a short children's book so I don't feel too bad for ending it short.
I gave it a go because it was on my bookshelf and I thought it'd be interesting. : /

[LeeAnn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good coming-of-age book told from the perspective of a daughter. It seems there are many of these about boys, not so many about the travails of a girl during this time.

[Lindsee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not very far in this book, but I like it a lot!

[Wynter M · Rating 2 out of 5]

it was ver boring, the mom was really mean, and a baby dies at 3 weeks

[Laura]

whaling boat

[Carrie Dalby · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like THE TRUE CONFESSIONS OF CHARLOTTE DOYLE by Avi you'll probably enjoy this seafaring adventure told in the form of letters by the captain's daughter to her cousin back home.

[Kaylee T · Rating 3 out of 5]

IF EVER I RETURN AGAIN
In 1856 a twelve year old named Celina Snow leaves her little brother and her comfortable life in a small New England village to join her father, a sea captain and her mother on a whaling voyage that could last up to 5 years. She describes the daily on board a whaling ship, a stay on the beautiful sandwich Islands. This book would most likely appeal to people who enjoy historical fiction.