Love Thy Neighbor: The Tory Diary of Prudence Emerson

Dear America

by Ann Turner

In Greenmarsh, Massachusetts, in 1774, thirteen-year-old Prudence keeps a diary of the troubles she and her family face as Tories surrounded by American patriots at the start of the American Revolution.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Middle Grade, Childrens, Historical, Young Adult, American Revolution

176 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2003

About the author

Ann Turner, also known and published as Ann Warren Turner, is a children's author and a poet.
Ann Turner wrote her first story when she was eight years old. It was about a dragon and a dwarf named Puckity. She still uses that story when she talks to students about writing, to show them that they too have stories worth telling.
Turner has always loved to write, but at first she was afraid she couldn't make a living doing it. So she trained to be a teacher instead. After a year of teaching, however, she decided she would rather write books than talk about them in school.
Turner's first children's book was about vultures and was illustrated by her mother. She has written more than 40 books since then, most of them historical picture books. She likes to think of a character in a specific time and place in American history and then tell a story about that character so that readers today can know what it was like to live long ago.
Ann Turner says that stories choose her, rather than the other way around: "I often feel as if I am walking along quietly, minding my own business, when a story creeps up behind me and taps me on the shoulder. 'Tell me, show me, write me!' it whispers in my ear. And if I don't tell that story, it wakes me up in the morning, shakes me out of my favorite afternoon nap, and insists upon being told."

(from: http://www.eduplace.com/kids/tnc/mtai...)

Reviews

[Manybooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yes, I have certainly very much enjoyed how authentically voiced and also how age appropriate thirteen year old fictional diarist Prudence Emerson presents herself as being and that she is (at least for the most part) more than willing to also showcase her own peccadilloes and shortcomings, that in Love Thy Neighbour: The Tory Diary of Prudence Emerson, author Ann Turner (and of course using Prudence as her mouthpiece) depicts both day-to-day life in colonial America (its joys and its sorrows) and equally how the increasing conflicts between the Tories (the Loyalists) and the Patriots are tearing apart communities and pitting neighbour against neighbour, friend against friend, family members against family members (with for example Prudence permanently losing her best friend Abigail because Abigail's family are Patriots and the Emersons are Tories and with Prudence even having to wonder whether her older brother William might secretly be a Patriot and therefore no longer a Loyalist).

And furthermore, it is also very much appreciated by me as a reader that even with Prudence Emerson and her family's generally Tory (Loyalist) Weltanschuung, in Love Thy Neighbour: The Tory Diary of Prudence Emerson, Ann Turner clearly presents with Prudence's journal entries that not all Tories are rich, powerful and connected to the British landed gentry and that for example Prudence's father's loyalty to the monarchy really has nothing to do with money and power but with his religious belief that a king or a queen is somehow anointed by God and must therefore be absolutely accepted as leader (maybe not what I would ever believe in, but it is in my opinion certainly a much more acceptable attitude than Prudence's father and brother supporting King George III for monetary gain and influence and even while I do think this type of attitude is naive, it also makes the Emersons considerably more sympathetic as characters and Prudence's journal musings more readable and relatable).

Four stars for Love Thy Neighbour: The Tory Diary of Prudence Emerson, and yes, aside from Prudence Emerson's fictional diary being both an engaging and informative reading experience and pleasure, I also really and truly do find Ann Turner's personal tone of voice in the historical notes both delightful and relatable (and especially her words regarding how she herself had to come to terms with the fact that her own family had members who were not Patriots but Loyalists during the American Revolution).

[Alexa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked Prudence and her family. They were so sweet, and, though this is a historical novel, they felt real. Relatable. Plus Pru and her questions about the world kinda reminded me of me.

Another thing I really liked about this book is that Pru and her family are Loyalists or "Tories." It's extremely rare that you get to read anything about the Revolutionary War from their side, particularly if you live in America (which I do). As my Mom likes to say, "He who wins the war, writes the history books." Since the Americans won the war, they get to paint the Tories in whatever light they want. I'm not saying the Loyalists were saints or anything, but they were more than just a bunch of evil, rich people who didn't want to give up their money to fight against the king. They were real, everyday people, with real, everyday lives, hopes, dreams, fears, and family. This book went far deeper than most do when it comes to the Tories, and I really enjoyed reading about how life might've been for them back then.

[Ana Mardoll · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love Thy Neighbor / 0-439-15308-5

When I saw that "Love Thy Neighbor" was out of print, I was a little concerned that the writing quality might not be as high as usual for the Dear America series, but it seems that I need not have worried. Indeed, if there is a reason for the book being out of print now, I suspect it is because most Americans would prefer to hear about the Patriot side of the revolutionary war rather than the Tory side. But "Love Thy Neighbor" is less concerned with presenting the Tory case and more concerned with questioning whether friends and neighbors can't still get along, even in the face of major ideological differences.

Modern readers will probably be shocked and surprised to read about the open hostility that Prudence and her fictional Tory family suffer as tensions mount towards the American Revolutionary War. After all, most of us in recent memory can recall disagreeing with a family member or neighbor about, say, the current war in Iraq, without having to then worry that someone is going to drop by the house later that evening to pour hot tar over dad and roll him in feathers. And yet when Prudence and her family continue to be loyal to the king of England, this is precisely what they do fear will happen, even to the point of having to leave their family home to emigrate to a safer area.

Perhaps some of this fervor can be accredited to the fact that these people tended to be more personally affected by war - all or most of the men in the family would go off to fight and die, the livestock and farms would fall into disrepair, and lives would be disrupted for years to come. Something like that could explain why people took so personally, to a violent degree, these differences in loyalties and opinions. And yet, one could just as easily expect a stronger degree of sympathy, knowing that neighborly love might just be one of the few things that might endure this crisis - and, to be fair, a small number of the characters in this book do realize that. Prudence's mother continues to provide her skills as a midwife to most anyone who needs her; a young boy at school sticks up for the Tories because he detests unfairness.

In some ways, I think this novel could be considered one of the most important in the Dear America series, because it provides a unique and sympathetic outlook from the 'wrong' side - the side that would have preferred we remain a loyal colony of Britain. It is good to read a differing opinion from what we are commonly fed as children in the history books and to realize that even if we disagree, we can respect each other.

~ Ana Mardoll

[Kelsey Hanson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is another literary example that shows that there is no such thing as a "good" side or "bad side when it comes to war. This story follows a Tory girl during the revolutionary war and shows that cruelty during war runs both ways. I enjoyed learning about this character and her family and genuinely felt for her situation. The characters seemed believable and interesting and I wanted thing to turn out okay for them in the end.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Prudence Emerson is a thirteen-year-old girl living in the small town of Green Marsh, Massachusetts, in 1774. Her family had always been welcome there, but now, with whispers of a possible revolution against the rule of the British king, things are changing. The Emersons are Loyalists, while most of the townspeople, including the family of Prudence's best friend Abigail, are Patriots. Their troubles start when business at the Emersons' store begins to dwindle, and things become steadily worse. The children of the Loyalists are persecuted at school. Prudence finds that Abigail has been forbidden to speak with her. As the persecution of the Loyalists becomes violent, Prudence begins to wonder if her family will have to leave the only home she has ever known.

I really enjoyed this new Dear America book. It gave a unique perspective on life at the beginning of the American Revolution by using the point of view of a young Loyalist girl. Readers interested in a look at the "other side" of the American Revolution are sure to enjoy this book.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a really interesting story about a family of Tories in the midst of the American Revolution. In the historical notes at the back the author asked what side the reader feels they would have chosen and I believe I would have been a loyalist as well. That is only because I believe that a monarchy is far superior to a democracy because a king only prospers if his people do in a democracy the man in charge is only there for a few years so he can run the country into the ground and then just walk away without any repercussions. I can understand how Pru constantly questioned everything and everyone around her. I imagine that life for a Tory in the colonies was extremely difficult because they were so outnumbered by Patriots. The author mentioned that the American Revolution was also a civil war and I had never thought of it like that. But it definitely was with family and friends turning against each other the way they did. I wonder why no history teacher I've ever had has pointed this fact out?

[Renae · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have a soft spot for the Dear America diaries. They're fast reads, and I find myself learning interesting things in some cases.

This one is unique because it's not a side you hear much about: the Tory (loyalist) side prior to the American Revolution. I like "stories untold," so to speak, so this one appealed to me. Goodness knows it was hard enough to get my hands on. Some of these titles are all over the place--the civil war titles in particular--but this one was very hard to find.

Worth the time to read.

[Peyton Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Narratively, this Dear America was fine. A little whirlwind, but interesting characters, interesting setting, and certainly a unique perspective on the primary historic conflict. But the conflict itself was thought provoking. My biased American education has positioned me to see the loyalists in colonial history as the oppressors, and and the colonists as the radical freedom fighters. So I was constantly hearing the narrator’s struggles as a oppressor claiming they are being punished or wronged as they are no longer allowed to oppress (with obvious connections to the present day). But I also couldn’t help but feel sympathy too, how upsetting it would have been to have your world changed because of conflicts over her head or possibility of fully understanding. I’m sure it’s just a normal case of “The world isn’t black and white but shades of grey” but I’m not used to these middle reader books making me think so hard!

[Amanda [Novel Addiction] · Rating 3 out of 5]

The nostalgia bug got me. Don't be surprised if I suddenly read a bunch more of these. I loved these as a kid, and heck - I still enjoy them now, apparently.

[Jeni Enjaian · Rating 4 out of 5]

A review from my old blog...

I keep gaining a new sense of satisfaction when I open a new Dear America book.

This book is written from the perspective a young girl growing up in a Tory family during the height of the anti-British fervor. I've never thought about what that perspective would be. I've always grown up thinking that the Patriots were right and the Tories were just sticks in the mud.

The more I read out of Pru's journal, the more I realized that my family, had we been in America at that time, would probably have been a Tory family. As Christians we probably would have supported the government that we had and tried to work within it had there been an issue rather than rebel against it (which is what the American Revolution was).

Once again I was not disappointed with this series and can't wait to start adding the series to my own personal collection.

[The other John · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book, one of the Dear America series, is set in the months just before the start of the Revolutionary War. It's the story of a thirteen-year-old girl, Prudence Emerson, who lives in a small Massachusetts town. She and her family are Tories--people who remained loyal to King George III when the majority of Americans sought independence. The story is one of sadness and anxiety as politics turn friends and neighbors into strangers and persecutors. I don't know why I found the book so fascinating. Was it because it was well written? Or was it just because I had never had a chance to read about the Tory side of the American Revolution before? Either way, it made for a book worth checking out.

[Allyson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved this book because it was fast to read and it was in diary form, Which I love. i do not like reading descriptions of houses or lands ect. I just want to know the event and the story and then I can imagine a house and area as I like it to be.
It was a good prespective on the Tories. It is true you learn little about them and it is pretty much not possitive. But really our heros in the revolution where radical people and NOT conservatives. I feel like many people today think of the Tories as more the "traitor" but really they were not. Anyway, I liked the book and would recommend it to myself. So if you like my kinds of books then read it.
very short and fast read.

[Glen Stott · Rating 4 out of 5]

This from the Dear America Series. Prudence is a thirteen-year-old girl in a fictional town called Green Marsh MA in 1774/1775. Her family are proud Tories, so they persecuted by the Patriots. As the persecution ramps up, they first move to Boston where they hoped to be protected by General Gage’s army. The Tories were not just rich partisans, but most were regular people who found themselves in conflict with those who wanted to separate from England and the King. It is an interesting book, well-written for that age group.

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my favorite Dear America books, for sure! For one thing, Prudence Emerson is a girl after my own heart--a girl with too many questions swirling around in her head, who often speaks before she thinks and sometimes just needs to be alone. Second, the story gives a thought-provoking glimpse of what a Tory family would have experienced in the tumultuous days leading up to the American Revolution. Now, centuries later, it's easy for us to forget that they were real people, with real hopes and fears, who happened to land on the "wrong side of history."

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This entire series is a wonderful way to learn history or teach it to adolescents. I find today's generations seem to recall more when they learn through other people (pop songs, celebrity gossip, etc.), so what better way to teach history than through someone else's perspective? Yes, "authentic" diaries would be "better", but would the language really hold the modern student's attention? Did the diary writer know what WOULD be important in the context of history? Probably not.

[Lovelylady1994 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first discovered this book when I found it on my kitchen table one morning. My daddy had left it for me, with a note attached- I still keep it inside the front cover. He thought I would like it, since we live in Mass, and I've always been thoroughly entranced by local history. It was delightful to read then, and I still really enjoy looking through it. Turner does an excellent job of piecing together the potential life of a Tory girl living in Revolutionary War-era Massachusetts.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up for my oldest daughter to get a different perspective of the American Revolution. I just randomly saw it at the library and naively thought it was an actual diary. On reading the first entry I realized it was fiction and was slightly disappointed. Once I got over that, I realized that it was perfect for helping my 12 year old learn a little about how it might have been for a young Tory growing up at the start of the war.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was great. It shows you someone elses point of view instead of the patriots point of view all the time.

I Love this book it is the best! I read this book in fifth grade, I absolutely loved it. I want to reread it but have not found it since I read it in fifth grade. I recommend it to everyone that is in fifth grade or higher. That’s all for now.

[Liz Michalski · Rating 5 out of 5]

After listening to the audio version of Johnny Tremain, we were looking for something that told the Tory side of the Revolutionary War. My daughter brought this home from the school library and it was perfect. Sympathetic characters, historic detail, and a careful look at how politics can tear friends and family apart.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this story from the Dear America series. It was interesting to read about the lead up to the American Revolution from a Loyalist standpoint. Most of the books of the era are told from the Revolutionaries point of view, and not many Americans realize how many people were still loyal to King and Country here in the colonies. I really recommend this one.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting story. I kept thinking if I were in that time I would have been on the opposite side of politics from her and I can only hope that I would have had more integrity than to segregrate them. It made me think of the mormon pioneers. Interesting story from the other point of view.

[Alyssa Greatbanks · Rating 3 out of 5]

This goes along with another book in the series, a Winter of Red Snow. And it really shows how people can turn on you for one simple little thing. If you read a Winter of Red Snow, this is a good one to read as well to see both sides of the same event.

[Angie · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was very interesting to take a look at Revolutionary America through a Tory girl's eyes. Through her hopes and fears, Prudence, or "Pru" for short, tries to love her Patriot neighbors, although they don't often love her back.

[**the True Snow Queen** · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although I was intrigued by the "untold story" of a Tory girl, something I knew very little about, I found the book dragged a bit. The epilogue's conclusion wasn't very satisfying either. Too bad, Dear America books usually always leave an impression upon me. This one...not that much.

[Bethany · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another diary in the Dear america family

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

you don't really get the perspective of a loyalist on the revolutionary war that often.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this diary-type little book written from the perspective of a young Tory girl during the Revolutionary War. Sweet and satisfying.

[Michelle Cortez · Rating 5 out of 5]

a teen read, 12 and up even. very good, loved the dear america books. it really did get me into writing in a diary.

[Meghan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sometimes it felt like liberties were being taken with some of the history. There were also a couple of noticable typos in the text.

[Anna Dingman · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed looking at this period at a new angle.