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Adam's Common
As a fourteen-year-old American attempts to preserve a lovely piece of land in the English town where she resides, she generates contact with a boy of the nineteenth century who has information vital to her effort.
Unknown Binding
First published January 1, 1984
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 21, 2022
172 pages of well-constructed, well executed, emotive and engrossing content (it says 176, but the rest are ads for authors Kathryn Cave, Mary Downing Hahn and Marilyn Sachs).
About halfway in, I was wondering if I should give this "4.5" a 4 or 5 star rating. With only 7 other ratings, I would have undue influence on its average score. Luckily for me, it remained strong and ended even stronger.
I loved this book. All I knew going into this was from the synopsis, other reviews, and Listopia; this was about a girl (and a ghost?) fighting to save a green space called Adam's Common.
What that didn't mention was a timeslip between two characters (Peggy, from Boston, MA, who has recently moved with her parents to fictional and ugly industrial Traverton somewhere in the bottom half of England), and bored William Shelton Trafford, locked down at home during the 1849 cholera outbreak. Both characters are about 14 years old, and have some (mysterious to both parties) interplay between them. The story goes back and forth (alternating POV's) between Peggy's adjusting to a new school, a new culture, and a very ugly school uniform, and the adventures (and boredom) of the wealthy young William Trafford. I don't wish to elaborate further, as the content here was a pleasant and thrilling surprise to me. I will say, however, that because of the two protagonists (female in the present, male in the past), this is a well-balanced novel that would entertain both girls and boys, traditionally speaking.
All of the characters were interesting, although at first glance it looks awfully formulaic: pretty Peggy largely shunned by other girls, only friend is good-looking neighbour Steven; Marion, lead B of the clique, is jealous of Steven's attachment to Peggy, blah blah. I'm very pleased to report that NONE of the usual tropes develop along the usual trajectories, making this middle grade story both more realistic and, frankly, refreshing.
Adam's Common, the only green space in the centre of a very ugly, very industrial, very much NOT the thatched-cottages and castles and manor gardens Peggy had hoped for sort of town, is slated to be paved and redeveloped. Even Peggy's father's business (Boston-based), is eager to construct a new factory on this land. Whilst the 'common' is for common use of the citizens, there's a loophole: there's no hard evidence (such as a deed) to prevent the Council of Traverton for using it as it sees fit, provided it's to the benefit of its citizens. And wouldn't a new shopping mall, extra parking, a bus terminal and factories providing employment to the citizens of Traverton be to their benefit? The Council decides so.
Peggy and others mount some grassroots opposition to the scheme, but they are fighting a battle that seems unlikely to be won. Peggy decides to commit all of Adam's Common to memory, and the ruins of Trafford Manor to her sketchbook. Our lanky and blonde Bostonian protagonist in the present (1984) is a strong student in general, but has a talent for the arts in particular. And she's not bad with a football/soccer ball, either.
William Shelton Trafford (1849) is now the only child, having lost his two siblings to smallpox earlier, of the wealthy local gentry. His father is a railway engineer, working with some of the biggest names in architecture, to construct a large viaduct locally and turn Traverton into a major railway hub. Of course, putting the railway through will mean demolition of some houses, but progress is progress... William's mother, already having lost two children, has confined the fourteen year old to the house and forbidden him to leave. There's a cholera epidemic raging in town, and in 1849 they aren't aware of the mode of transmission of this disease. So lockdowns and quarantines are the order of the day.
Without spoilers (if you want hints, check out the Listopia listings for this book!), this book has a LOT of action packed into a scant 172 pages, and even had me guessing (which doesn't happen very often - you read enough, and you've 'seen it all' before!). There is some tragedy. William's story is gritty historical fiction, and Peggy's is considerably more comfortable in the mid-1980s.
I highly recommend this one. I also think it would make great additional reading for anyone learning about contagious disease and epidemics/pandemics, and I could see it being utilized in the classroom. I really think it would appeal to a broad range of readers.
I'm going to have to check out another book of Wiseman's. This one was a corker!
Books that I like that are somewhat similar in style, target age and length to this (though obviously content varies!) are:
A Chill in the Lane by Mabel Esther Allan: historical content is re: impoverished Cornish fishing village
Astercote (plague),
The House in Norham Gardens (theft of cultural heritage),
The Wild Hunt of Hagworthy (creepy pagan rites),
The Driftway (a little bit of everything from British history, from stone age to Victorian times), all by Penelope Lively
Tom's Midnight Garden by Phillipa Pearce: a young boy in quarantine (measles, before vaccines were available) experiences timeslip
The Owl Service by Alan Garner: this is the least similar, but it has more creepy ghostly haunting content than the others, and is probably one you shouldn't miss. :)
Have a recommendation for me?! I LOVE recommendations! Please comment if so!
And please support Listopia by listing your reads, particularly those that are less known. It helps others find great reads like this, that have fallen through the cracks. :)
About halfway in, I was wondering if I should give this "4.5" a 4 or 5 star rating. With only 7 other ratings, I would have undue influence on its average score. Luckily for me, it remained strong and ended even stronger.
I loved this book. All I knew going into this was from the synopsis, other reviews, and Listopia; this was about a girl (and a ghost?) fighting to save a green space called Adam's Common.
What that didn't mention was a timeslip between two characters (Peggy, from Boston, MA, who has recently moved with her parents to fictional and ugly industrial Traverton somewhere in the bottom half of England), and bored William Shelton Trafford, locked down at home during the 1849 cholera outbreak. Both characters are about 14 years old, and have some (mysterious to both parties) interplay between them. The story goes back and forth (alternating POV's) between Peggy's adjusting to a new school, a new culture, and a very ugly school uniform, and the adventures (and boredom) of the wealthy young William Trafford. I don't wish to elaborate further, as the content here was a pleasant and thrilling surprise to me. I will say, however, that because of the two protagonists (female in the present, male in the past), this is a well-balanced novel that would entertain both girls and boys, traditionally speaking.
All of the characters were interesting, although at first glance it looks awfully formulaic: pretty Peggy largely shunned by other girls, only friend is good-looking neighbour Steven; Marion, lead B of the clique, is jealous of Steven's attachment to Peggy, blah blah. I'm very pleased to report that NONE of the usual tropes develop along the usual trajectories, making this middle grade story both more realistic and, frankly, refreshing.
Adam's Common, the only green space in the centre of a very ugly, very industrial, very much NOT the thatched-cottages and castles and manor gardens Peggy had hoped for sort of town, is slated to be paved and redeveloped. Even Peggy's father's business (Boston-based), is eager to construct a new factory on this land. Whilst the 'common' is for common use of the citizens, there's a loophole: there's no hard evidence (such as a deed) to prevent the Council of Traverton for using it as it sees fit, provided it's to the benefit of its citizens. And wouldn't a new shopping mall, extra parking, a bus terminal and factories providing employment to the citizens of Traverton be to their benefit? The Council decides so.
Peggy and others mount some grassroots opposition to the scheme, but they are fighting a battle that seems unlikely to be won. Peggy decides to commit all of Adam's Common to memory, and the ruins of Trafford Manor to her sketchbook. Our lanky and blonde Bostonian protagonist in the present (1984) is a strong student in general, but has a talent for the arts in particular. And she's not bad with a football/soccer ball, either.
William Shelton Trafford (1849) is now the only child, having lost his two siblings to smallpox earlier, of the wealthy local gentry. His father is a railway engineer, working with some of the biggest names in architecture, to construct a large viaduct locally and turn Traverton into a major railway hub. Of course, putting the railway through will mean demolition of some houses, but progress is progress... William's mother, already having lost two children, has confined the fourteen year old to the house and forbidden him to leave. There's a cholera epidemic raging in town, and in 1849 they aren't aware of the mode of transmission of this disease. So lockdowns and quarantines are the order of the day.
Without spoilers (if you want hints, check out the Listopia listings for this book!), this book has a LOT of action packed into a scant 172 pages, and even had me guessing (which doesn't happen very often - you read enough, and you've 'seen it all' before!). There is some tragedy. William's story is gritty historical fiction, and Peggy's is considerably more comfortable in the mid-1980s.
I highly recommend this one. I also think it would make great additional reading for anyone learning about contagious disease and epidemics/pandemics, and I could see it being utilized in the classroom. I really think it would appeal to a broad range of readers.
I'm going to have to check out another book of Wiseman's. This one was a corker!
Books that I like that are somewhat similar in style, target age and length to this (though obviously content varies!) are:
A Chill in the Lane by Mabel Esther Allan: historical content is re: impoverished Cornish fishing village
Astercote (plague),
The House in Norham Gardens (theft of cultural heritage),
The Wild Hunt of Hagworthy (creepy pagan rites),
The Driftway (a little bit of everything from British history, from stone age to Victorian times), all by Penelope Lively
Tom's Midnight Garden by Phillipa Pearce: a young boy in quarantine (measles, before vaccines were available) experiences timeslip
The Owl Service by Alan Garner: this is the least similar, but it has more creepy ghostly haunting content than the others, and is probably one you shouldn't miss. :)
Have a recommendation for me?! I LOVE recommendations! Please comment if so!
And please support Listopia by listing your reads, particularly those that are less known. It helps others find great reads like this, that have fallen through the cracks. :)
November 2, 2025
Why did we have to move here? Peggy Donovan keeps asking herself. She is struggling with the sense that her family just moved to a small town named Traverton, a grimy industrial town, in England. This was not her idea of England at all. She hates it all, except for the beautiful local common, Adam’s Common. This is what reality is like in the book Adam’s Common, by David Wiseman. This book helps readers understand how life can come with struggles, but there is always some beauty in it, you just need to find it.
This book is about two time periods meeting together to help the pride of this town in England not go to waste. The book starts off with Peggy Donovan getting used to her new home in Traverton when she just moved from Boston. She feels out of place and the only thing that gives her comfort is the local common, Adam’s Common. She goes to sketch there and stumbles upon an old ruin of a house, and fails to get the sketch just right for the next few days. Back in 1849, something strange happened in the house of young William Trafford (the soon to be owner of Adam’s Common). He appears to see Peggy sketching his own house as if they had both reached across time. He goes to meet her but she has disappeared. Once he realized he was out of the house, he ran to go meet his father at the railroad being built. His parents had earlier told him not to go out because of a very deadly disease spreading around. He eventually gets lost and finds himself where the disease is the strongest. William asked two boys, who introduced themselves as Adam and Zacky, where the railroad is. The two boys decide to take William to the railroad but as William gets there, his father barely recognizes him as he is very dirty and dizzy because he has gotten the sickness they all feared. William drops unconscious and wakes up in his bed, and is not allowed to do barely anything for the next month or so. Back in the present, Peggy discovers that the common is soon to be destroyed and decides to start a campaign to save it. But she knows this is not enough. She also visits the last woman of the Trafford bloodline, to try and get some more information about the common but is still wondering about the whole story of the name. William, recovering but still not fully recovered, is surprised to see that Adam is coming to visit. Adam visits his house every day and they talk and ask questions about nature, as they meet outside where William's parents cannot see them. William eventually keeps a diary, which Peggy discovers in the present while looking for more evidence to keep the common. Peggy reads William's diary and later experiences a vision and discovers that Adam was killed by William's family, as he appeared to be a threat. Peggy visits the house one last time before the fate of the common is settled and is guided by now an adult William, appearing as some sort of spirit. As Peggy is guided through the old house, which will collapse any minute, she experiences an injury in her leg and becomes trapped, even though William has shown her the deed of transfer for the common. Two of her friends were worried that she wasn't at school and went to go find her. They saved her just in time for the meeting and saved the common because the deed said that it is to be shared for many generations.
This book would most likely appeal to people who like history or some sort of time-bound plot as well as people who like adventure because of how the story builds to the plot and has multiple historical themes. The author does a good job of building the main conflict and relating to both sides of the story (Peggy’s and William’s). For example, in the end of the book, the perspectives change every once in a while to show that there are two sides to the story. The main conflict is also being built up by adding the full story in William's perspective, and Peggy's perspective of trying to understand the messages from William. One thing that the author could have done better, is developing the characters more or even giving clues on what their deeper personalities are like.
In conclusion, this is a really fun and interesting book that kept me wondering what would happen next. It really feels like I am home now. Peggy tells herself now. She knows that even though she faced many challenges and struggles, she is now surrounded by many friends and a new community that will share the love of their town forever.
This book is about two time periods meeting together to help the pride of this town in England not go to waste. The book starts off with Peggy Donovan getting used to her new home in Traverton when she just moved from Boston. She feels out of place and the only thing that gives her comfort is the local common, Adam’s Common. She goes to sketch there and stumbles upon an old ruin of a house, and fails to get the sketch just right for the next few days. Back in 1849, something strange happened in the house of young William Trafford (the soon to be owner of Adam’s Common). He appears to see Peggy sketching his own house as if they had both reached across time. He goes to meet her but she has disappeared. Once he realized he was out of the house, he ran to go meet his father at the railroad being built. His parents had earlier told him not to go out because of a very deadly disease spreading around. He eventually gets lost and finds himself where the disease is the strongest. William asked two boys, who introduced themselves as Adam and Zacky, where the railroad is. The two boys decide to take William to the railroad but as William gets there, his father barely recognizes him as he is very dirty and dizzy because he has gotten the sickness they all feared. William drops unconscious and wakes up in his bed, and is not allowed to do barely anything for the next month or so. Back in the present, Peggy discovers that the common is soon to be destroyed and decides to start a campaign to save it. But she knows this is not enough. She also visits the last woman of the Trafford bloodline, to try and get some more information about the common but is still wondering about the whole story of the name. William, recovering but still not fully recovered, is surprised to see that Adam is coming to visit. Adam visits his house every day and they talk and ask questions about nature, as they meet outside where William's parents cannot see them. William eventually keeps a diary, which Peggy discovers in the present while looking for more evidence to keep the common. Peggy reads William's diary and later experiences a vision and discovers that Adam was killed by William's family, as he appeared to be a threat. Peggy visits the house one last time before the fate of the common is settled and is guided by now an adult William, appearing as some sort of spirit. As Peggy is guided through the old house, which will collapse any minute, she experiences an injury in her leg and becomes trapped, even though William has shown her the deed of transfer for the common. Two of her friends were worried that she wasn't at school and went to go find her. They saved her just in time for the meeting and saved the common because the deed said that it is to be shared for many generations.
This book would most likely appeal to people who like history or some sort of time-bound plot as well as people who like adventure because of how the story builds to the plot and has multiple historical themes. The author does a good job of building the main conflict and relating to both sides of the story (Peggy’s and William’s). For example, in the end of the book, the perspectives change every once in a while to show that there are two sides to the story. The main conflict is also being built up by adding the full story in William's perspective, and Peggy's perspective of trying to understand the messages from William. One thing that the author could have done better, is developing the characters more or even giving clues on what their deeper personalities are like.
In conclusion, this is a really fun and interesting book that kept me wondering what would happen next. It really feels like I am home now. Peggy tells herself now. She knows that even though she faced many challenges and struggles, she is now surrounded by many friends and a new community that will share the love of their town forever.
May 21, 2023
Enjoyed the archived copy on openlibrary.org. A quick read, though it has so many stories: fish out of water, time slip, friendship, and children against developers. Interesting details make it memorable; I bet with the green pantaloons, and the house of many moods, and the cholera, it stuck in many minds and is now a 'what's the name of that book' answer. Not exceptional or worth recommending widely, but a good story if you're interested in any of the motifs listed above.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews