Where The Great Hawk Flies

by Liza Ketchum

On Daniel Tucker’s 13th birthday, a hawk flies over his family’s farm. Does the hawk announce a visitor, or warn of imminent danger? Daniel’s mother and sister listen for the hawk’s message, while something urgent stirs inside Daniel. He is struggling to find his own path between the heritage of his Pequot mother and the customs of his English father.

Meanwhile, a new family has moved into the crumbling cabin next door. Hiram Coombs can’t believe his parents have returned to Vermont now that the Revolutionary War is over. Don’t they remember the terror of the raid, when Indians and Redcoats burned the family’s previous farm and kidnapped Hiram’s uncle?
When Hiram encounters Daniel at the trout stream that separates the two farms, he sees only a “dirty Injun,” while Daniel regards Hiram as “buffle-brained.” The arrival of two more unexpected visitors heightens the tensions between the boys and threatens to rekindle the smoldering embers of the war.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Childrens, Young Adult, Friendship, Historical

264 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Also writes under the name Liza Ketchum Murrow.

Virginia Jefferson Cup Honor Book, Virginia Library Association, 1988, for West against the Wind; Children's Choice selection, 1989, for Good-bye, Sammy; best young-adult novel designation, American Library Association, 1990, and Mark Twain Award listee, 1991-92, both for Fire in the Heart; Mark Twain Award listee, and Sequoyah Award listee, both 1993-94, both for The Ghost of Lost Island; Lambda Literary Award, 1998, for Blue Coyote.

Reviews

[Art · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW!
1st time w/this author and I like the way she writes and thinks and looks at life from another set of lenses.
Interesting look at the country when War for Independence is over and folks are trying to rebuild their lives.

[Jennifer Sommer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this historical fiction novel very much. To date it has won 6 awards around the country. The story is based on the author's own ancestors and history in Vermont in 1782, soon after the Revolutionary War has ended. It centers around Daniel, a 13-year-old boy whose father is English and mother is Pequot Indian. He favors his mother in looks and is confused about his identity in a family of mixed blood. A new family moves in next door with a son who is also 13-years old, named Hiram. His family is dealing with the aftermath of a raid by British Tories and Indians where the family house and barn were burned, cattle killed, uncle kidnapped and taken to Canada, and Hiram barely espcaping being taken himself. The Coombs family reacts unfavorably to the family next door that has an Indian mother and two Indian children, even though the neighbors talk highly of them and of the Indian woman's healing abilities. To top it off, an old Indian comes to live with them as well. What they don't know is that Daniel's family also experienced the British and Indian raid, and that Daniel's British father fought with the Patriots, and that the Pequot Indians also fought against the Redcoats. Instant enemies, Daniel calls Hiram a "buffle brain" and Hiram calls Daniel a "dirty Injun". This book alternates between Daniel's and Hiram's viewpoints and deals with prejudices, death and healing. Each character speaks with an appropriate dialect. It is filled with Pequot customs and beliefs. Teens in grades 5-9 will enjoy this.

[Nikki Edgar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book about prejudice and learning to love others.

[Melanie Hetrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful book! Oh, to finally read a historical fiction that a child might actually enjoy! Instead of being the typical dry, fact-based story, this story is dialogue-driven, which is wonderful!

Daniel is a 13-year-old boy who's mother is a Pequot Indian and his father is an Englishman (with colonial sympathies). Hiram is an 11-year-old boy who's family was torn apart by a violent raid by the British and British sympathizing Indians. Of course, because he's never known anything different, Hiram is very suspicious of all Indians.

When the two boys meet, Hiram resorts to name calling while Daniel threatens to fight. Over the course of the story, the boys are forced together in difficult situations and must learn to find a way to be civil, or possibly be friends.

[Vicki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Daniel and his family are living a peaceable life in the early 1800's in Vermont. Daniel's 13th birthday doesn't turn out as he expectss. When Daniel and his family meet the new neighbors-the Coombs, they are reminded of the prejudice against the Native Americans since Daniel is half English/half Pequoet. Memories & tempers stir as America works it way from the Revoluntionary War. Hiriam (yellow hair)

[Kristin Aker Howell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulously intertwined dual points of view, Hiram and Daniel, deepen the themes in this page turner. Ketchum shows readers an unfamiliar part of history and the reactions between two young boys dealing with war, politics, family and race. This is everything historical fiction should be: exciting, meticulous and thought-provoking.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

I understand it's not considered accurate as far as its treatment of Native Americans in the late 1700s, but I enjoyed Where the Great Hawk Flies. I received a free copy in 2005 and finally got around to reading it. The story kept me interested and I enjoyed watching Hiram and Daniel mature and grow to become friends. The target age group is 5th to 9th grades.

[Kari · Rating 5 out of 5]

Historical fiction rich in detail and in heart.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!