Calico Captive

by Elizabeth George Speare

This is the account of Miriam Willard, who, in 1754, was kidnapped by a tribe of Indians, forced to walk to Montreal where she was sold to the French for ransom, and eventually returned home. Based on an actual narrative diary.

Editions of Calico Captive

ISBN 9780440411567	Binding/Format Paperback	Publisher Random House Childrens Books	Date 1993	Price $1.00	Good
ISBN 9780786134595	Binding/Format Audio Cassette	Publisher Blackstone Audio Inc	Date 2005	Price None Available
ISBN 9780786181629	Binding/Format MP3 CD	Publisher Blackstone Audio Inc	Date 2005	Price None Available
ISBN 9780786121069	Binding/Format Audio Cassette	Publisher Blackstone Audio Inc	Date 2005	Price None Available
ISBN 9780613443814	Binding/Format Prebinding	Publisher Bt Bound	Date 2002	Price None Available
ISBN 9780618150755	Binding/Format Hardcover	Publisher Houghton Mifflin Harcourt	Date 2001	Price $1.04	Very good
ISBN 9780618150762	Binding/Format Paperback	Publisher Sandpiper	Date 2001	Price $1.00	Good

Publisher Notes

In the year 1754, the stillness of Charlestown, New Hampshire, is shattered by the terrifying cries of an Indian raid. Young Miriam Willard, on a day that had promised new happiness, finds herself instead a captive on a forest trail, caught up in the ebb and flow of the French and Indian War.
It is a harrowing march north. Miriam can only force herself to the next stopping place, the next small portion of food, the next icy stream to be crossed. At the end of the trail waits a life of hard work and, perhaps, even a life of slavery. Mingled with her thoughts of Phineas Whitney, her sweetheart on his way to Harvard, is the crying of her sister's baby, Captive, born on the trail.
Miriam and her companions finally reach Montreal, a city of shifting loyalties filled with the intrigue of war, and here, by a sudden twist of fortune, Miriam meets the prominent Du Quesne family, who introduce her to a life she has never imagined. Based on an actual narrative diary published in 1807, Calico Captive skillfully reenacts an absorbing facet of history.

Media Reviews

"...This is superior historical fiction...The writing is so vivid that the reader shares with the characters their experiences of the long trek to Canada and in Montreal where they are sold to the French."

Review this book!