A Voice of Her Own by Barbara Dana

Title: A Voice of Her Own: Becoming Emily Dickinson
Author: Barbara Dana
ISBN: 9780060287047
Publisher: HarperTeen

Summary:
"When something is most important to me and I do not want to lose it, I gather it into a poem. It is said that women must employ the needle and not the pen. But I will be a Poet! That's who I am!

Before she was an iconic American poet, Emily Dickinson was a spirited girl eager to find her place in the world. Expected by family and friends to mold to the prescribed role for women in the mid-1800s New England, Emily was challenged to define herself on her own terms."

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Review:

This book was one of the more dry historical fiction books I've read in a while. The story is interesting - learning about famous writers, artists, etc lives are always intriguing. There was just something about how this story was written that was like a cutout of history. It does come full circle, but it doesn't have much action in between.

I am not someone who knows much about Emily Dickinson... and I feel like perhaps this story was written for the reader who already knows some background information about the poet - especially considering I really don't know how things turn out for her - besides becoming famous.

I would really only recommend this book to someone with a love of Dickinson's life. Otherwise it's a bit of a hard read. Perhaps it's not the writing, but the story for me. I guess I just wanted more out of it.
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