LOYALTY

LOYALTY by AVI

Loyalty by Avi is a different take on the struggle for independence in Colonial America.

Noah Cope is the son of a Loyalist minister in the province of Massachusetts Bay. When his father dies from being dragged to the town square by the Sons of Liberty and tarred and feathered for his unwavering faithfulness to the English King, Noah commits himself to the British cause. He finds a position as a spy for the British army. In doing so, he finds out that the rebels/patriots are not the only ones harming innocent people. He is quickly caught in a whirlwind of trying to decide where his loyalties lie. His closest friend is a black teenager, Jolla, who also is struggling to find which side will offer freedom for his people. Jolla continues to challenge Noah to think for himself and not choose a side because of his father's commitment. I'm going to end my review part here and put a spoiler alert on down the page. I will leave it by saying there is a tremendous amount of back and forth confusion in Noah's life. This is not your typical patriotic read.

SPOILER ALERT On the last page of the book Noah decides to leave America and become a sailor on his own terms joining neither side. While this book is thought provoking reading about a Loyalist viewpoint when the majority of our history is from a patriot's viewpoint, the book highlights what had to have been a very small part of the population during the Revolutionary time period. Two major powers were fighting for control of the colonies. Obviously, there were a lot of strong feelings of dedication on each side. I, personally, am very thankful for the outcome that happened. I find myself wondering what happened to Noah? Did he find perfect happiness by becoming a sailor? Was he able to move about freely the way he hoped? There is a reason that so many people are trying to immigrate into the US and it is because of freedom.