Grateful American Book Prize

Patriotic Pick for January 2019

Patriotic Picks

Ordinary People, The Drum of Destiny and The House of the Seven Gables

Ordinary People by Judith Guest; The Drum of Destiny by Christopher Stevenson; The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Whether it’s via their tone, topic, or tenor, certain works just say “America.” Here are three such titles, suggested by David Bruce Smith, founder of the Grateful American™ Foundation, in partnership with the Washington Independent Review of Books.

  • Ordinary People by Judith Guest. In this emotionally raw novel, members of an everyday family ripped apart by tragedy try to find their way back to one another.
  • The Drum of Destiny by Christopher Stevenson. It’s 1775, and orphaned Gabriel is living in New York with British loyalists. Will a discarded drum spur him to join the Colonists’ fight for freedom? (For middle-grade readers.)
  • The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Generational secrets, a malevolent curse, and a legacy of ill-gotten gains form the core of this classic gothic tale set in 19th-century New England.

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