Reviews
This was a fascinating read. Especially with how much the LDS culture focuses on the handcarts. It was very interesting to read about the hardships of the converts’ travel using the wagons, as well as the trip across the Atlantic. It was also great to go through Madelaine’s whole life. You really get a sense of who she is and mourn with her through her hardships and trials. It’s a sign of a great character to feel their pains and sorrows as well as their joys throughout a story. I feel like it also ends well…. It was real fitting. The title also is beautiful for the piece. For having such a wonderful ancestor, I’m happy to see such a wonderful tribute to such a strong person. I really enjoyed working on this piece for you. Thank you for being brave enough to share.
Stephanie Procopio, Copy Editor, WiDo Publishing
The writing is so engaging. It had me laughing and crying all the way through. I appreciate a book with facts which helps me feel I’m learning about the time and place in history. And I’m so glad for the happy ending, too.
Linda Goodman, Tucson, AZ
I just finished reading your wonderful book and wanted to let you know how much I loved reading it. I appreciate all the time and effort you put into writing this amazing saga. This book was hard to put down. Your descriptions of their pain and suffering really got to me and I feel like I now understand what they went through. I enjoyed reading the Indian stories, and their own struggles with testimonies. I can't imagine their sorrow burying so many children. Life without doctors and using plants and herbs for medicine is a far cry from where we are today. Your story certainly showed the great strength of the women! I liked your Endnotes section, too. I'll make sure all my relatives read your book.
Carol Steinitz, San Diego, CA
I really loved the book. Being a history teacher I enjoyed seeing aspects of our country's development through another viewpoint. But what I found most pleasing about it was that your characters came across as real people. Yes, I know they were real people but there is a vast difference between historical tomes about the exploits of real people and your presentation of them. It was like viewing the events through their eyes. You did a masterful job of portraying what they saw, experienced and felt.
I also enjoyed reading your end notes which gave me a better understanding of why you were drawn to writing this. I liked the inclusion of some other historical figures like Butch Cassidy (Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is my favorite movie). Even liked the segment where Calamity Jane made an appearance as a possible former worker (even though you fudged that one, but that was also neat to find out in the End notes).
You did an excellent job of telling Maria's story in a very engaging way, her devotion to the Latter-day Saints and how her faith gave her "The Strength of the Hills". Well done.
James D. Heffernan, Bonita Springs, FL
Your book does a great job of describing all of the trials and tragedies these early pioneers endured to create a better life for themselves and their descendants. I have always been amazed by this and I appreciate how well you portrayed this toughness and resilience in "The Strength of the Hills".
Clark Joseph “Joe” Guild III, NV
I met you at the new gravestone dedication in Hyrum for Jeanne Marie Gaudin Moyes. I bought your book from you then. I thoroughly enjoyed the read…. [T]his book helped me appreciate what the journey from Italy to Utah and then Ogden might have been like for [my ancestors]. I found the Endnotes very interesting and enjoyed reading them after I read each chapter. I appreciated the thorough research you did to write this book. Loved the pictures on your website. A visit to the Piedmont ghost town is now on my list of things to do! So glad to have met you and to become acquainted with your book.
Joyce Schmitt, UT
Your book is one of the best historical novels on Waldensian and LDS Church history.
Kathleen Cardon, Salt Lake City, UT
I highly recommend this book. I thank the author Karen Peterson Mosley for her dedication in keeping this work of historical fiction so true to the actual events. My mother is a great grand daughter of Catherine and Moses Byrne. Mom lived in Piedmont for 13 years and was one of the last families to leave. I grew up with all of the stories that the author laid out in this beautiful book. Karen has truly caught the spirit and soul of the Piedmont experience. These are the real stories that were told over and over again at the nearly 30 family reunions that I’ve attended. As I read this novel I felt as though I was actually spending time with my Cardon ancestors. Last September I visited the Cardon homeland in Piemonte Italy. I hiked along the roads and saw my ancestors homes. I only wish I would have heard of this book earlier but I’m glad I had a chance to visit the homeland before reading this work. It made the facts of the story so real. My mother passed away two years ago. I would have loved have heard her comments on the book. I just know that Mom would have commented on what a great journal Madelaine Cardon kept. I would have had to agree with her, because Madelaine did keep a great diary, yet at the same time I’m sure I would have had to remind her that this is a historical fiction and some parts are conjecture. I say this because as I read Ms. Mosley’s “first person” storytelling, I had to remind myself that it was the conjecture that made me feel as if I was there among my great, great grandparents. I reflected often. I found myself wondering just how many of the stories can the author possibly know as compared to experiences my own mother related to me. Ms. Mosley never let me down. I think she covered every experience. It has been a wonderful read. Thank you again Ms. Mosley.
Keith Larson
