| Achsa
W. Sprague hailed from Vermont and lived from 1827-1862. While
she was a real person, Seven Years of Grace is a dramatized
version of her life, focusing on a seven year crusade she
waged on the mission of promoting the Spiritualist movement.
Achsa,
or Axy as she was called, had been sickly for most of her
life and was astounded to find herself restored to health
by what she believed to be her spiritual guardians. She lectured
all over America and even sang while in trance states. She
was both hailed and admired while at the same time ridiculed
and condemned.
Author
Sara Rath most certainly did a lot of research and homework
to learn about this unusual woman. She accessed an extensive
collection from the Vermont Historical Society. These were
papers Sprague had left as a record of her life's adventures.
While
quite interesting and detailed, this is not a book that is
a light or easy read by any means. At over 400 pages and also
containing an Afterword and Grace Notes, it is a book that
requires a commitment of both time and effort from the reader.
I found that I often had to put it down and tackle some lighter
reading, but I was intrigued enough that I always came back
until I read through the conclusion.
Given
that the author put so much time and work into the book, it's
only fair that the dedicated reader does the same, right?
If you
are a fan of historical fiction and have any particular interest
in the women's movement and the spiritualism of the 1800's
this is one book you don't want to miss. I highly recommend
it to the intellectual reader with a deep fondness for history.
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