Two Worlds

Two Worlds

Jessica Conrad

Letters from Skye

By Jessica Brockmole

    Two worlds, separated by the Atlantic, have a clear distance, one that was even farther during the era of World War One without the technology of today. The island of Skye, off the coast of Scotland, and America seem like they cannot be further apart, yet two people somehow find a way to become closer than anyone could imagine.

Elspeth, a poet from Skye, receives a letter from an American named David, which starts off as innocent praise coming from a fan and turns into something more. Despite Elspeth being married and David being engaged, the two write countless letters back and forth. Readers can see the progression of their relationship as the closings change from normal parting phrases to “Love you” (Brockmole 140). As their relationship through the post intensifies, their home lives crumble when David’s fiance finds his letters and breaks off the engagement, and Elspeth’s husband goes off to war. David then enlists in the war in France, and Elspeth conquers her fears of riding the ferry to see him.

In the story’s present setting (World War Two), Elspeth disappears one night after Margaret, her daughter, discovers her letters due to an air raid that shakes their house. Margaret then converses with her fiance and her long lost Uncle Finlay to try and learn about her mother’s past, who her father is, and why her mother’s relationship destroyed their family.

The organization of this novel is very interesting. The whole story is told through the letters passed between Elspeth and David and between Margaret and her fiance, Paul. The chapters alternate between Elspeth’s point of view during World War One, and Margaret’s view during World War Two, thus switching between past and present. Telling the story through letters with no other narration is very different than any other book I have ever read. Doing so strengthens character development because the story is literally being told through the character’s own words. Readers can see Elspeth, David, and Margaret all change and develop throughout their correspondence.  

In terms of characters, I like and can relate to Elspeth. She starts off very rigid and proper, and is simply following through with what people expect of her. She stays home and cooks, cleans, and takes care of the animals. Showing the roles of gender in her society, she explains “they thought I was mad as a March hare for even wanting to read a book not on the suggested school curriculum, let alone wanting to attend university” (Brockmole 44). However, we can see that Elspeth secretly longs for more than the life she is living because she submerges herself into her poetry, something out of the norm for women in her home at that time. As the letters from David continue to come, Elspeth’s craving for love and adventure sprouts itself. As she begins to realize it, she struggles with how to handle it.

The difficulty of living up to expectations, yet living your best life is something I think a lot of people can relate to. Elspeth wants so badly to have a life off of her small island, but her fears and anxieties get in the way, and she needs David to remind her that she can continue to push herself towards what she wants, writing “you keep me going, how you keep me waking up, simply because I know you’re thinking of me” (Brockmole 101) . The desire for adventure also relates to so many people, especially teenagers. With a world of possibility just at our fingertips, we are eager to get out and find adventure, and enjoy life while we’re young.

This novel can attract adventure seekers, romantics and Nicholas Sparks readers, and mystery solvers. The book includes an intriguing blend of all these themes, somehow without being cliche.  Margaret’s search into her mother’s past, thus her own life, provides mystery, and Elspeth’s letters to and from David provide the romance. This book is one sure to read if you are someone who enjoys any of these topics.