POISON IN THE COLONY
James Town 1622
The fascinating companion title to the award-winning historical novel:
Blood on the River: James Town 1607
2019 Viking Books for Young Readers
After the colony of James Town is founded in 1607…
After Captain John Smith establishes trade with the Native Americans…
After Pocahontas befriends the colonists…
After early settlers both thrive and die in this new world…
A girl is born: Virginia.
Virginia Laydon, an infant at the end of Blood on the River, has now grown up in a colony that is teetering dangerously on the precipice of conflict with the native Algonquins. Virginia has the gift - or the curse - of the knowing, an ability that could help save the colony, but is equally likely to land her at the burning stake as an accused witch.
Virginia struggles to make sense of her own inner world against the backdrop of pivotal years in the Jamestown colony. The first representative government is established, the first enslaved Africans arrive and the self-righteousness of the colony's leaders angers the Algonquin.
When Virginia's mother first learns of her gift, she is terrified. ‘Kill it,’ her mother says, ‘or they will kill you.’ When accusations and danger threaten, Virginia learns that she is on her own; her mother must protect her young sisters rather than stand up for her. So begins a journey of self-realization and increasing strength, as Virginia goes from being a self-protective young girl to someone who knows she must live her own truth even if it will be the end of her.
Review Excerpts:
"Carbone includes details about daily life, slavery, tenuous relations with Indigenous tribes, and accusations of witchcraft. It's engaging historical fiction that does not shy away from addressing societal complexities."
- The Horn Book, Inc.
"Poison in the Colony is a great historical novel. It . . . does an excellent job of capturing the fabric of life in a fascinating period of history. Carbone effectively presents the struggles between settlers and natives in a light that is both historically sound and sensitive to modern political issues. Virginia is an intensely likeable protagonist with a compelling problem: Her second-sight is a powerful gift but she is in fearful danger from her superstitious fellow colonists every time she uses it. An engrossing and entertaining, well-realized story."
- Steve Nesbitt, Mabel’s Raves and Faves
Awards and Honors:
Virginia Jefferson Cup Award Honor Book for young readers 2020
Mark Twain Reader Award Summer Reading List 2020