(Not for me, mind you, but commendable.) Doing what they perceive as God's will to help others-wonderful. Their decision to forgo worldly treasures and pleasures is to be commended. The all men are equal and antislavery stances they take is certainly admirable. I guess I never realized from my (very limited, I'll admit-pretty much what is in social studies textbooks and my obsessive re-reading of The Witch of Blackbird Pond) knowledge of Quakers just how rigid and unbending they can be. Her love for her father was admirable, and her adherence to her faith was strong.but that's where she sometimes lost me. Her determination to do whatever she could to help him and her patience with his difficulties were fantastic. For much of the book, he was one of the best heroes I've even read.

And oh my goodness, his treatment of his illegitimate daughter! Heartbreaking! When he recognized her confused and bewildered expression as the same one he often had and kept buying her warm things so she wouldn't be cold up in Scotland.oh, sigh. His time in the asylum that his family (!) sends him to is horrifying, and his family itself is absolutely ghastly. His frustration and despair were just heart rending. The way he was written post-stroke was just amazing.at times I almost felt I had to do as much work as he did when the story was told from his point of view, just trying to figure out what people were saying and what he was thinking and saying. For most of the book, it was a solid five stars.

I keep wavering between four and five stars for this one.

Flowers from the storm