Picture the Dead

Picture the Dead by Adele Griffin
Teen Zone New Fiction-Main Level - GRIFFIN

Picture the Dead presents an eerie image of a haunted United States near the end of the Civil War. This book is part historical fiction, part ghost story, and part diary narrative, creating an interesting read. Each chapter is supplemented with pictures and clippings from the protagonist, Jennie’s diary. The war has taken a lot from Jennie. Both her twin brother and fiancée have been claimed by this war that was the bloodiest in American History. However, when the brother of Jennie’s fiancée returns from the war, Jennie becomes haunted by the circumstances surrounding the account of her beloved’s death. Did this gruesome war, which pinned brother versus brother, turn Jennie’s fiancée into a demon to haunt her after his death?Or is there something more that happened with the Pritchett brothers while attempting to survive the war? Ghosts will appear, mediums will be sought out, and the ending will have a twist, in this multi-genre historical fiction.

While the middle seemed to lag a little, I generally enjoyed this book. It did a great job of capturing the gruesome, unsettling, and extremely creepy, setting of America towards the end of the Civil War. The epilogue does a great job of pointing out the truth behind the belief in ghosts during this time in history. The great loss of life that took place during the war brought
a rise in the spiritualist movement, which provided hope to have contact with loved ones who went away to war, never to be seen again.

Other great books from this time in history:

An Acquaintance with Darkness by Ann Rinaldi - Teen Zone Fiction - Main Level RINALDI

Chasing Lincoln's Killer by James Swanson - Teen Zone Nonfiction-Main Level 973.7092S