The Executions by Sarah Elisabeth Sawyer

Publisher: RockHaven Publishing (April 24, 2015)

In The Executions by Sarah Elisabeth Sawyer, Matthew and Ruth Ann long to report the truth in their Choctaw newspaper. Discrimination runs deep for many groups in Dickens. A beautiful quote from the book speaks to his, “The oak had grown for more than a hundred years and suddenly found itself surrounded by machine-cut timber hammered into submission by foreign hands. Ruth Ann stared up through the colorful but dying leaves and into the gray sky, able to understand the frustration of mixing man with nature. But it had to be. God gave man dominion over His creation. But did He give one race of man dominion over other races?”

Undeterred by people’s criticisms, they strive for the truth stating that “nothing is more powerful than the press, short of God Almighty”. Ruth Ann longs to report the news but she knows the people in Dickens don’t see her as capable. Her brother is protective yet encouraging and tells her, “a woman’s place is anywhere God puts her.”

One of my favorite parts from the book is how Ruth Ann and Matthew’s grandmother taught them to be still, looking into one another’s eyes for a lengthy time, allowing the stillness and silence to surround them; allowing them to get to know each other, and to hear the voice of God.

I could easily quote many things from this book as there were many potent words. It’s a story of the prejudices that lie between people, some unspoken yet believed; it’s the story of overcoming the hindrances that others can place on one another, and the story of the power of words. The Executions is thought provoking and at times, extremely sad but a good story.

I received this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion which I’ve provided here.