All-True Travels and Adventures of Lidie Newton »

Jane Smiley's power as a writer lies in her ability to evoke her chosen milieu, no matter how far-flung. The Pulitzer winner is able to vary her settings -- from 14th-century Greenland to a modern-day college campus -- as well as her tone, never missing a beat.

Jane Smiley, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of A Thousand Acres, returns with a novel that explores one of the crucial moments in American history and culture, the conflict between abolitionists and proslavery settlers over the future of the Kansas Territory in 1855-'56. Smiley's narrative goes far beyond any simple historical novelization or any didactic examination of the slavery question; The All-True Travels and Adventures of Lidie Newton presents a multifaceted picture of the developing American character, as shaped not only by such explosive issues as slavery but also by the difficulties of the frontier and the day-to-day relationships between men and women.

Los Angeles Times

A gripping story about love, fortitude, and convictions that are worth fighting for.