Reclaim My Heart, by Donna Fasano, is the story of young love in various forms. The main story line is about a wealthy young white girl, Tyne, who falls in love with a Native American young man, Lucas. This love is complicated by the fact that the girl’s parents, in addition to being rich, are bigots. The girl gets pregnant and raises the child as a single parent. The young man, who was raised by his uncle after the death of his father, becomes a successful lawyer and learns of his son’s existence when his son gets arrested and needs representation.
This was not your typical love story in that it had an underlying story about Lucas and his rejection of his Lenape Indian culture in order to assimilate into the larger majority culture. It also told of the struggle of a young girl to become a woman, against the wishes of her parents. The story delves into the struggles they each had coming to grips with the choices they made as youth and how it has affected their adult lives. A secondary story about Lucas’ parents was fascinating as an underlying thread throughout the book.
My favorite character in the story was Uncle Jasper. He was the person that brought all parts of the story together. He was not only Lucas’ uncle, but a Lenape Indian elder. He was portrayed as a typical elder using stories and riddles to help people find their own answers.
I loved this story! I have only read one other work written by this author, and find her to be extremely talented. Her dealing with cultural differences, bigotry, classism, and religious differences all within one story was fascinating. She was able to treat each issue with respect, depth and understanding that you do not find with many authors. I recommend this story to all.
-Reviewed by Selina
