I have always enjoyed Jane Kirkpatrick's books. They are 'true' historical novels, often based on real people who left amazing legacies. She does intense research to find as many events as possible in their lives and then fills in the blanks with imaginative yet realistic thoughts, words, and actions. In Everything She Didn't Say, Kirkpatrick transports the reader right back into the dusty or mud-filled streets of the early west. There is no glorifying the difficult lives our early pioneers had, and no 'everything will turn out ok' romance that isn't consistent with their lives.

I really appreciated the difficulties Carrie Strahorn went through and I enjoyed learning a lot of new things about those early days of the railroad. Carrie was the first woman (non-native) to visit Yellowstone Park, and perhaps the first woman to ride a real 'rollercoaster' (you'll have to read the book to learn more about that).

Jane Kirkpatrick really brought life to a somewhat dry and limited report of the days when railroads were trying to establish effective routes. She brought heart to the struggles of the west and made me really appreciate our current amenities! It is hard to imagine a love strong enough to overcome hard stagecoach seats, years of not having a place to call home, and the rough and tumble environment of mining camps!

I liked this book I didn't love it. I have enjoyed many by Jane Kirkpatrick. I found it hard to like these characters, but the story was well told. Perhaps it seemed too depressing. Thanks to netgalley for a copy. No review was required. I will read Jane Kirkpatrick again.

A very public physical journey at the time (1870's), a very private emotional journey for Carrie.

Maybe because we were full time rvers for four years, I think this is of particular interest to that group of travelers. This is another story where Jane Kirkpatrick does what she does best, teaching about women, life lessons, pondering our lives and living with others.

I'm grateful that we were able to go to Colorado and see Colorado Springs and the Garden Of The Gods, having personally seen some of the areas that she wrote of in this book. A regret we have is that we hadn't gotten to see Yellowstone. It must have been awesome to see these areas before they were populated as they are now. The very real dangers of weather and wildlife were more of an issue then with the mode of travel, often on foot, with miles of wilderness surrounding them. Still people wanted to travel to a better life, and looked where they could for accurate information.

Carrie Strahan's husband wrote books and pamphlets designed to lure pioneers into the West. He worked for the UP Railroad, who wanted "settled" towns before bringing their trains through. This was still a time when women were frowned on for travelling to outlying areas and having occupations other than making a home for family and children. Carrie insisted that she travel with her husband on his necessary forays into the frontier, gaining experience she never would have had, but also giving up a life that other women had. As time goes by she wonders about her contribution to the immigrant movement across America, and is constantly berated for doing it. We are all shaped by the paths that we cross.

I highly recommend this book, especially to women of all ages. There's no doubt that you'll find something you can learn, and gain an insight and perspective of your own life as well as Carrie's.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher and NetGalley book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Jane Kirkpatrick's latest novel tells the story of Carrie Strahorn by imagining what she may have journaled as she traveled the Western United States with her husband in the early 1900s. It is based on real historical figures with bits of Carrie's actual memoir, Fifteen Thousand Miles by Stage placed throughout the book.

Although Carrie in many ways shows a strength of character, while at the same time dominated by her husband, and throughout what she thought was a "pardnership", finds she must let go of many things she had envisioned for her life. She has longings for a place to belong, a family and to be settled and have a home and every one of these longings she ends up having to give up for her husband Robert Strahorn whose mission in life was to develop the West.

Carrie manages to carry on, by striving to live in the "happy lane" but as she is required to give up so much of her desires and who she is, it comes across as a very sad story.

I have enjoyed Jane Kirkpatrick's novels in the past - the ones I have read are also based on true stories. I do find her to be well researched. Unfortunately, this story was not as interesting as others of hers, I noticed. It didn't seem to have much momentum, and I wasn't eager to get back to it.

Up until now all of my knowledge about the rail road industry came from a lifetime fascination on the subject as well as one particular television drama that I couldn’t get enough of. This book is the perfect compliment to my former education because it’s told from Carrie Adell Greene Strahorn’s point of view and while I really wish Dell had been less of a doormat for her husband’s ambition, I had to adjust my thinking to the societal norms that governed woman in the late 1870’s. Dell chronicles her years of marriage to Robert Strahorn while he was both writer and committed rail road man, which beautifully illustrates her faith, her wisdom and the thrill of adventure she feels as she stubbornly fights to stay by his side as an equal partner in their marriage through conditions that any other woman of the era would shrink from clutching her smelling salts. This is a mesmerizing and beautifully written chronicle of the life and times of this unlikely couple that every historical fiction fan will enjoy just as much as I did. I read a complimentary copy of this book provided by Revell Christian through NetGalley and all opinions expressed in my voluntary review are completely my own

Carrie "Dell" Strahorn and her husband Robert "Pard" were pioneers of the west between 1880 and 1911. As a newlywed couple, they left her parents' home for a life of adventure. In real life, Carrie wrote her memoirs in a 2-volume series called Fifteen Thousand Miles by Stage. This book picks up on the between-the-lines story that Jane Kirkpatrick has fashioned out of history and conjecture. Author Kirkpatrick does her homework and gives as much historical accuracy as practical and possible. That this book is based on a real diary and memoir, along with saved letters to Carrie's parents, is fantastic. By itself it's a peek at life on the frontier through a wife's eyes. Husband Robert is a railroad line and railroad town developer. Although he loves his wife, the railroad and its possibilities are closer to his heart.
For those interested in a historical read, through a prosperous woman's point-of-view, with actual boots on the ground, this is a great book.

Although the book was well written I didn't connect with anyone in it and I had to force myself to finish it I love these types of books so I was said i didn't like this one so much. I was dry and disconnected. maybe because its the 3rd book?

Jane Kirkpatrick's books are well researched with well developed characters and story lines. This book is based on a journal found and Kirkpatrick fills in the gaps with her amazing storytelling. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical fiction and a strong woman characters. Jane Kirkpatrick's books are never a "fluff" read and I appreciate the research and richness she adds to her books.

From Goodreads review:
Note: This is more musings from my blog than an actual review, so if you don't want to bear with me, continue to someone else's review of the book.

When I started working at the library waaaay back in 1974, despite its re-bound plain blue cover, Fifteen Thousand Miles by Stage by Carrie Strahorn (the subtitle "A Woman's Unique Experience during Thirty Years of Path Finding and Pioneering from the Missouri to the Pacific and from Alaska to Mexico," pretty much covers the topic), caught my eye every time I passed the travel shelf (it was later re-cataloged into the history category). I loved the idea of this woman traveling all over the west in the late 1800s by stagecoach and was fascinated with the photos and drawings by C. M. Russell. I never read the book cover to cover but would periodically check it out and read parts of it (probably one reason it’s never been weeded from the collection!). What I got from the book is that Carrie Strahorn’s travels alongside her husband, Robert, as they scouted our various locations for railroads and founded a few towns along the way (such as Caldwell, Idaho, and Ontario, Oregon), was an amazing adventure and a story of resilience to not only travel under challenging conditions, but to also keep her marriage intact. So I was thrilled to see the new novel by Jane Kirkpatrick, Everything She Didn’t Say, a novel based on Carrie Strahorn’s life.

A little background on Jane Kirkpatrick, a writer from eastern and central Oregon. I've been recommending her historical novels for 23 years (especially Gathering of Finches, set at Shore Acres near Coos Bay) as her novels based on real women of the west are "clean" and well received by readers. The novels have always been described as “faith-based” or “inspirational” but I found that while they were based on Christian beliefs, the messages weren’t at all heavy-handed. You can find a complete list of her books here.

When I started reading Everything She Didn’t Say, I was a little turned off by the clunky title and the fact that Carrie’s story seemed a little remote. It wasn't long, though, before I couldn’t put this down and having her memoir alongside to check certain passages greatly enhanced the experience. And the reason for the title is that Kirkpatrick did a lot of in-depth research and reading-between-the-lines to expand Carrie’s story of what wasn’t said in the memoir and what could have happened in her personal life. Especially enjoyable was the epilogue where Kirkpatrick explains how she came to write the book and gives information about her research.

One of my favorite parts of the novel is when Carrie is talking about working with C. M. Russell about the drawings and she said about one sketch: "...he made me look as lithe as my niece instead of the 'fluffy woman" I always was."

Bottom line is I loved Kirkpatrick’s book and believe anyone interested in Oregon and northwest history, along with true travel adventures during a tumultuous historical period, will enjoy both books.

Would you like to take a trip back in time when the railroad was beginning to head out west? Then this is a story you’ll want to read. Everything She Didn’t Say by Jane Kirkpatrick will introduce you to a young, adventurous woman named Carrie Adell Strahorn.

Carrie’s story is filled with the hard life of a pioneer, and the exciting adventures of settling the unknown Wild West. She and her husband, Robert Strahorn, travelled around the west for the Union Pacific researching different locations for the railroad to expand to and for material for Robert to write books promoting settling in the West.

Jane Kirkpatrick has a way with bringing an unknown woman’s story to life. The author has done a wonderful job of being true to Carrie’s story while exploring the possibilities of what Carrie left out of what she wrote. I enjoyed reading this story and learning more about the history of my wonderful country. If you’re looking for a good read, pick up this new book by Jane Kirkpatrick!

***I received this complimentary book from Revell. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions are my own.

I love Christian historical fiction and this book is one of the best I’ve read in that genre this year.

Jane Kirkpatrick has written a unique “autobiography” of Carrie Strahorn based on Carrie’s own book “15,000 Miles in a Stagecoach” which was published in 1911. Carrie’s perspective on writing her book was from a positive point of view. She decided she was going to stay in her “happy lane” as she wrote. Jane Kirkpatrick imagines that Carrie wrote another book closer to her death that tells “Everything She Didn’t Say” in her first book. The author gives us short passages from Carrie’s book in each chapter, and she then expands the story on that passage. This point of view works very well. Carrie was an intelligent, talented, and compassionate woman whose husband, Robert, was very strong willed and not always as mindful of Carrie as he should have been. I came away from this book admiring Carrie as she honored and even thrived in her marriage in the many events of their lives together. I did not care for Robert at all, but Carrie did, and her story is remarkable. This is not your typical Christian historical romance, but a look at a real life of faith and courage.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher. All opinions are my own.

I am only going to review this book on Netgallery and Goodreads, because I didn’t finish it. Even though I tried to redo load it several times it was very glitchy. Every time I stopped reading it for more then 5 minutes, it would start back at the beginning again. It also wouldn’t let me skip to where I was, and had to turn it slowly page by page. That is the only reason I stopped reading it. After I got about halfway through, it was just too much of a pain.
The version I read was not the finished product and an ARC. I requested this book because I like Kirkpatrick’s other books I’ve read and I though it sounded interesting. You can tell she always researches her materials well and this book was no exception. This was based off a true story and at times was a little dry. I would still have liked to have finished it though as I’m interested in what happens to Dell. At times it seems like her husband doesn’t really love her, then at other times I see that he does, he’s just a different kind of man. Not everyone could live with him or help him the way she does. They seem like a good match. I hope she ends up standing up more to him and expressing her true desires to him... and that he actually listens to her.
I received a copy from NetGallery and the publisher an exchange for my honest review.

Jane Kirkpatrick has always written about strong women, in this story I felt that Dell could have been stronger, but upon reflection, she had adventures that without her husband, Robert, she would never have had. Her life had many ups and many downs. But that is life for all of us. She embraced her adventures, and I thoroughly enjoyed being along for the ride in this book. This was great reading!

This was an interesting story but felt a bit disjointed. It read like a bit of a memoir but not completely. I never felt that I truly connected with the main characters, even though the book was all about them and their adventures. Just not a book for me.

An interesting and intriguing story. Had me laughing and at times had my heart breaking.
My heart ached for a woman who died nearly 100 years ago as she faced the hardships of life in the West with a strong-willed husband.
A beautiful woman who lived an extraordinary life. One of the most selfless, caring woman I have ever known through the pages of a book.

Jane Kirkpatrick did an excellent job researching to bring details to this book. Based on the real life of Carrie "Adell" Strahorn. Her husband Robert is a writer and promoter for the Union Pacific Railroad. While I found myself not liking Robert much, I fell in love with Carrie in this book. Carrie keeps a journal about her hopes, dreams and adventures as she travels with her husband. You will read about the many hardships they faced along the way and how her faith helped her through all the hills and valley. I love to read Historical Fiction and " Everything She Didn't Say" does not disappoint. I was given this book from Netgalley for my honest review.

I love how Jane Kirkpatrick can take a diary or memoir and fill in to make a person seem so real. She does it so well here. I loved Carrie. I wasn’t always thrilled with her husband who seems a bit conceited. She has an interesting life. I don’t know if I would have done many of the things that she did. She was a very brave woman. I received a copy of this book from Revell for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.

In 1877, Carrie Strahorn, began writing in a new journal as she set out with her new husband, Robert, for Omaha, Nebraska leaving behind family and friends. Over the next few years, she planned to accompany him as he traveled throughout the wilderness of the American West scouting possible routes for the Union Pacific railroad and publishing handbooks written to attract pioneers and settlers to the region. Years turned into decades and, over 30 years later, Carrie published a two-volume memoir about their experiences and ventures based on her journals and letters home. The title was Fifteen Thousand Miles by Stage .

Everything She Didn’t Say is author Jane Kirkpatrick’s reimagining of what Carrie would say, ten years later, if she revealed her true reactions and emotions throughout her years of following her husband from place to place. Kirkpatrick’s intent was to write the memoir that Carrie would have written if she had been free to do so.

Carrie herself was a strong, brave woman who struggled with balancing her desire to support her husband in his numerous ventures with her own dreams. She often chose to sacrifice her own talents as an author as well as her dreams of having a home and family as well as friends and community. To add to the authenticity, Kirkpatrick places Carrie’s own words strategically at the end of pertinent chapters.

Robert’s ventures took them to many places and Carrie experienced a variety of hardships as well as exciting adventures, often as the first white woman to step foot in some locations. Unfortunately, what should have been a thrilling read was actually a bit dry. Perhaps this was because it was being told in the form of a memoir within a memoir but still disappointing. At the halfway mark, perhaps because Carrie exerts some of her independence, the story becomes more personal and was, in turn, more alive and interesting.

Everything She Didn’t Say is a fitting tribute to a real pioneer. One who, according to one cited source, traveled more than 25,000 miles – by rail, horseback, and steamship with an additional 3,000 miles by stage. This alone was quite an achievement particularly for a woman in those times. But Carrie also made her mark in helping found communities, a church, and reaching out to other women in hard times and places. It is also a great reminder of all those women who set forth at personal risk and loss to make their contributions and offer support in developing our nation.



FYI - I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I'm not entirely sure what to say about this book. On one hand, it was a creative and honest "behind the scenes" imagining of the life behind the facts. The book was well written and contained some helpful relational wisdom. I found the overview of Carrie Strahorn's life fascinating. And yet, the book was easy to walk away from and in many ways it was a sad story of a woman who spent most of her life out of touch with her own desires and emotions. The main character's desire to live in the "happy lane" drove me a bit crazy as that kind of denial and diversion from real sorrow and grief isn't a healthy way to live, though many employ those type of strategies. Further, I found it nearly impossible to relate to the era, how men and women/husbands and wives related at that time, which again made it difficult to connect to the characters. Also, I found the book easy to put down as it was broken into unrelated sections and read like a journal rather than a narrative following a distinct plot arc (though the author clearly had things to communicate as she told the story of Carrie's life). All in all, I would recommend this book for those who like biographies, journals and historical documentaries. I wouldn't recommend necessarily recommend this book if you are looking for an engaging fictional narrative story line as it moves slowly and has a slightly disjointed (journal-like) feel.
I received a free digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book is based upon the real life story of Carrie "Dell" Strahorn and her husband Robert. Robert is a a railroad promoter, investor, and writer. His main task is to develop towns so that the Union Pacific Railroad can continue to lay track. Robert is a very strong-willed man and is constantly on the move as he writes about the west trying to entice newcomers to build new towns. Carrie is an independent woman who ends up traveling beside Robert; but, in turn, she gives up some of her dreams and aspirations in order to be together.

This story incorporates the use of Carrie's memoirs written during the 25 years of accompanying her husband. Kirkpatrick includes bits and pieces of the memoir throughout the chapters, so the reader can get a glimpse into the feelings of Carrie during the specific events Kirkpatrick is writing about. I have read several of Kirkpatrick's earlier books and enjoyed her rich historical detail immensely, but feel that this book would have been better written as a novel rather than somewhat of a memoir. I could never emotionally connect with either Carrie or Robert and found the book rather dry overall.

**I received a complimentary copy of this book from Revell Publishing through NetGalley. Opinions are mine alone. I was not compensated for this review.