Beyond the Mapped Stars

In 1878, Elizabeth Bertelsen is a seventeen-year-old Mormon girl living in a small town in Utah. She has a passion for astronomy and learning, but her mother thinks that it is time for her to become a wife and mother. Elizabeth’s older sister is having a baby and needs help in Cheyenne, Wyoming, so Elizabeth volunteers to go. Her journey to Cheyenne is filled with adventures and she makes friends with a brother and sister named Alice and Will. After helping her sister, Elizabeth decides to continue her journey to Colorado to see the eclipse. There are a lot of historical elements in this book and Elizabeth even meets several famous people from history. Will Elizabeth have to choose between her passion and her faith?

I learned a lot about the Mormon faith and about history from this book. I lost interest several times reading this story, though. I was lost sometimes when she was talking about the religion and I felt that the moments that should have been exciting actually fell flat.