The mystery of who he was and what happened to him is a theme that runs throughout the story. Michael is worried that perhaps Mr Friedrich had killed him at some point. Their son Gunter on the other hand is out to do whatever he can to make Michael's life difficult and perhaps even get him sent back to New York.Įarly on in the book Michael overhears the family discussing the mysterious 'Ulrich' who is apparently dead. His wife, is a rather timid woman but is genuinely kind to Michael. He is a man of faith who believes in hell and damnation and thinks it is his duty to teach Michael the error of his ways. Mr Friedrich is a stern disciplinarian who believes that sparing the rod leads to spoiling the child.

Although Michael had acquitted himself well en route, his reputation had preceded him and he was the last of the Kelly siblings to be chosen for adoption by the German immigrant farm family The Friedrichs. In A Family Apart, all the children traveled by train to Missouri and were placed out with different families. Michael was sent with permission of the court with a stern warning that if he returned to New York he would quickly find himself in the infamous Tombs prison. This book set in 1856 tells the story of 12 year old Michael Kelly whose actions as a 'copper-stealer' led to all the children in the family being sent out West to find better lives than their mother could currently provide for them. As with the first book ( A Family Apart) the story begins when modern day children in Missouri visit with their grandmother who helps them take a look at the past through the Journal of their great great great grandmother. I was lucky enough to get a copy of this book through inter-library loan, having read the first book in the series a little less than a month ago.

Caught in the act by joan lowery nixon