Summer camp in 1914 meant something different than it does today. For the Greycliff Girls, a group of friends away from the constraints of proper society, those weeks in the woods represented rare freedom. Hilary Lancaster and Cathalina Van Buskirk lead a merry band who trade their petticoats for hiking boots and discover that the wild offers lessons no governess could teach. Harriet Pyne Grove writes with the warmth of someone who understood girls not as delicate creatures to be protected, but as capable adventurers worthy of respect. The novel follows these friends through the particular joys and anxieties of camp life: winning the color war, sneaking out after dark, learning to swim in cold mountain lakes, and navigating the complex hierarchies of adolescent friendship. It's a window into how young women of that era experienced independence, and a reminder that the fears and hopes of adolescence haven't changed as much as we'd like to think. Those seeking a gentle, nostalgic adventure will find plenty to love here. It's historical fiction that doesn't lecture, a coming-of-age story that trusts its young protagonists to be interesting rather than simply innocent.
