Time Enough for Drums

Set in Trenton, N.J. during the American Revolution, this well-plotted historical romance has been written with an excellent feel for the period. Jemima (Jem) Emerson, 15, is constantly at loggerheads with her handsome, strict, Tory tutor, John Reid. In a town of divided loyalties, the Emersons are avid patriots. During the war, they endure death, privation, Hessians and Redcoats. Jem grows up and falls in love with Reid, who is not quite the stuffy Royalist he appears. The Emersons are an intelligent, loving and likable family. But as Jem's childish feistiness mellows into womanly demureness, it almost seems as if Reid has tutored her solely to prepare her to be a good wife for him. Readers will find their romance involving, but may wish that Jem had a bit more substance. (12up)