REVIEWS:
"I can honestly say this book sent me on an emotional roller coaster. By turns funny, though provoking, and heartbreaking, the plot was expertly built and executed through to a poignant, although predictable, finish. ... Overall, a wonderful read, and one that I won’t soon forget." Alyssa Feller, Young-Adult Books Central
"I thought this book was fantastic. Among all the books evalutated for this competition, the depth and realism of these characters were far ahead of the pack. It elevated the realism and quality of the book and made it a read that girls of all ages will readily identify with. Very well written and a great, heart-breaking read." Writer's Digest judge's comment
"Eighteen-year old El and her best friend Katie take off for their first year as camp counselors in the camp where they have spent summers since age ten. They know everyone, think camp is great, and love being in the position of "counselor" rather than camper. They both delve into summer romance, El with a competition kayaker discovered by the scent of smoke disturbing her "girls," and Katie with "Kid Rock," a cool Pitt county boy who tools around in a Firebird. However, dreams of a fabulous summer are disturbed by one young camper, Tiffin Ramsay. The daughter of a man campaigning for governor, Tiffin makes life difficult for everyone. She refuses to participate in the simplest camp rituals, such as attending swimming class, staying in her cabin during quiet time, and singing at the campfires. She sets both campers and counselors on edge with her blank stares and cold attitude. El comes to dread each encounter with Tiffin, particularly when she discovers Tiffin pushing the head of a pet chipmunk under water again and again. Then rumors surface that Tiffin's younger sister drowned while only Tiffin was there. Could she be a child killer? Seriously disturbed? As El writes out the story of her summer, she discovers where she could have reached out to Tiffin and how she could have done so more effectively. She recognizes that although she finally warmed a bit to Tiffin after the youngster was stripped and humiliated by older girls, she failed her in the end, avoiding the disturbance that she caused and seeking peace and quiet for herself. She can never forget that Tiffin drowned herself, tying her foot to a rock in the river. Will the river ever bring peace to either of them? The book disturbs the reader with its incursions into psychological problems, lack of empathy for those who are suffering, the sometimes negative power of girl groups, and the unwillingness of the camp to help its counselors deal with a youngster who is disturbed. However, readers can join El in her journey of self-recognition and perhaps learn how to reflect on their own experiences." Children's Literature
"The first-place winner of the 2006 Writer's Digest International Self-Published Books Awards in the category of Children's Fiction, Peace I Ask Of Thee, Oh River is a superbly crafted novel which deftly addresses the issue of teenage depression, suicide and bullying. Journalist, novelist and screenwriter Lyda Phillips is an obviously accomplished writer with a self-evident mastery of the storytelling arts and her novel should be a part of every school and community library collection of YA fiction." Midwest Book Review
"With Peace I Ask of Thee, Oh River, Lyda Phillips proves that her recent novel, Mr. Touchdown, was no fluke. As crisp and wise and well-written as Mr. Touchdown, Peace I Ask of Thee also probes disturbing themes, weaving them in and through the comforting rhythms of everyday life. In fact, the rhythm of life at Camp Nichia is one of the reasons El Campbell had spent all of her childhood summers there. Now that she was finally a counselor, it was her turn to teach new campers about Nichia's traditions and rituals, contests and classes, how cabins were assigned and friends were made... In other words, it was going to be the perfect end-of-childhood summer. But it wasn't. Something happened, and instead of El changing her young charges' lives, one of them changes hers. A wealthy, powerful family deposits their troubled daughter, Tiffin, at the camp, and El's summer of perfection turns into an ongoing confrontation with one very angry, very unhappy young girl. It's not just that Tiffin won't cooperate with any of the rituals and traditions - which she won't - it's that she's weird! Really, deeply strange. So sometimes it's easier to just leave her alone. And that's exactly what El and the other girls do. Whenever possible.
Eventually, El's unexamined, adolescent contempt for anybody different gives way to concern for her disturbed young charge. From that point on, she is in a race against time...trying to wake herself up from the soothing comforts of the cozily familiar, and see what is. Once again, Phillips has given us a strong young voice. Described as a 'normal, healthy teenager,' El finds herself dealing with things she doesn't understand, doesn't want, and can't ignore. Hers is the heroine's journey -- down, down, into the depths of her own soul; to make sense of madness, to find meaning at the heart of chaos. And best of all, the author takes us on that journey, without giving up one bit of the fun and romance and silliness and boredom, and the wonder of one's 18th summer. The tastes and sounds and smells of camp... songs and chores... goofy traditions...and the sweetness of a first summer love... Phillips' obvious love of nature, combined with her exceptional gift for description, let us hike and swim and shoot the rapids right along with El and her friends. This wonderful story, with its fast-moving plot and engaging characters, will be thought-provoking for readers of any age. It tackles such tough topics as mental illness and the cruelty often displayed by groups against individuals it fears, and it does so in a richly detailed, multi-textured world, as vibrantly alive to the reader as it is to El and her fellow campers." Susan Marya Baronoff, reviewer
"Ms. Phillips takes us to a girls' summer camp in this misleading title that sounds like something a neocon soccer mom would like her daughter to read. Fortunately for us all, this summer camp is full of teenage angst and realism. The characters are more akin to the kids at Ridgemont High than those at church camp. The title is derived from a campfire song the girls sing. The action is focused on the camp counselors more than the girls, with the exception of one particular problem child upon whom the whole plot hinges. As in the movie, Little Darlings, the lead characters are busy trying to get laid while the campfire patrols are up to the usual summer shenanigans. The author has crafted an engrossing short novel about the way teenagers really feel, think and behave. You will be wishing the story went on much longer. Ignore the ... holy-moly-difficult-to-remember title and you will discover a story with the depth of Stephen King's movie, Stand By Me."
Floyd M. Orr, iUniverse Reviews
"One of the things that I admire about Lyda Phillips’s writing is that she brings out the inevitability of change, for good or bad. And Peace I Ask of Thee, Oh River reflects how events can unravel that forever alter the way a person interacts with the world, an inevitability that we all must accept and endure, no matter how much we’d prefer not to. Peace I Ask of Thee, Oh River is about El Campbell and her first year as a counselor at a camp she has, up until the time of this story, visited as a camper. Things seem to be going great, and El is looking forward to a summer full of fun and adult antics. That is, until a troubled child named Tiffin shows up. What should have been a summer full of lighthearted cheer slowly tumbles into a nightmare that El wishes she could forget. The excellent writing style of Lyda Phillips continues to shine through. The story is well told, well crafted, and easy to read. ... It’s a book I’ll gladly keep on my shelf." David Wayne Hoffman, Gloomwing Review
"To effectively deal with difficult topics addressed to a teenage audience such as suicide, sibling grief, guilt, anger, rejection, abnormal behavior, denial, and bullying is no easy feat and it takes a certain amount of boldness and courage on the part of the author to pull it off. This is precisely what Lyda Phillips set out to accomplish with her recent novel, Peace I Ask of Thee Oh River, and she has acquitted herself admirably. Phillips recounts the story of a typical American 18-year old Eleanor or as she prefers to be called, El, who, as a counselor in a girls’ summer camp in North Carolina meets up with a disturbed teenager, Tiffin Ramsey. Tiffin is the granddaughter of old Senator Joe Ramsey, who was a huge segregationist in the 1950s and she is also the daughter of Governor Cameron Ramsey, who has presidential aspirations. For six weeks during the summer months, the Ramseys will be campaigning and they are not very keen on having Tiffin trail along with them. Consequently, they have decided to enroll Tiffin in Camp Nichia, where they feel she would benefit from the camp experience. They have given specific instructions that she is not to have any special treatment and that the less the campers know about her the better. They have also indicated to the supervisor of the camp that Tiffin has some “minor” behavioral problems. This is a compelling and well written novel wherein the author proves to be adept at capturing a sense of place, as she depicts the “clickish” and sometimes cruel atmosphere of a girl’s camp and the mistreatment of some of the campers by their peers; the “pressure-cooker passions, girls in love with each other, hating each other, torturing each other, making up legends, worshiping traditions, having crushes, and playing favorites.” It is a story of painful emotions wherein an inexperienced 18-year old is forced to deal with a very disturbed young teenager that eventually proves to have a profound and lingering effect on her own psyche. Reflecting on her own behavior, El asks herself if she should she feel pity or protectiveness? No doubt, this novel will raise some very interesting questions. How do you deal with family tragedy and whom do you turn to for advice and help, particularly when you are only eighteen and inexperienced?" Norman Coleman, Bookpleasures
"Lyda Phillips’ pen has created another page-turner in her most recent book. Eighteen year old El Campbell is in despair, hiding in her closet in her p.j.s, not talking to family or friends, and even glad her dad doesn’t own a gun. She doesn’t want to be tempted to commit suicide. She should be looking forward to college, but the summer as a camp counselor has devastated her. She had been in charge of the 12-year-old Ravens at Camp Nichia. The first day Tiffin Ramsey, the governor’s daughter, who was only a “little troubled” was assigned to Ravens. That’s when the difficulties began. Peace I Ask of Thee, Oh River is adept in showing how preteens and teenagers can have great hardship in coping with traumatic events, especially when some adults turn a blind eye. Ms. Phillips portrays the story with both gripping drama and compassion as the reader follows El’s summer at camp: the fun, a boyfriend, and her difficulty in dealing with Tiffin’s defiance and hurts. The reader is treated to continual cliffhangers regarding the mystery of Tiffin’s behavior. The book is a wonderful read, but it can also help teens better understand the plights and behaviors of others through this storytelling vehicle. Counselors and educators may well want to use the book as an excellent basis for discussion. Kudos to Ms. Phillips for another thought-provoking, well-written book for young adults." Judith Nasse, reviewer
