The House is on Fire

The House Is On Fire by Rachel Beanland 384 pages

 

I first learned of this book on a Facebook page (Book Chat with Debbie Monterrey + St. Louis Public Library). Fascinating interview between the host and author, which is still available on the Page..

 

Based on a true story, this novel is about a fire at a Richmond, Virginia, theater on December 26, 1811. At the time, this was the deadliest disaster in U.S. history with seventy-two dead. It is told from the points of view of four people, which gives the story a more comprehensive view of exactly what occurred that night.

 

The first speaker is Sally Henry Campbell. Newly widowed, Sally is glad to be among people and lay her grief aside for a few hours. She sits in a third-row box. Second is Cecily Patterson, a slave who isn’t interested in the play but is chaperoning her mistress, sits in the colored gallery. Next is Gilbert, a slave and one of the few people in Richmond not attending the performance. Finally there is Jack Gibson, a teenage stagehand, who works backstage moving the sets and backdrops.

 

It doesn’t take long for something horrible to go wrong.  When the performance is suddenly stopped and the words “the house is on fire,” ring from the stage, the entire audience panics. Everyone rushes to try to get out. The fire spreads quickly. Some internal exits disappear into the roaring flame (the staircase on one side of the theater). Those on the third floor are forced to jump.

 

As the novel progresses, readers get all sides of the story. It is a harrowing story, and I don’t want to give away too much. It is a story that I couldn’t put down. That is why The House Is On Fire receives 6 out of 5.