The book starts on the note of Isaac being rude to the local minister and running to see his brother Dan. Unfortunately after a foolish bet between sons of a rival family Dan the older brother of the three children dies in a terrible accident, much to the disgust of his loving father Samuel.

Things don't go great from there as the business isn't doing as well as it could and with growing friction between the father and Isaac the middle son, it isn't looking good. The family is hoping that their poor fortune will turn when a shipment of horses come over from Ireland that will lift the troubled times, but in a fierce storm it would appear they were lost to the sea with their crew. In an ending twist Isaac spots the ship moored and not sunk in the storm therefore ending the families recent hard times.

The central character to the book and the characte

Samuel Campion is the father of the of Isaac and two other children, he is the strong personality of this book, whom had a strict upbringing and someone who was not to be messed with. After the loss of clearly his favourite son Dan he is almost lost, he feels angry and takes it out on who he feels is his less competent son Isaac, He often bullies him and likes to dominate situations using physical force and shouting at his family, he feels as if it is his duty to bring up Isaac the way he was , unfairly. He enforces rules on Isaac as he in a way blames Isaac for what happened that day his beloved Dan died and feels he needs someone to blame. Tensions mount with Samuel and Isaac throughout the book as the families situation gets worse, his treatment of Isaac worsens as the novel wears on and only Isaacs mother is there to put up any kind of resistance against his growing resentment and poor treatment of his middle son. He treats him badly at his work in the field and badly at home, things reach fever pitch as the mares do not arrive as he tries to make Isaac come down to the dock in the rain to help where he is not even needed, potentially fatal situation is defused by Isaacs mother.

The themes of the novel are thrown out at you throughout the novel, as well as the blatant moral tones and stances taken by different characters, such as the morals of an innocent young twelve year old Isaac wanting freedom and adventure and a stern Irish father set out to destroy his sons confidence.

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1257
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)