The Bridge Between — Norma Johnston

Set in 1776 in New Jersey. "Love, understanding, compassion...this ability to feel with others, deep beneath the surface, this was the bridge between. Well, not too deep beneath the surface are all of Jenny's feelings as comes the Revolution to Jersey Dutch country in 1776--she wants things to stay as they are and she doesn't want to be involved in the war. But circumstances overrule her conscientious objections and her attempt to keep her home a "place of peace;" the boy it is assumed she will marry is off to fight; her father is arrested and interned; her younger brother (Jenny has been surrogate mother to all her family) comes home with a sizable amount of Hessian gold which Jenny eventually will smuggle through to General Washington and his bedraggled, mutinous men. The infiltration here of certain morality-maturity concepts is also in the attempt to make this more worthwhile than the usual teen-aged historical although one questions whether they won't have shied away from quiltings and hymn sings to begin with. The story is better than the prose which you will have judged for yourself, above.