In my current obsession with pandemic books, I chose to read Ellen Marie Wiseman's new historical fiction, The Orphan Collector. It was highly recommended in Renee's Reading Club on Facebook and it had great reviews on goodreads.com. I had high hopes. They were somewhat dashed.
The Orphan Collector takes place in Philadelphia in 1918 during the flu pandemic. German-born 13-year old Pia lives in the Fifth Ward with her mother and infant twin brothers. Her father, in a desire to show that he stands with his adopted country, is in France fighting in World War I for the United States. After Pia's mother is struck down by the flu, she is determined to care for her brothers until her father comes home. She leaves to get food for her brothers, leaving them at home. When she eventually returns, her brothers are missing. The novel is about Pia's guilt over her brothers' disappearance and her search for answers.
I'm not sure what it was about this book that I didn't like all that much. It was a page turner. I read it quickly and I did feel somewhat invested in Pia. Finn was definitely my favorite character in the book. I picked up one little Philadelphia geographical "error." When Pia was being taken to the orphanage, I could have sworn they were heading west. Yet she was able to see the Delaware River from the play yard at the orphanage. Small thing, and maybe I'm remembering incorrectly. That's not a reason for me to not like a novel, though. Maybe it's because there was no context given to the "orphan trains." Or because of the way the author handled Pia's "special gift." I wish I could pinpoint what the issue was.
Even with that, I would recommend you read this is if you want pandemic fiction.
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