Reviewed by Saifunnissa Hassam for Readers' Favorite

PJ Piccirillo's The Indigo Scarf is a well-researched and well-crafted gripping historical novel. It was inspired by the true story of two slaves who fled with two white women into the Sinnemahone wilderness along the Upper West Branch of the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania in the early 19th century. Jedediah James, a slave from Virginia, moves with his new owner, Peter Bakeraskin, in 1799 to remote Pine Creek Township in Sinnemahone country. George Sharpe is a slave who learns to run his first owner's gristmill in New Jersey and is now a miller in Washington Township, along the Susquehanna River, for his second owner Caleb Farleigh. The paths of the two slaves cross at the Farleigh mill. Pennsylvania has codes and laws that govern the freedom of slaves. Both Jedediah and George are aware that they can be free men. However, the slave owners' attitudes and the complexity of laws will keep them as slaves for some years. The two men flee to the  Sinnemahone wilderness. Sarah Starret, a white woman, flees with Jedediah. Rosanna, also a white woman, flees with George. Jedediah's story becomes the heart of the novel, spanning from 1799 to 1834.

From start to finish, I found PJ Piccirillo's The Indigo Scarf profoundly moving due to its remarkable immersive, riveting story of two strong-willed and determined slaves fighting for their survival as free men. I particularly liked how the character development of Jedediah James reveals not only his tumultuous life and struggles but also the different attitudes and laws that existed toward slaves and freed slaves in the era. His drive to remain free is interwoven closely in the lives of George Sharpe, his closest friend, and his wife Sarah who never wavers in her love and loyalty. The characters sprang vividly to life through the richly detailed descriptions of the wilderness, their frontier life, the isolated settings of their simple and rough homesteads, and their strong support of each other, and their children. The story became more complex as the frontier continued to develop. The intrusions by the outside world turn terrifying when Jedediah, in particular, is confronted by his past. The settings, actions, and dialogues are well-crafted, detailed, and evocative, expressing the intensity of emotions and desperation of the two families to protect their freedom. I think the story's most poignant and haunting moments came as Sarah and George Sharpe reached out to Jedediah in times of heartbreak, deep, embittering anger, and sorrow. Still, as the story ended, I could not help but think of the resilience of the human spirit and how Jedidiah and George built lives as free men. The Indigo Scarf is a compelling and thought-provoking tale about the harsh realities of slavery, of fighting for personal freedom, and the drama of powerful relationships, love, loss, and grief.