“Rite of Passage” by Jeanne Blanchet

Rite of Passage

Jeanne Blanchet
Outskirts Press, Inc. (2025)
ISBN: 978-1977283283
Reviewed by Sarah Osman for Reader Views (01/2026)

Rite of Passage follows a key moment in American history: the Mayflower journey. But instead of a dry, historic recounting, author Jeanne Blanchet recounts the voyage through the eyes of fictional 10-year-old Sara Ann Clifton. The Cliftons are Separatists (aka pilgrims) living in Leiden, Holland, where they were free to worship as they pleased. But when her crush declares he’ll one day marry her, Sara Ann’s father has had enough. Afraid that his children are forgetting their English roots, he decides to take his family to the New World, where they’ll be able to worship freely (and stay British). What follows is the Cliftons’ perilous journey.

Blanchet does not romanticize the Mayflower’s voyage. I didn’t know that the Separatists were originally going to travel on a small ship, the Speedwell, but after that ship was struck by multiple leaks, they were forced onto the Mayflower. There were many “Strangers” (aka non-Separatists) aboard the ship, which led to strife between the two groups. The Strangers didn’t love the Separatists’ extensive church services, while the Separatists didn’t love the Strangers’ harsh language. To make matters worse, the Mayflower was originally used for goods, not for passengers, so space was cramped. Passengers were nearly stacked on top of each other, and Blanchet spares no detail regarding the foul stench that engulfed them. And on top of all that, the passengers were stuck on the Mayflower for an entire month before setting sail.

While these facts are known, Blanchet’s narration and Sara Ann’s point of view capture how suffocating the voyage must have been. At the same time, it’s not all doom and gloom, as Sara Ann does recount games the children played and how sailors taught them dances.

What makes historic fiction stand out isn’t the specific details about the period. It’s the relationship between the characters and how the author makes you feel. All of Blanchet’s characters, even random, nameless ones, are fleshed out. The dynamics of the Cliftons feel no different than those of most families; they fight, tease, and love one another. Sara Ann’s feelings are relatable (who wouldn’t be grossed out, trapped in the bowels of a 17th-century ship?).

Blanchet recognizes that while time changes how we do certain things or societal expectations, human emotions don’t. Blanchet is gifted as a historical writer by tapping into these emotions, making us feel the same fear, annoyance, and joy that her characters do in Rite of Passage: a Young Girl’s Mayflower Journey.