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Sidekick Super Review: The Davenports by Krystal Marquis (2023)
- Sep 9, 2023
- 7 min read
Updated: Oct 24
The Basics
Book Length: 372 pages
Audiobook Length: ~12 hours
Grade Level: 7-9+
Common Sense Media Score: Age 12+
Goodreads Score: 3.67/5
Buy it here
Setting: Chicago, 1910
Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance
Topics: The Great Migration, Jim Crow Laws, Ford Model T, Chicago politics, Activism, Courting, Marriage
Plot: The Davenports are part of Chicago’s most elite group of Black families. Their fortune was built on the success of their carriage company, but with the rise of the Model T Ford and the spread of Jim Crow laws beyond the South, they must adapt to a rapidly changing world. As the first generation removed from slavery, the Davenport children hold a fragile place in Chicago society. Their parents expect them to do whatever it takes to maintain the status and reputation they worked so hard to achieve. The story unfolds through the perspectives of four different characters:
Olivia – The eldest Davenport sister, Olivia has been raised to be the perfect lady and marry well. She embraces the world of ball gowns, party planning, and husband hunting—until she meets the charismatic lawyer and activist Washington DeWight, who challenges everything she thought she wanted and makes her question the true purpose of her “duties.”
Helen – Unlike her sister, Helen has no interest in marriage. She spends her time sneaking off to the garage, helping her brother John work on his Model T and brainstorming innovative ways to modernize the family business. But her resolve wavers when she meets Jacob Lawrence, a mysterious British man—who just so happens to be intended for Olivia. Drama ensues!
Amy Rose – Olivia and Helen’s maid, Amy Rose, is the daughter of a formerly enslaved woman and a white slave owner—an identity that haunts her. She dreams of opening her own hair salon and gaining independence, but when romance sparks between her and John Davenport, she is forced to reconsider her future.
Ruby – Olivia’s best friend, Ruby, once enjoyed a life of luxury, but after her family loses their fortune, she’s forced to hide her new reality. To protect her father’s candidacy for mayor and restore her family’s reputation, she is expected to win the heart of John Davenport—whether she loves him or not.
As each of these young women finds themselves falling for someone they aren’t meant to, they must decide what matters most—love, family, or the future they’ve always been told to pursue.
Themes: Poverty vs. wealth, racial identity, racial prejudice and injustice, defying parental/societal expectations
You might like this book if you like:
The show called The Gilded Age on Amazon prime. This is set in the exact same era. One of the major storylines follows Black characters and explores their experiences during this transformative period in America.
Other historical romance drama TV shows like Downton Abbey or Bridgerton.
Movies like Persuasion, Little Women, Emma
The History Chicks Podcast (a podcast about remarkable women in history)
Other books by this author: More Than This (book #2 in this series)
Teaching The Davenports As a Full-Class Unit
Content
Language: Very little
Sex: Some passionate kissing
Violence/Scariness: People are injured and shot during a protest
Drinking/Smoking/Drugs: A few mentions of smoking cigars
Class Novel-ability: Because of all of its swoon-worthy moments, I’m not sure this would be a good pick for the whole class. If you’re not a romantic at heart—this book definitely has gag potential. However, I do think this would be an excellent choice for a book club or book circles unit focusing on the great migration or racial inequality.
The Star Qualities
Each chapter shifts to a different point of view, taking us into the minds of the four main characters—Olivia, Helen, Ruby, and Amy-Rose. Though they grew up together, their circumstances have led them down very different paths, giving each perspective a unique voice. Through them, readers experience the time period from four distinct angles, each shaped by personal background and struggle.
This historical fiction novel is set in a time period often overlooked and is inspired by a real family in American history. In school, we usually focus on the Civil War and the civil rights era, but the years in between are often forgotten. This book brings that fascinating period to life—made even more compelling because it’s based on a real family.
It’s a romance, but without the extreme steam. While the book certainly conveys heat and passion, it does so through electric touches, dances, and a few stolen kisses. The love is palpable without any intimate details—perfect for young readers who want a romance without explicit content.
The themes in the story are both relatable and essential for students today. Siblings struggling to measure up to one another, defying the societal norms you're born into, and finding your own voice amidst parental expectations are challenges most young people can identify with. However, the book also weaves in more intense themes, including gender and racial inequality, which deeply shape the characters’ choices, opportunities, and relationships. Amy Rose’s mother was a slave, later freed by her owner—Amy Rose’s father. Her lineage haunts her, leaving her excluded and denied a sense of belonging in Chicago. She is neither white enough to join the elite nor black enough to fit in with the black community. She is a maid, a would-be entrepreneur, and constantly told she is not enough. Her story especially resonated with me, and I believe it would have a deep impact on other students as well.
At the end of the book, there’s an especially insightful author’s note. I don’t usually get too excited about those, but this one stands out—it offers valuable historical context and an inspiring glimpse into the author’s motivations for writing The Davenports.
This book is the first in a series! A second book was just released.
Book Talk Read Aloud Section
If you have the physical book, read the first half of chapter one. Start at the beginning of page 3 and read to mid page 6, until the large paragraph break.
If you don't, read the above section in the Kindle reading sample here.
"Reading Like a Writer" Mentor Text
I like this passage because it captures a tone and inner monologue that many of us can relate to: being underestimated and planning to prove others wrong. I appreciate how the narrator’s thoughts are shown in italics, which draws us into her mindset. I also like the way she contrasts her ideals with DeWight’s, using writing structure to highlight those differences—fragments with commas, one-word sentences, and short, punchy lines introduced by colons. AND there are two uses of Italics here. I like that students can see both. Sometimes they are used for internal monologue and sometimes to emphasize certain words, adding drama and significance.
This is a strong example for practicing tone and characterization. The narrator’s attitude reveals key aspects of her identity, and much of that tone is shaped through structure. One-word sentence fragments, the use of italics, and a vivid simile all contribute. The comparison between two very different girls adds depth and contrast. In just a few lines, the passage introduces one of the book’s central themes: the complexities of class and racial identity. Students can learn to do the same—it only takes a small, well-structured passage to convey a powerful and meaningful theme.
Sentences For Combining and Imitation
*What is Sentence Imitation and Combining? (Watch my how to video here. Read my blog post here.)
Sentence sets for combining:
"Mrs. Milford was a short woman in a severe black dress and sturdy boots, polished to a shine." (The Davenports, p. 98)
Mrs. Milford was a short woman.
She was in a severe black dress.
She was wearing boots.
The boots were sturdy.
They were polished to a shine.
"She crumpled the sides of her dress in her fists, freeing her ankles for speed as she rounded the fence, ran past the dugout, and onto the field." (p. 108)
She crumpled the sides of her dress in her fists.
This freed her ankles for speed.
She rounded the fence.
She ran past the dugout.
She ran onto the field.
"The basement was darker than the main floor, light entering through the narrow windows cut high into the ceiling." (p. 38)
The basement was dark.
It was darker than the main floor.
There was light entering through the windows.
The windows were high.
The windows cut all the way into the ceiling.
Sentences for Imitation:
These selections are more than one sentence, BUT I the first lines give just enough context to show the full power of the highlighted ones...
"All she could think of were her own flaws. She saw every sharp edge Mama and Mrs. Milford attempted to soften and polish. And how each one would always be jagged next to her sister." (p. 206)
I think the last two sentences are beautiful. The metaphor and imagery are especially powerful—raw, emotional, and deeply relatable. They reveal the narrator’s intense feelings about herself and the way she compares to her sister. These would be excellent sentences for students to imitate when writing about their own experiences.
Ruby stood in the foyer beside her mother, a smile plastered on her face. Her jaw ached from the words she kept to herself and the pleasantries forced out instead.” (p. 60)
I LOVE this sentence! The physical detail of her jaw aching reveals something much deeper and internal. You can feel the emotion just as clearly as the pain in her jaw. It’s both a sensory detail and an emotional one. The tone of the last sentence creates a strong contrast with what the narrator physically shows in the first, highlighting her inner conflict. I think students will really connect with this and enjoy trying to imitate it.
Olivia remembered the moments she’d realized that every Black person she knew was touched by the horror of slavery. Sometimes Olivia felt it like a wound hidden deep under smooth skin–one that she didn’t remember receiving but that ached nonetheless.” (p. 43)
The simile in this sentence—comparing slavery to a wound—gives it a serious, powerful tone and emphasizes its theme. Students could learn a lot by imitating this kind of figurative language and structure to deepen their own writing.
Used this book in your classroom? Tell us how in the comments!
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