At Every Turn

At Every Turn by Anne Mateer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Alyce Benson loves to race her little sports car, especially out in the countryside, but it's only 1916 and women drivers are frowned upon - especially those who don't drive a sedate speed! Alyce is also a bit impulsive - her heart is in the right place but when missionaries come from the Gold Coast of Africa and share the need for funding, a pledge of $3,000 pops out of Alyce's mouth. When her well-to-do father angrily opposes donating the money in her name, Alyce does the only thing that she does well - she enlists the help of her father's mechanic, Wallace, and disguising herself as a man, enters the competition at the Chicago Speedway!

Even though this work of historical fiction is light on the facts, it's still enjoyable. Stepping back into the early 1900s, as in Alyce's case, young women from wealthy homes were expected to be wards of their father's until they married well. Alyce was very fortunate to be able to drive and have her own car - so for women to race was actually unthinkable. A woman was even forbidden to be in the pits - Danica Patrick and NASCAR were way off in the future!

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