Yazoo Queen

In the afterward, Card acknowledges that Yazoo Queen is "chapter 0" of Crystal City. He wasn't kidding. When I first read Crystal City, it seemed as if I'd some how missed a chapter with some earlier events. Well, here they are.

In this story, Alvin and Arthur Stewart are taking a riverboat down the Mississippi to Nueva Barcelona (New Orleans). On the boat, they run in to Jim Bowie (who is portrayed as an amiable thug.) They catch a poorly-built raft drifting out in the river and go to rescue it. The raft is piloted by Abraham Lincoln (portrayed as an honest buffoon that everyone just can't help to like.) After they get him back and tie the raft to the riverboat, a group of slaves use the raft to sneak off to their freedom.

This story is a fun read that has fun weaving historical figures and places in to a fantasy narrative. However, it is best read in the sequence of Alvin Maker books (before Crystal City).