James the Orphan: How a Family Started in America (A Novel)

ERIC BRASHER HATED ME AND I WAS CLUELESS AS TO THE REASON WHY. I think he would have invented a reason to beat me up if I had not accidentally given him one. I did not hate him, even though he constantly made me feel stupid, especially in front of friends. When at school, he would sneak up behind and push me into a wall, or stick his foot out in front of me and make me trip. Before my parents died and the king declared me an orphan, my father advised that someday, even though Eric was two years older, wealthy, and trained in weaponry, I would have to stand up and fight like a man or forever be branded a coward. My father's prediction proved true when I sailed to America and Eric followed.