Outlander Book Club: Drums of Autumn Chapter 29 breakdown

Foreshadowing in the Outlander chapter

There isn’t much foreshadowing in this chapter. It’s more about catching Jamie up on the things that have happened, such as the outbreak of measles. This will help Jamie deliver the body of the Tuscarora man he’s brought with him. Nacognaweto will believe that it was a sickness and not an attack at the hands of the Frasers.

The Tuscarora people are leaving. They need to go north to Oglanethaka so they can rebuild. This whole chapter is more about bringing this relationship between the Tuscarora and the Frasers to an end.

Adapting the Drums of Autumn chapter

The chapter wasn’t used in the series. Part of that may have been because of the lack of drama it would have created for the series. Also, Jamie and Willie weren’t heading off to see the Tuscarora people when John got the measles. The Mueller storyline (and therefore the village decimated by the measles, which didn’t happen) was in the episode before.

Instead of doing this, the writers had to figure out other drama. The best thing was for Willie to go out on his own and not follow a distinct order. Of course, as a young man, he was going to push boundaries, and he suffered the consequences of that when the local Cherokee tribe found him.

We got to see Jamie as the protective father of Willie. He even told everyone he was Willie’s dad, not that Willie believed him.

While it would seem like drama for the sake of drama, this whole storyline was important for Jamie. It gave us a moment for him to be a father, putting his own life on the line for the sake of his son. Willie also got a chance to shine as he then accepted that what he did was wrong and owned his mistake. We can all learn from Willie in this moment.

What did you spot while reading Drums of Autumn Chapter 29? Let us know in the comments below.

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