Beginning with slow, laboring words that lead first to ghastly realization, and then to mature understanding, Rinaldi (Cast Two Shadows, 1998, etc.) explores some of the tragic fates of Native American children during the late 1800s. This entry in the Dear America series explains how thousands of such children were sent away from their families and people to schools intended to purge them of traditional ways. As a student in Pennsylvania’s Carlisle Indian School, Nannie, 12, struggles to cope with the mysterious “white” people. She protects her vulnerable best friend, Pretty Eagle, who often goes into spiritual trances. When the whites mistake Pretty Eagle’s trance state for death, and bury her alive, Nannie knows she could have prevented the tragedy, and finds this knowledge all but unbearable. This is a strong addition to Rinaldi’s ongoing historical explorations; it builds slowly to a terrifying climax that will linger long in readers’ emotions, and offers genuine insight into the courage, weaknesses, and essential humanity of Native American children who made the painful transition from old ways to new ones. (b&w photos, maps) (Fiction. 12+)
Pub Date: April 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-590-14922-9
Page Count: 186
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1999
Wheeler offers a scrapbook-style travelogue of her seven-month stint on the world’s coldest continent. Letters to her...
In an eye-opening companion to such works as Jennifer Armstrong’s Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World (1999) and Elizabeth Cody Kimmel’s Ice Story (p. 66) on Shackleton, readers get a contemporary look at Antarctica.
Wheeler offers a scrapbook-style travelogue of her seven-month stint on the world’s coldest continent. Letters to her godson, Daniel, describe a harsh environment so cold that dental fillings fall out. Double-page spreads dotted with full-color snapshots form short chapters on the icy region, suiting up, the difficulties of everyday existence, food and drink, shelter, transportation, entertainment, and wildlife. The last third of the volume is devoted to current scientific pursuits as well as an overview of famous expeditions to the nearly uninhabitable “bottom of the planet.” The cheery photographs – most by the author – show her dwarfed by the Barne glacier, posing with Emperor penguins, even building an igloo. While the chatty letters highlight personal details of the trip, boxed inserts provide background information. Key dates in Antarctic history complete this accessible profile, ideal as entry into units on the region. (maps, charts, diagrams, further reading, index) (Nonfiction. 8-12)Pub Date: July 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-87226-295-2
Page Count: 44
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1999
Miss America of 1995, profoundly deaf since she was a toddler, reveals how she claimed the tiara. Now a motivational speaker, the Alabama-born Whitestone dedicates this book to her ``Heavenly Father,'' with thanks for ``the joys, the trials, and the uphill path.'' Whitestone did have an uphill path. Her deafness came as a result of treatment for a life-threatening illness when she was only 18 months old. As with so many people who push beyond what professionals predict are the limits of their disabilities, Whitestone had caretakers- -in this case, her parents—who believed that she could learn to talk and to function in the ``real'' world. Her parents chose to have Whitestone learn to speak, as opposed to using only sign language and lip-reading to communicate. The long hours of study and practice—over and above schoolwork—were frustrating, but Whitestone found an outlet in learning ballet. That was the talent that carried her through years of pageants, beginning with the Shelby County Junior Miss program, when she was a moody, angry high school senior. As second runner-up, she came home with $1,400 in college scholarship money and rising self-esteem. On track to the Miss America competition, she entered the Miss Alabama contest three times, scoring at last in 1995 and moving on to Atlantic City to walk the famous walk as Miss America. Whitestone describes the year of her reign—an exhausting, enervating, frustrating year, but one also devoted to furthering deaf causes (such as early diagnosis) and encouraging deaf children. Most demoralizing was the reaction of the deaf community to their new queen; some people were proud, but others were publicly indignant that Heather spoke rather than signed. A simple story, simply told, with the emphasis on hard work, concentration, and trust in God. (15 illustrations, not seen) (Author tour)
Pub Date: June 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-385-48675-8
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Doubleday
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1997
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