Skipping over much of the Revolutionary War and relegating Patrick Henry to a minor character, this is not the story one thinks it is; it’s even better. When Sarah Henry, Patrick’s wife, tries to kill her own children (presumably from post-partum depression), the family hides her in the basement rather than send her to the squalor of an insane asylum. Two of the Henrys’ daughters narrate this multi-layered story. Patsy, the typical big sister, asserts her authority over the household and constantly worries that she will inherit the “family curse.” Tomboy Anne also assumes a major family responsibility. Although her mother, who many believe has prophetic powers, tells Anne who will share her mental illness, the girl pretends to be the one destined for doom rather than reveal the true family member. Anne discovers that knowing when to keep a secret and when to tell the truth is not a black-and-white issue. This is further reflected as the Henry family sneaks in tea and other British imports and owns slaves in an age of idealism. Rinaldi delivers another intriguing spin on history, as she clenches the novel with a shocking ending. (Historical fiction. 11-15)
Pub Date: July 4, 2003
ISBN: 0-15-216687-4
Page Count: 236
Publisher: Gulliver/Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2003
The unsubtle story of a high-schooler facing racial tension and hard choices. One of the few African-Americans at exclusive Endicott Academy, scholarship student—Nia Jones feels isolated and unwelcome. She's depended on older schoolmate Marcus Garvey Williams for support and encouragement, but suddenly Marcus is gone, the subject of harsh rumors. When someone makes a racist comment, Nia loses her cool, gets into a fight, and is suspended for two weeks. Swearing never to return, she goes back to her Newark neighborhood, where she's shocked to see one close friend hanging out with a hoodlum, another slaving at minimum wage. Finally, she tracks Marcus down; finding him trying to put his life in order while caring for his infant son opens her eyes to her own good fortune. Wesley's tale, based on her own family experience, has a bitter edge; she sees no choices for Nia beyond a dead-end life at home or swallowing her pride and keeping her ``eyes on the prize.'' Readers may like contrasting her story with Woodson's Maison at Blue Hill and its sequel (below). (Fiction. 12-15)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-590-45606-7
Page Count: 138
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 1993
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A delicately macabre ambience infuses these tales from the Australian author of Speaking To Miranda (1992): a fugitive finds the story of her own life in an old book; a boy visiting his aunt's dying farm is haunted by dreams centering around ``The Dam'' and its fetid lake; ``The Thief in the Rocks'' and another malevolent spirit infecting ``The Greenhouse'' behave with chilling malice. The theme of anger also pervades tales of an abused shoplifter who finds someone to cling to ``At the Old Roxy,'' a bed-wetter who finally stops believing his father's ``Lies,'' and the title story, about two warring step-siblings, one of whom gleefully rescues the other from being buried in cement. Hostile indeed, and bizarre, though milder than Paul Jennings' Uncanny! and Unreal! (both 1991). (Fiction/Short stories. 11-13)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 1994
ISBN: 0-590-46063-3
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1994
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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