A vivid and compelling piece of historical fiction that also serves as a telling commentary on the effects an abusive parent has on his family. By the time the US enters WW II in December 1941, Mel Simmons is already in the armed forces, driven from home by his tyrannical father. Foster, 11, his little brother, Ricky, sister Evelyn, and mother are left behind to cope not only with Mr. Simmons, who grows meaner in Mel's absence, but with the austerity of life on the home front. Home life becomes even more difficult when his best friend, Jimmy, a Japanese-American, is relocated to an internment camp, and when the family learns that Mel has been killed in action. Foster's heartbroken mother, suffering herself and witnessing the devastation of her family, takes steps to bring them back from the brink by divulging a long-kept secret about Mr. Simmons and showing them a family album of times when they were younger. By story's end, all of them have taken the first tentative steps toward reconciliation, a moving and believable conclusion to a story of a family in conflict. (Fiction. 10-14)
Pub Date: March 1, 1998
ISBN: 0-590-09846-2
Page Count: 267
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1998
An outstanding new edition of this popular modern classic (Newbery Award, 1961), with an introduction by Zena Sutherland and...
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1990
ISBN: 0-395-53680-4
Page Count: -
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2000
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Navigating this stunning novel requires thought and concentration, but it’s well worth the effort.
Returning to themes she explored so affectingly in Moon Over Manifest (2011), Newbery Medalist Vanderpool delivers another winning picaresque about memories, personal journeys, interconnectedness—and the power of stories.
Thirteen-year-old Jack enters boarding school in Maine after his mother’s death at the end of World War II. He quickly befriends Early Auden, a savant whose extraordinary facility with numbers allows him to “read” a story about “Pi” from the infinite series of digits that follow 3.14. Jack accompanies Early in one of the school crew team’s rowing boats on what Jack believes is his friend’s fruitless quest to find a great bear allegedly roaming the wilderness—and Early’s brother, a legendary figure reportedly killed in battle. En route, Early spins out Pi’s evolving saga, and the boys encounter memorable individuals and adventures that uncannily parallel those in the stories. Vanderpool ties all these details, characters, and Jack’s growing maturity and self-awareness together masterfully and poignantly, though humor and excitement leaven the weighty issues the author and Jack frequently pose. Some exploits may strain credulity; Jack’s self-awareness often seems beyond his years, and there are coincidences that may seem too convenient. It’s all of a piece with Vanderpool’s craftsmanship. Her tapestry is woven and finished off seamlessly. The ending is very moving, and there’s a lovely, last-page surprise that Jack doesn’t know but that readers will have been tipped off about.
Navigating this stunning novel requires thought and concentration, but it’s well worth the effort. (author’s note, with questions and answers, list of resources) (Historical fiction. 10-14)Pub Date: Jan. 8, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-385-74209-2
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Oct. 30, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
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