Writing in the third person, Schaeffer recalls, and perhaps embroiders, incidents from her early childhood in China, and her move to the US in 1920. The daughter of American teachers, little Mei Fuh knows a world bounded by the walls of the European compound in Wenchow (now Wengzhou), although her Chinese amah (nanny) and the gatekeeper, Adjipah, occasionally allow her a glimpse outside. Realistically for a five-year-old, playtime, exotic sights, and childhood traumas blend together, so that the pleasure of watching her goldfish is only briefly dimmed by its sudden loss (while the child was away, Adjipah cooked and ate the fish), and the agony of spilling boiling water on her legs is forgotten in the joy of caring for a box of silkworms, then wearing the resultant dress. On the other hand, some of the amah’s casual comments, e.g., about “newborn baby girls that have been thrown away,” however true to their time, will be invidious to many readers; the episodic nature of Mei Fuh’s experiences makes for a disjointed narrative, although there is compensation in some of the charmingly childlike details Schaeffer provides (treating them as fiction, and without noting where truth and invention diverge). The cheerful, expressively posed figures in Liu’s delicate black-and-white pen drawings evoke an innocent exuberance that will draw both adults and children to this volume, but they may find a more sensitive view of a similar childhood in Jean Fritz’s Homesick (1982). (Fiction. 8-11)
Pub Date: May 1, 1998
ISBN: 0-395-72290-X
Page Count: 90
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 1998
Told from the point of view of two warring siblings, this could have been an engaging first chapter book. Unfortunately, the length makes it less likely to appeal to the intended audience. Jessie and Evan are usually good friends as well as sister and brother. But the news that bright Jessie will be skipping a grade to join Evan’s fourth-grade class creates tension. Evan believes himself to be less than clever; Jessie’s emotional maturity doesn’t quite measure up to her intelligence. Rivalry and misunderstandings grow as the two compete to earn the most money in the waning days of summer. The plot rolls along smoothly and readers will be able to both follow the action and feel superior to both main characters as their motivations and misconceptions are clearly displayed. Indeed, a bit more subtlety in characterization might have strengthened the book’s appeal. The final resolution is not entirely believable, but the emphasis on cooperation and understanding is clear. Earnest and potentially successful, but just misses the mark. (Fiction. 8-10)
Pub Date: April 23, 2007
ISBN: 0-618-75043-6
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2007
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Despite its lackluster execution, this story’s simple premise and basic vocabulary make it suitable for younger readers...
From the author of the Animorphs series comes this earnest novel in verse about an orphaned Sudanese war refugee with a passion for cows, who has resettled in Minnesota with relatives.
Arriving in winter, Kek spots a cow that reminds him of his father’s herd, a familiar sight in an alien world. Later he returns with Hannah, a friendly foster child, and talks the cow’s owner into hiring him to look after it. When the owner plans to sell the cow, Kek becomes despondent. Full of wide-eyed amazement and unalloyed enthusiasm for all things American, Kek is a generic—bordering on insulting—stereotype. His tribe, culture and language are never identified; personal details, such as appearance and age, are vague or omitted. Lacking the quirks and foibles that bring characters to life, Kek seems more a composite of traits designed to instruct readers than an engaging individual in his own right.
Despite its lackluster execution, this story’s simple premise and basic vocabulary make it suitable for younger readers interested in the plight of war refugees. (Fiction. 9-11)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-312-36765-7
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2007
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