When Great-uncle Benson roars in on his motorcycle for a long visit, ten-year-old Rachel discovers a soul mate: he listens to her, cares about the things she cares about, and, like her, treats everyone, adult or child, with intelligent respect. He's disturbed, though, that Rachel's family doesn't have sit-down dinners—''How in the world can you have a family, if you don't have family dinner?'' Benson whips up a series of tempting concoctions, and Rachel persuades her parents, and her older brother and sister, to give the custom a try. Cutler infuses her story with the same friendly domestic air that Patricia Maclachlan brings to her writing. The characters here (with the notable exception of the Mrs. Malaprop of a housekeeper—``It's as plain as the nose on your plate'') aren't as eccentric as those in, say, Unclaimed Treasures (1984), but they're distinct and believable, with stories of their own. The experimental meal is a total failure, but the plot takes a gentle twist at the end when Benson, Rachel, and a group of friends and neighbors sit down together the next day over leftovers, proving that the sociability of family-style dinners can survive, even if not in a particular family. Caswell's precise soft-pencil illustrations are unusually perceptive and creatively staged to dramatize relationships. (Fiction. 10-13)
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 1992
ISBN: 0-374-32267-8
Page Count: 117
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 1991
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A brisk but thorough and informative history of the Lakota (Teton Sioux), with a glance at the present: How they got to the Great Plains, life before and after the advent of horses, and various ceremonies (though the deep religious motivation characteristic of these people is not conveyed). A brief detailing of struggles with white men includes the greats: Red Cloud, Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse, Big Foot. There's also a quick look at the massacre at Wounded Knee and at the Ghost Dance (its universal appeal and hysteria are explained only by saying that it ``renewed the hopes of many Native Americans''). Wolfson explains that half the Teton Sioux are now on reservations and that life ``can be hard,'' but that old ceremonies are still maintained despite modern ways. The legend of White Buffalo Woman is included as a last chapter. Illustrations range from garishly tinted engravings to photos of crafts and of chiefs; only two depict the present. List of important dates; glossary; excellent bibliography and index. (Nonfiction. 10-12)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 1993
ISBN: 1-56294-077-5
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Millbrook
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1993
BOOK REVIEW
An eighth grader finds that his tough-guy persona doesn’t fit as well as it used to in Hahn’s third book about the fragmented Smith family (Stepping On The Cracks, 1991; Following My Own Footsteps, 1996). After his grandmother’s sudden death, Gordy has to move back to the hated Maryland town in which he grew up. Discovering that the intervening two years have done little to dim his family’s white-trash reputation, and that his ne’er-do-well friends, Doug and Toad, haven’t changed, Gordy slips back into his old troublemaking ways. The role begins to chafe, however, when he develops a yen for old rival Liz—Lizzy the Lizard—Crawford, and learns that his abusive father and reform-school- graduate older brother aren’t the best role models when it comes to human relations. Hahn expertly shows how the expectations of others influence Gordy’s behavior, as he struggles to step away from his bad old self; in the end he takes that step, though not without a realistic amount of backsliding. To Gordy’s surprise and pleasure, Elizabeth is willing to meet him half way. While Gordy’s anger is the dominant feeling here, flashes of humor and deftly inserted historical details of the post—WW II era lighten the load. (Fiction. 10-13)
Pub Date: April 20, 1998
ISBN: 0-395-83627-1
Page Count: 184
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 1998
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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