Pub Date: March 17, 1943
ISBN: 0060581875
Page Count: 306
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: Oct. 24, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1943
A good starting point to introduce the legacy of tribal termination.
In 1954, the Umpqua tribe was terminated by the government.
Unable to afford their land on the former Umpqua Grand Ronde reservation in Oregon, 10-year-old Regina Petit’s father, who is Umpqua, decides to sign up for the Indian Relocation Program and move the entire family to Los Angeles. Regina and her little sister, Peewee, spend the summer adjusting to life in their multicultural South Central Los Angeles neighborhood, where they befriend black siblings Keith and Addie and Cuban brothers Anthony and Philip. In this new environment, Regina is forced to confront the dominant ideas about her Indian identity through what the other kids have learned at school and from the 1950s TV show The Lone Ranger. A neighborhood game of Cowboys and Indians defies the outcome Regina played on the rez, where the Indians win. The children experience a racist attack while trick-or-treating when white teenagers throw eggs and use the N-word. (The book leaves Regina puzzling over this incident without addressing the history or implications of the slur.) McManis and Sorell produce a poignant family story of the impact termination had on the thousands of Native Americans who left reservations in order to survive. Using a supporting cast of color to reflect distorted stereotypes back at them, however, has the effect of eliding the implication of white culture in their origins.
A good starting point to introduce the legacy of tribal termination. (Historical fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 24, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-62014-839-6
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Tu Books
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2019
PERSPECTIVES
Equal parts suspenseful and emotionally insightful.
Noted actor Cho and co-author Suk share the journey of a Korean American sixth grader struggling with feeling inadequate.
It’s 1992 in Glendale, California, and Jordan’s life is coming apart: He’s been suspended from school for cheating. He’s banned from seeing Mike, his impulsive church friend. Sarah, his adored older sister, is always busy—and so perfect that he looks even more disappointing by comparison. Appa and Umma, burdened with financial worries, are constantly working at their liquor store. Jordan’s family immigrated 9 years earlier, but the bright American future they sacrificed so much for seems questionable. Now people are erupting in protest over the unjust Rodney King verdict and tragic killing of Latasha Harlins by a Korean shop owner. Driven by deep emotional pain and a desire to prove himself to Appa, Jordan sneaks out with Mike—and the gun his father’s forbidden him to touch. As violence spreads toward Koreatown, he tries to deliver it as protection for Appa, who’s boarding up the store. This ill-conceived plan goes awry, and during the fraught evening the boys learn about integrity, bias, and more. The realistically middle-grade voice, strong characterization, and well-paced storyline show the growth of a boy who is moving from limited awareness to a mature perspective on his place in his family and broader community. The novel weaves together large-scale issues of social injustice and interracial barriers with the intimate pain—and joy—of personal relationships.
Equal parts suspenseful and emotionally insightful. (author’s note) (Fiction. 9-13)Pub Date: March 22, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5447-4
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 1, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2022
PROFILES
PERSPECTIVES
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