| Grade 4-7–Joyce
Hansens Coretta Scott King Honor book (Scholastic, 1997) is set in South
Carolina in 1865 just after the Civil War. Lame, shy, and afflicted with a
stammer, 12-year-old Patsy hides her ability to read and write–recording
her thoughts and observations secretly in a journal. Her diary, written
during her first year of freedom, expresses both her tremulous path towards
personal selfhood (typical of all 12 year olds) as well as the growing
political awareness, courage, and self-determination of the community of
freed slaves. Through reading to others and teaching the freed plantation
children their letters, Patsy begins to lose her stammer and discover her
vocation. SiSi Johnsons reading of the diary perfectly captures the young
girls voice and the cadences of post-Civil War South Carolina. Barbara Rosen
reads the books epilogue and historical notes. Listeners will want to have
the book at hand to view photographs, drawings, and maps that detail and
illuminate the era. This well done audiobook has enough suspense to hold the
attention of preteens while providing an enriching experience for students
studying the Reconstruction period.–Emily Herman, Mary Lin Elementary
School, Atlanta, GA Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of
Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print
or unavailable edition of this title. |
