Tag / Massachusetts

by cholliman1

“The Penderwicks” by Jeanne Birdsall

The Plot: Mr. Penderwick and his four daughters, Rosalind, Skye, Jane, and Batty, have rented a cottage for a few weeks on a beautiful estate in the mountains. There they meet the owner of the estate Ms. Tifton and her son Jeffrey who immediately befriends the girls. As the weeks pass, Jeffrey becomes closer to the Penderwick girls but also learns that his mother intends to send him to military school in the fall. As his departure date approaches, the Penderwicks scramble to find a way to keep Ms. Tifton from sending Jeffrey away.

My Take: I found this to be a solid entry in the ‘large family’ juvenile fiction category along side titles such as The Moffats by Eleanor Estes and The All-Of-A-Kind Family by Sidney Taylor. Perhaps the most popular example would be Little Women by Alcott. Older readers will discern no major surprises in the plot of The Penderwicks, but may be drawn in, as I was, by the strong family bonds between the girls. It is encouraging to read a book in which the siblings support each other and do not tear each other down with pranks and sarcastic in-fighting. Those looking for a gentle story about a summer time family adventure will not go wrong with The Penderwicks.

One Interesting Note About The Author: According to her website, Jeanne Birdsall believed from a young age that she was destined to become a writer but ‘went off track’ until her forties.

by cholliman1

“The Line Tender” by Kate Allen

The Line Tender

The Plot (Without Spoilers): Lucy is a young teenager living in the coastal town of Rockport, Massachusetts, who spends most of her days days hanging out with her best friend Fred. Lucy’s mother was a marine biologist who studied sharks but who unfortunately passed away when Lucy was 7. When their teacher assigns an extra credit project to create an animal field guide, Lucy and Fred begin collecting information about local wildlife and are excited when a local fisherman hauls in a great white shark. An upsetting event adds extra urgency to their field guide project as Lucy finds that her developing interest in sharks connects her with the memory of her mother.

My Take: I really want to give this book 5 out of 5 stars, but I’m going to keep it at 4. Kate Allen is a talented writer who can set a scene in just a few words and also has a great ear for convincing dialogue. Several times throughout the book I found myself thinking, ‘That’s well written.’

My only criticism with this book is that the plot lacks urgency. I get that this is not a page turner and that the story is about moving through grief on our own time table. Still, there is a slow undertow to the 3rd act, which I would forgive if the ending had really build up to a rushing climax. But there is none of that here, which made the story feel a little, well, boring.

I want to be clear though, that for a patient reader, this is in many ways a special book. For those who are looking for fiction to show them how to grieve, I would highly recommend ‘The Line Tender.’

One Interesting Note About The Author: According to her website bio, when Kate Allen was a child, a magician once told her that she would be an interior decorator.

by cholliman1

“Shouting At The Rain” by Lynda Mullaly Hunt

Image result for shouting at the rain by lynda mullaly huntThe Plot In 5 Sentences Or Less:  Delsie enjoys so many things about her life on Cape Cod:  the fishing, the storms that roll in off the ocean, and the close knit community of her small neighborhood.  Still, she can’t help but think about her mom who left her years before with her grandmother and what the reasons may have been for this abandonment.  Her relationships are also changing as her good friend Brandi begins hanging out with an older, mean girl.  Delsie finds companionship with a boy new to the Cape that summer who seems to harbor as much hurt inside himself as she does.  As new information comes forth about her mother, Delsie finds that she must choose whether to hold on to pain and resentment or to focus on the smaller blessings in her life.

My Take:  I found Shouting At The Rain to be a solid entry in the field of realistic fiction for young readers.  As an adult reader, I enjoyed learning about life on Cape Cod and how the ‘Capers’ and the tourist get along.  Hunt has a talent for conveying blue collar life without making it overly sentimental or pushing it too far.  One character, for example, must move with his family into a campground every summer because their landlord rents their house out to tourists for more money.  It’s an indignity that is mentioned only a few times, but it really serves as an example of what Delsie and the people in her community grapple with.  I would recommend this book to any younger reader interested in a book on changing friendships and life in the summer.

One Interesting Note About The Author:  As she notes on her website, Lynda Mullaly Hunt’s first forays into creative writing were after the passing of her brother, who died shortly before his 4th birthday.   She “wrote songs about him for years–songs about when he was alive and songs speculating where he went after he died. I had always imagined him sitting on a cloud watching me.”  She admits that not a day goes by when she does not think about him.