PDF - Christian Library Journal

MIDDLE SCHOOL
FICTION
Off-line life begins to crumble when
Dad and Mom need Morgan to help
run the family restaurant during
spring break, instead of
accompanying them to New York City. Morgan
causes her mother and sister to miss important
phone calls, upsets co-workers, and finds herself
the cause of a friend’s injury. Online, Anna
becomes seriously ill after following Morgan’s
advice. And last_wish turns out to be a phony, a
cancerless classmate, who has conned her into
raising money for him.
When Morgan’s parents return from NYC, she
begins to see the difference between real friends
and family, and those online, who may or may
not be what they seem.
Chat Freak, by Kristi Holl and Terry K. Brown,
is part of the TodaysGirls.com series. A
“Character Reference” section includes a short
biography for each character. The book also
includes lists of web abbreviations and
definitions. The style is similar to Scholastic’s
Ann M. Martin Baby-sitters Club series.
Message and language are both accessible, and
help to promote a light, familiar story of a young
teen finding her place.
Kim Harris, Librarian, Newman Riga Library, Churchville, New
York
Drawn by a China moon : Lottie Moon, by
Dave & Neta Jackson; story illustrations
by Anne Gavitt. (Trailblazer books.)
LCCN 00010471. Minneapolis: Bethany
House, 2000. ISBN 0764222678, PAP,
$5.99.
F. Moon, Lottie, 1840-1912--Fiction; Pen pals--
Fiction; Best friends--Fiction; Friendship--Fiction;
Missionaries--Fiction; China--History--1862-1912--
Fiction. 158 p. Middle school.
Separated by an ocean, best friends Ida and
Mollie attempt to stay in touch through letters—
letters that often take months for each of them to
receive. Never in their wildest dreams, as they
saved money to purchase look-alike dresses in
their native Virginia, did either of them imagine
that Ida and her family would make the decision
to go off to China, “that pagan nation,” and
become missionaries. As the years go by, Ida’s
letters are not only filled with exciting tales like
sea worms for supper and wearing men’s
trousers, but also of war, disease, and rebellion.
Molly knows her friend’s health is fragile and
she becomes more and more concerned for her.
But how can she help her, and what will be the
cost to Molly?
This well-written story for eight-to-twelve-yearolds
follows the events of missionary Lottie
Moon’s life through the fictional eyes of two
young friends at the turn of the century.
Although their lives are conceived in the minds
of the authors, Dave and Neta Jackson, the
sacrifices and work of missionaries are very real
indeed and this book demonstrates that in a clear
manner to its readers. Drawn by a China Moon
is part of the Trailblazers Series, adventure
stories that introduce young readers to Christian
heroes of the past.
Ceil Carey, Young Adult Librarian, Plano, Illinois
The girl who chased away sorrow : the
diary of Sarah Nita, a Navajo girl, by Ann
Turner. (Dear America.) LCCN
98048826. New York: Scholastic, 1999.
ISBN 0590972162, HBB, $10.95.
F. Navajo girls--Social conditions--Fiction. 200 p.
Middle school.
Sarah Nita and Kaibah are members of the
Navajo tribe. They are on the mesa herding
their family’s sheep when their family is taken
by the men in blue. The girls walk for eight days
north to Tseyi to find their relatives. The Navajo
tribe has a clan system. Navajo are born to their
mother’s clan for their father’s clan. Sarah Nita
and Kaibah are fortunate to find members of
their father’s clan who take them in.
Life continues in Tseyi, however the soldiers
eventually come and take the family to the fort.
While at the fort, the family, along with other
Navajo families, struggles to learn how to eat
the strange food given them by the soldiers. The
Navajo soon start on their long walk to Fort
Sumner. Many die along the trail—some
because they are weak and ill, others because the
soldiers shoot them when they don’t keep up.
Most of the soldiers are hateful toward the
Navajo. While at Fort Sumner, Sarah Nita and
Kaibah are reunited with their family.
In The Girl Who Chased Away Sorrow, Ann
Turner has written a story of a girl who lived
during one of the saddest times in Navajo
history. The time of the Long Walk was a time
when the white man terribly mistreated the
Navajo. Not much fiction has been written
about the Navajo, so this book fills a definite
gap. However, there are a few minor problems
with the book that do not affect the plot but may
offend Navajo readers. First, in a picture
caption, Chinle is said to be in New Mexico; it
is actually in Arizona. Second, Sarah Nita is
married to a member of her father’s clan.
Traditionally, Navajo do not marry members of
either their mother’s or father’s clans.
Jane Mouttet, Librarian, Hilltop Christian School, Window Rock,
Arizona (capital of the Navajo Nation)
The great railroad race : the diary of
Libby West, by Kristiana Gregory. (Dear
America.) LCCN 98021816. New York:
Scholastic, 1999. ISBN 059010991X,
HBB, $10.95.
F. Frontier and pioneer life--West (U.S.)--Fiction; West (U.S.)--
Fiction; Diaries--Fiction. 203 p. Middle school.
Libby West receives a diary from her parents for
her 14th birthday and begins recording events of
life in Denver, Colorado, in 1868. She has her
father’s skill for “gathering news,” but her
mother hopes the diary will encourage her to
curb her tongue, as a young lady should.
When Libby’s father buys a hand press and
decides to follow the progress of the race to lay
track across the continental United States, her
diary gets exciting. Libby’s mother insists the
family stay together so Libby, her younger
brother Joe, and her mother join Mr. West and
his business partner, Pete, in Utah Territory. The
family befriends others, and the group travels
from camps to tent towns along the route of the
transcontinental railroad. Libby is exposed to
new words and unsavory characters, and sees
Indians and Chinese immigrants for the first
time. She also witnesses the danger and
excitement of the unsettled west.
The language is realistic for the time period, and
as the voice of a candid and inquisitive girl of
fourteen. The reader learns much about life in
1868 as author Kristiana Gregory eases facts
into the entries spanning just over one year. For
instance, Libby and her mother sew rocks into
the hems of their dresses so the prairie winds
won’t expose their bloomers; Libby and her
friend, Ellie, practice manners at afternoon teas
in which sand fouls both the butter and the
sugar.
Historic notes follow the story and add to the
facts slipped into Libby’s “diary.” I especially
like the “About the Author” section in this and
other current Dear America books because it
helps drive home the point that these books are
fictionalized accounts of life in different time
periods. Readers who enjoyed the American
Girls collection and Little House on the Prairie
series will appreciate The Great Railroad Race’s
portrayal of this exciting time in history.
Lisa Wroble, Freelance Writer/Library Aide, Plymouth, Michigan
Hogsty Reef, by John Dowd. (A
Caribbean Island adventure.) LCCN
98036411. Atlanta, Ga.: Peachtree
Publishers, 1999. ISBN 1561451878, PAP,
$5.95.
F. Islands--Fiction; Coral reef ecology--Fiction;
Refugees--Fiction; Drug traffic--Fiction. 188 p.
Middle school (High school).
A teenaged Harrison Ford, Hogsty Reef’s main
character, Jim, lives the life every young man
would dream of. Coming from British
Columbia to the Caribbean Islands of Turks and
Caicos is enough of an adventure, but this young
man deals with shipwreck, Haitian refugees,
drug runners, as he learns the ropes from a
young female adventurer, Julia. All the best
comes to those who conquer in the name of
good and right.
John Dowd is an Arthur Ellis Award winning
novelist for his book, Abalone Summer. It’s not
clear in Hogsty Reef if the Caribbean book is a
sequel, but if the Turks and Caicos literary world
offers an award for juvenile adventure novels
this one could win; it is exciting and well
written. There is one occurence of profanity
when the young adventurer gets trapped. The
book also refers to voodoo through the voice of
a young Haitian boat person named Marcel, but
this in no way dominates or detracts from the
story. Teens and almost-teens will zoom through
every exciting page. All the loose ends are tied
up well by Dowd, who awakened the young
boy in the heart of this fifty-two-year-old
reader/reviewer from the northwest!
Rev. Jim McKinney, Teacher, Port Orchard, Washington
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