Seed Folks

Rating:
Summary: A Heartwarming, Optimistic Book
Review: I loved Seed Folks. I finished the book in one afternoon, but thought about it for days after. In the year since I've read the book I've purchased 14 copies for friends who I thought would appreciate its message of community and optimism. In these times when we always check to make sure our doors are locked before going to bed at night, Seed Folks offers a message of hope. The characters are believable and the story is engaging - the kind of story one would wish to make a reality.

Fleischman writes the book from the perspective of 11 characters, each the voice of his or her own chapter. It was an interesting way to present the story and served to give readers any number of connections to the text.

I am a 6th grade teacher. I developed a lesson from the book and read it to my students using the voices of fellow teachers to speak for characters in the book. I will continue to give Seed Folks as gifts to friends, as well as teach that lesson to every one of my classes. Seed Folks is a book I wish I had written myself. My hat is off to Paul Fleischman.

Rating:
Summary: A Heartwarming, Optimistic Book
Review: I loved Seed Folks. I finished the book in one afternoon, but thought about it for days after. In the year since I've read the book I've purchased 14 copies for friends who I thought would appreciate its message of community and optimism. In these times when we always check to make sure our doors are locked before going to bed at night, Seed Folks offers a message of hope. The characters are believable and the story is engaging - the kind of story one would wish to make a reality.

Fleischman writes the book from the perspective of 11 characters, each the voice of his or her own chapter. It was an interesting way to present the story and served to give readers any number of connections to the text.

I am a 6th grade teacher. I developed a lesson from the book and read it to my students using the voices of fellow teachers to speak for characters in the book. I will continue to give Seed Folks as gifts to friends, as well as teach that lesson to every one of my classes. Seed Folks is a book I wish I had written myself. My hat is off to Paul Fleischman.

Rating:
Summary: seed folk
Review: it was boring cause it all was just what the people in the building were doing and thinking at one time.

Rating:
Summary: Warning!! Mature Subject Matter!
Review: My 5th grade son came home with notes written about this book. The first character he mentioned was the pregnant 16 year old who wanted to die and wanted her baby to die. I had never heard of the book and immediately looked up information about it, and contacted his teacher and principal. After receiving a copy of the book and reading it I kept my opinion. This is not 5th grade reading material!!!!! The idea of community and hope I understand. However some of the characters and their backgrounds are totally inappropriate material for that age student. My son told me that someone in the book had been raped. I asked how he came to this conclusion as it never said that in the book. He replied that someone asked how she could be pregnant if she wasn't married. Another student then replied that she could have been raped and proceeded to explain what "raped" means to my son!!! This is the kind of lesson this book taught my son. They also mention adoption and abortion in that particular chapter. I have now had to explain these also. I object vigorously to a school dictating through literature what and when my child learns about mature subjects! This book should not be read by anyone younger than high school age!

Rating:
Summary: Warning!! Mature Subject Matter!
Review: My 5th grade son came home with notes written about this book. The first character he mentioned was the pregnant 16 year old who wanted to die and wanted her baby to die. I had never heard of the book and immediately looked up information about it, and contacted his teacher and principal. After receiving a copy of the book and reading it I kept my opinion. This is not 5th grade reading material!!!!! The idea of community and hope I understand. However some of the characters and their backgrounds are totally inappropriate material for that age student. My son told me that someone in the book had been raped. I asked how he came to this conclusion as it never said that in the book. He replied that someone asked how she could be pregnant if she wasn't married. Another student then replied that she could have been raped and proceeded to explain what "raped" means to my son!!! This is the kind of lesson this book taught my son. They also mention adoption and abortion in that particular chapter. I have now had to explain these also. I object vigorously to a school dictating through literature what and when my child learns about mature subjects! This book should not be read by anyone younger than high school age!

Rating:
Summary: Poignant, stunning, absorbing!
Review: This masterfully cast and rendered audio version of Fleischman's gorgeous vignette-novel features 13 different performers of various ages and ethnicities. The fact that some of the readers are not professional performers gives the voices a ring of authenticity that is often missing from the "act-y" delivery of many audiobook readers (which I often find distancing). You are captivated by the natural, sincere delivery of these performers, who portray characters ranging from a very young Vietnamese girl to a Guatemalan man to an old, feisty Eastern European woman. The performances of the professional actors are so honest and convincing --particularly the Mexican teenager, young African-American man and the cowboy-like school janitor-- that they blend in seamlessly with the other voices. The story unfolds slowly, piece by piece, and by the very first chapter, you'll be hooked-- not only by Fleischman's wonderful writing, but by the musicality and vitality of each character's unique voice. A real treasure and high-quality product for all ages.