<< 1 >>
Rating: 
Summary: brothers help each other cope in scary urban neighborhood
Review: Archie is 11, and his sensitive brother Oggie is 6. Their parents recently divorced and now they go back and forth between preoccupied Mom's house and hotheaded Dad's house. In their menacing new neighborhood they have to deal with mean kids and criminals, but Archie distracts Oggie as much as he can by telling him a fantastic story of the Mysterious Mole People, who live underground and mercilessly try to right the wrongs of the above-world. Things turn even more scary when Archie tries to get Oggie's stolen wallet back from a neighborhood gang, but the brothers count on each other and have inventive ways of coping with their situations. This YA novel was dark for my tastes, but people do live this way and the two boys' ability to adjust and grow stronger will reassure and encourage a lot of kids. Writers of all ages will enjoy Archie's perceptive observations on writing. Divorced parents should read it too, to learn how to keep their own concerns from blinding them to their children's needs.
Rating:
Summary: brothers help each other cope in scary urban neighborhood
Review: Archie is 11, and his sensitive brother Oggie is 6. Their parents recently divorced and now they go back and forth between preoccupied Mom's house and hotheaded Dad's house. In their menacing new neighborhood they have to deal with mean kids and criminals, but Archie distracts Oggie as much as he can by telling him a fantastic story of the Mysterious Mole People, who live underground and mercilessly try to right the wrongs of the above-world. Things turn even more scary when Archie tries to get Oggie's stolen wallet back from a neighborhood gang, but the brothers count on each other and have inventive ways of coping with their situations. This YA novel was dark for my tastes, but people do live this way and the two boys' ability to adjust and grow stronger will reassure and encourage a lot of kids. Writers of all ages will enjoy Archie's perceptive observations on writing. Divorced parents should read it too, to learn how to keep their own concerns from blinding them to their children's needs.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Appropriate for all 9 year olds
Review: My third grader and I read this together as it was on the school's recommended reading list. I did not feel she was ready to read this book given her current level of maturity. The two children in the book are currently living with their father and his live-in girl friend while their parents undergo a divorce that is not yet finalized. At one point the 6 year old in the story is very confused and upset as he overheard the live-in girl friend talking about her positive pregnancy test. The book also deals with gangs and some street violence. As my third grader read this aloud to me, she had several questions that lead to topics of discussion that I would have like to have held off on for another year or so. I saw this as the beginning of desensitizing my child to moral and ethical delimas of the world we now live-in...if they see it or read it enough it becomes common life and no longer has shock value.
<< 1 >>
| 
