Rating: 
Summary: A story of sibling rivalry and family ties
Review: "Morning Girl," by Michael Dorris, is a short novel that is told in the first person by two of its characters, Morning Girl and her brother Star Boy. The chapters alternate between these characters' two voices. The children live with their parents in an island village; their community has a pre-industrial culture.Morning Girl and her brother have the type of conflict you might expect between a sister and her sometimes annoying younger brother. This relationship is explored against the backdrop of the children's culture and the island setting. I particularly liked the character of Star Boy: he's experiencing some emotional growing pains as he yearns for respect while still engaging in some childish actions. An important theme in the book is the naming tradition of the children's culture. Dorris writes in a clear, poetic prose style that is touched by a mystical element. And don't miss the startling epilogue which pulls the whole story into focus.
Rating: 
Summary: Discuss This Topic With Your Students
Review: I am saddened to hear this beautiful book called boring in some of these reviews. Obviously the true message Michael Dorris gives is missed. The author paints a very vivid picture of how close this family is, how they belong to a real community of loving people, and how they are much like the contemporary family today. Then comes Christopher Columbus to snatch the Tainos from the Island and whisk them to Spain to become "real people". What a great discussion this book leads. This is one book that may not be picked up willingly by young hands, but needs to be suggested. Then, watch the discussion begin!
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful book
Review: I thought that this was a very powerful and well written book. Contrary to the two reviewers who found the plot boring, I found it to be quite captivating. In addition, the alternating chapters provide added insight into the life of one family. The author chose a unique way to introduce the Europeans into this book, one that leaves the reader with a great deal to ponder. This is a fairly complex book, and one that would probably be best suited for older readers and even adults.
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Summary: Pure Poetry!
Review: Instead of reading this book for plot, try reading it as a poem, in book form. The book paints emotions and images and experiences that are wonderful to feel. These things are so much more important than the plot, in which the Spanish don't show up until the last five pages. This is a book about naming and being and growing up. It is excellent for adults (I agree that this is not exactly a children's book, although some children might understand it) who are dreamers, who dream of becoming a rock or a breath of wind.
Rating:
Summary: Powerful!
Review: It is incredibly powerful and emotional. Morning Girl and herbrother Star Boy are full-dimensional characters - Taino people in1492. The book shows several aspects of their lives before the Europeans come along. Children should read this book to understand other cultures.
Rating: 
Summary: Bad book, worse plot
Review: Morning Girl, a young Taino Indian girl, lives at the time of 1492 (just before Christopher Columbus came to her island) with her younger brother Star Boy. Twelve-year-old Morning Girl is called Morning Girl because she wakes up early with something on her mind, dreams too hard, and does not relax, even in her sleep. She also likes the solitude of the morning. She has matured; she is polite, and acts grown up by always worrying about her appearance. Star Boy, Morning Girl's younger brother, is very different because he likes the dark. He likes the stars and is like a bat. He also has a wide- spread imagination. One example of his imagination is that he pretends to turn into a rock. The author is trying to relate today's families with families 500 years ago. Although Morning Girl's family didn't have as many advantages as we have today, they acted the same as families do now. I don't recommend this book to kids. It is the worst book that I have ever read in my whole life! The plot is very confusing and slow-moving. This is a very bad book and has no plot whatsoever! This is the worst book ever!
Rating:
Summary: Very well written
Review: Our teacher read this book to us at school. I liked it, but why is it called Morning Girl when Star Boy is also in it? Also, I like the way that the chapters rotate from Morning Girl to Star Boy.
Rating: 
Summary: A confusing and boring book, not recommended by kids.
Review: The book Morning Girl was about two Taino children named Morning girl, who is polite, mature, smart and an early riser, and her brother Star Boy, who is childish, playful, always hungry and likes the night, and their life on a Bahamian island, in 1492, before the arrival of Christopher Columbus. One day Star Boy pretends to be a rock because he is afraid his father will get mad at him for not pulling the canoe onto the shore. The canoe nearly got pulled away with the tide. Father accuses Morning Girl, and Star Boy decides this is not fair, so he comes back. Morning girl wants to know what she looks like, so she goes to mother and compares the feeling of mother's face to the feeling of her own face, and then she goes to father and sees her reflection in his eyes. The wind is strong one day and there is going to be a storm. Unfortunately, Star Boy gets stuck in the storm, which blows him to next to a tree, where he talks to the spirit of grandfather. Then there is exiting news. Their mother is going to have a baby, but they are all disappointed when their mother has a miscarriage. There is a food festival and Star Boy humiliates himself by running around and eating all the food, but Morning Girl saves him by doing the same thing. After that, Morning Girl is swimming in the ocean and sees two people in a canoe. They seemed to be from a different place. This was not a good book. It was very boring and had not only a lame plot but also a slow-moving plot. The plot was that their life is going to be ruined by the Spanish. But the book didn't even say what happened to them. It was incredibly confusing. You have to read the beginning over and over to understand what is happening with the first few chapters. After awhile, you finally figure out that the chapters rotate. If you are a child, don't read this book. It is an adult book. I don't recommend it even for adults. It was just boring and there is no way to change it. Don't waste your time on this book.
Rating:
Summary: Morning Girl
Review: This book is about a girl named Morning Girl and her Taino family that live in the Bahamas her mother is supposed to have a baby. I gave this book five stars because it was a great book! At the end someone special comes. To see who comes read Morning Girl by Michael Dorris.
Rating:
Summary: Powerful, Beautiful, and Poetic
Review: This book is different; it does not have a "plot" in the traditional sense. Instead, it is filled with images, thoughts, and impressions. The innocence of the two children, the sister and brother, underscores the innocence of the Tainos people. No book has ever made me feel such a powerful sense of tragedy, compassion, and foreboding. If you are looking for an excellent children's book that is filled with details about the Tainos and Columbus, I would recommend "The Tainos, the People Who Welcomed Columbus," by Francine Jacobs.
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