Rating: 
Summary: Good!!
Review: I had requested the book, and It was very interesting. Iwould recommend it to my younger sisters who want to be out there. Sometimes, we need to know where we came from to know where we want to go.Very good book.
Rating:
Summary: Crazy brilliant book.
Review: I've learned to fear books about teen moms because too often they turn into moralistic sermons or succumb to simple-minded stereotypes (i.e., long-suffering grandmother, wise-beyond-years teen). But Like Sisters was brilliant. Williams-Garcia gives us the flavor of Gayle's wonderfully rich language (e.g., an angry Mama's neck is described as 'snaking figure eights') without being condescending or sounding forced. She also suggests the complexities of families, of being a teenager, of raising a kid, of leaving NYC and moving 'Souf' -- and again, without the brick between the eyes approach of many other young adult approaches. This is a powerful, beautifully written book. Brilliant.
Rating:
Summary: Crazy brilliant book.
Review: I've learned to fear books about teen moms because too often they turn into moralistic sermons or succumb to simple-minded stereotypes (i.e., long-suffering grandmother, wise-beyond-years teen). But Like Sisters was brilliant. Williams-Garcia gives us the flavor of Gayle's wonderfully rich language (e.g., an angry Mama's neck is described as 'snaking figure eights') without being condescending or sounding forced. She also suggests the complexities of families, of being a teenager, of raising a kid, of leaving NYC and moving 'Souf' -- and again, without the brick between the eyes approach of many other young adult approaches. This is a powerful, beautifully written book. Brilliant.
Rating:
Summary: A Must Read For All Young Adults!
Review: I've read this book 3 times over! It has a great plot and it captures the readers attensions from the very begin (which is a good thing to keep a young person interested). Me being a young adult myself, I could relate to characters, and it is as just a great book focused on and for the African American youth.
Rating:
Summary: A Must Read For All Young Adults!
Review: I've read this book 3 times over! It has a great plot and it captures the readers attensions from the very begin (which is a good thing to keep a young person interested). Me being a young adult myself, I could relate to characters, and it is as just a great book focused on and for the African American youth.
Rating: 
Summary: I think this book was very interesting.
Review: It really showed what alot of young teenagers go through in life. It also showed the importance of your relationship with God, the fellowship with other Christians,and good moral values. I really recieved a good message from reading this book and I recommend all pre-teens to read it.
Rating:
Summary: Pregnant at 14
Review: Like Sisters on the Homefront is one of the best books that I read. This book is about a girl named Gayle who is pregnant by a boy named Troy.After her mother found out she went and got her an abortion because she already has a child. After getting her an abortion, Gayle's mother sent her down South to live with her uncle and aunt. These are the issues that Gayle was dealing with: family problems, stress, dropping out of school, getting along with people, looking for a job, and pregnancy.I think teenage girls will read this book, because they would think it's interesting because having a baby at a young age is not the way to be cool. It takes away a lot of your time and freedom. Gayle learns how to take responsibilities for her and her child. Down South, Gayle learns that being on her own is hard. Being a full time mother is a hard job. She has to work to get her and Jose things that they need. Doing all this while taking care of Jose is hard because her mother is not there to help her, and she is learning her responsibilities quickly because her mother is not there to do everything any more. I encourage you to read this book because you can learn a lot from this book.
Rating:
Summary: Make it a movie!
Review: Most students will love this book. I'm glad Williams-Garcia wrote it. I wish it was taught in classroom, for it raises important issue about not only teenage pregnacy and motherhood, but the importance of family, cultural roots, and self-respect. There's no cute, easy ending to this book. Three or four sequels could be written, but it should help young people, including young boys, reflect more carefully on the choices they make, especially when it comes to sex and their relationships with their parents.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent! Excellent! Excellent!
Review: My eighth graders loved this book! They were so excited after I read the first page to them as a preview of what's to come, that they went to the library to check out the book because they weren't scheduled to read it for another week. They really connected with the author's use of language and her up-front, in your face style of writing.
The author deals with teen pregnancy, abortion, and religion in a well-written, well- balanced way. She makes sure that the "real deal" of these teen issues are portrayed, as well as offering a "there's still hope" message for the readers.
As a reading teacher, part of my job is to expose my students to well-written, exciting books they might not ordinarily find on their own, and I'm surely glad that this wonderful treasure has been found!
Rating:
Summary: Like Sister's on the Homefront
Review: Rita Williams-Garcia's Like Sisters on the Homefront is the tale of a fourteen-year-old girl who is sent by her mother to live with her Aunt and Uncle in the south after getting pregnant for the second time. Gayle Whitaker, the protagonist in the story, compares her stay at the relatives as 'being sold into slavery'.(Williams-Garcia. 23)
This link is constantly being made throughout the story by Gayle, a girl who seems to lack any kind of regard towards anyone or anything except herself and three friends. The reader has a hard time connecting to her because she appears so self-centered which although common among young teenagers is hard to accept from a girl who seems older than her years as a result of her experiences. It is only through Gayle's interpretation of the world that one can see how vulnerable she is and realize that her lack in concern is directly related towards her age and development.
Gayle's lack of any type of emotion is clear from the beginning of the book when the reader discovers she is pregnant. To the reader it seems as though her regard to her situation is without concern. Her response to the abortion was more a sense of annoyance than any type of loss or even understanding about consequences. When the Doctor tries to offer some sympathy and encouragement during the procedure Gayle responded with, "Oh, Doc, it ain?t nothing to cry about."(Williams-Garcia. 8)
The inconsistency Gayle expresses shows how she can still easily be taken advantage. Throughout most of the book she tries contacting her boyfriend Troy with no success. Instead of realizing he has moved on she places the blame of his lack of response on everybody else but him. Yet the flight attendant on the plane causes Gayle to feel suspicious. "Gayle didn?t trust her. She was to nice." (Williams-Garcia. 21)
Although she seems experienced and often the reader forgets her age, comments Gayle makes throughout the book often expose how young and unexposed to the world she really is. While flying over New York, Gayle notices the landmarks like a wide-eyed child. "Jose! Look. There go that Freedom Lady and her torch. See! And those two giant buildings be on postcards. Look!"(Williams-Garcia. 22)
Upon meeting her relatives at the airport, Gayle refuses to show any emotion towards her cousin Constance. Although she is aware the 'insolent' response to her cousins 'sympatric look' causes Constance to feel rejected and reveals this by justifying her unfriendly behavior to herself. "How can I smile at you? Smiling means we know the same thing, and you don't even know what I'm feeling. Cootie still sore fore the abortion. Ears still ringing from the plane ride. Back fit to split wide open from playing the mule, but I?m s?posed to be grinning at you?"(Williams-Garcia. 27)
Many readers may have a hard time relating to this book. The main character seems shallow. Taking a closer look though shows depth to Gayle and allows a great deal of maturity and growth throughout the book.
|
