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[CCBC-Net] More favorites of the year!
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From: jeanne whitehouse <jwhouse>
Date: Sat, 9 Dec 2000 17:10:04 -0700
Thank you, Ginny, for mentioning "The Color of My Words by Lynn Joseph
(HarperCollins) See below for this review.
I would like to echo all you say about Lynn Joseph's ability to share a 12 year old's growing awareness of the ways she is connected to her family and her community and most of all her need to find words for her experiences. As a reader I feel the power of Ana Rosa's search for paper to place her words and I am pierced to the heart when --as family tragedy occurs --she knows that no words can express her pain.
We ask our students to think about the ways they are connected to the stories they read and to share these connections. I, as a reader, was speechless at the point of the tragedy in this story. More than any other novel I've read (for adults or young people) this one pulled me into my own childhood loss of a father. For a few moments it was my story, my words, in vivid red and blue colors, being told----even though I grew up very far from the Dominican Republic.
Family chronicles which let us feel the loss of beloved family members are rare, indeed. This one takes us, chapter by chapter, into deeper understanding of family secrets and the complexities of family life and living. Once a fifth grader, when asked "what books do you enjoy? which books should I read?" answered in tight script on a tiny scrap of paper:
"if I tell you all of my favorite books, then you will know all of my secrets." "The Color of My Words" is that kind of book for me. You who do not know me, do not know that my father died when I was ten, do not know that I have an adopted daughter whose birth mother lives in the Dominican Republic, do not know that I, too, must have a place to put my words, would not understand how this book is connected to me personally. But, I would love to correspond with anyone who reads Lynn Joseph's words and is so moved (or not, because our life secrets might be different).
This is a short, powerful novel. Each chapter stands alone, elegantly, as if in a spiral or whirl of understanding. Thanks for reading my response and thank you all for your many wonderful suggestions.. Jeanne Whitehouse Peterson author. jwhouse at unm.edu
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Received on Sat 09 Dec 2000 06:10:04 PM CST
Date: Sat, 9 Dec 2000 17:10:04 -0700
Thank you, Ginny, for mentioning "The Color of My Words by Lynn Joseph
(HarperCollins) See below for this review.
I would like to echo all you say about Lynn Joseph's ability to share a 12 year old's growing awareness of the ways she is connected to her family and her community and most of all her need to find words for her experiences. As a reader I feel the power of Ana Rosa's search for paper to place her words and I am pierced to the heart when --as family tragedy occurs --she knows that no words can express her pain.
We ask our students to think about the ways they are connected to the stories they read and to share these connections. I, as a reader, was speechless at the point of the tragedy in this story. More than any other novel I've read (for adults or young people) this one pulled me into my own childhood loss of a father. For a few moments it was my story, my words, in vivid red and blue colors, being told----even though I grew up very far from the Dominican Republic.
Family chronicles which let us feel the loss of beloved family members are rare, indeed. This one takes us, chapter by chapter, into deeper understanding of family secrets and the complexities of family life and living. Once a fifth grader, when asked "what books do you enjoy? which books should I read?" answered in tight script on a tiny scrap of paper:
"if I tell you all of my favorite books, then you will know all of my secrets." "The Color of My Words" is that kind of book for me. You who do not know me, do not know that my father died when I was ten, do not know that I have an adopted daughter whose birth mother lives in the Dominican Republic, do not know that I, too, must have a place to put my words, would not understand how this book is connected to me personally. But, I would love to correspond with anyone who reads Lynn Joseph's words and is so moved (or not, because our life secrets might be different).
This is a short, powerful novel. Each chapter stands alone, elegantly, as if in a spiral or whirl of understanding. Thanks for reading my response and thank you all for your many wonderful suggestions.. Jeanne Whitehouse Peterson author. jwhouse at unm.edu
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Received on Sat 09 Dec 2000 06:10:04 PM CST
