Rhodes, Jewell Parker (2010). Ninth Ward. New York: Little, Brown and Company
#2 Summary
It is August 2005 when this story begins. Twelve year-old Lanesha lives with her loving, elderly caretaker, Mama YaYa, in the New Orleans Ninth Ward. Both are spiritually gifted; Lanesha sees spirits, including her dead mother, and Mama YaYa sees the future. Lanesha is teased in school for these things, but she meets one boy, TaShon, who is kind, and who needs a friend as much as she does. These things make life comfortable and peaceful for Lanesha, until Mama YaYa has a dark vision of a storm, and then blackness. She doesn't understand the blackness, but she and Lanesha begin preparing for a major hurricane: Katrina. Although she is assured by her ghosts that the storm won't be a bad one, Lanesha makes previsions, nonetheless, while Mama YaYa becomes strangely quiet and distant. The storm comes, and is soon over, leaving the house a mess, but neither injured. TaShon, who rode out the storm in the Louisiana Superdome, comes back to the Ninth Ward looking for his parents, whom he lost. Neither child knows that the New Orleans levees have broken, and are quickly flooding the area, including the Ninth Ward. They and Mama YaYa are in the house when they notice the water rising. Lanesha drags Mama YaYa, who has become ill, to the attic, where they and TaShon wait for the water to rise. It is here that Mama YaYa's vision of blackness is fulfilled; Mama YaYa dies, leaving Lanesha and TaShon to brave the waters. Leaving Mama YaYa's body in the attic, Lanesha and TaShon climb onto the roof, waiting for help that doesn't come. Finally, they see an empty boat, and after some dangerous maneuvering are finally able to reach it. Help arrives sometime after, and when Lanesha sees Mama YaYa's and her mother's spirits together, calling their love to her, she knows that she and TaShon will be safe.
#3 Reactions
More than anything about this book, I loved the characters. Lanesha and Mama YaYa are so sweet and their gifts so strange, that they could be inserted into any book, and make it a good one. I also enjoyed Rhodes's portrayal of the Ninth Ward, which to Lanesha, is not the depressing, poverty-stricken area as most tend to think of it (especially after Hurricane Katrina) but it is her home, with loving neighbors, and what I like best, the constant smell of bacon! The account of the hurricane is realistic and very frightening; however, I didn't think that due deference was given to Mama YaYa's death. I understand that Lanesha is very strong, and that she will see Mama YaYa as a ghost, but that event seemed to pass without much attention. I believe when TaShon asks about Mama YaYa, Lanesha responds with something to the affect of, "she's dead. It's alright. Let's go." I suppose having a life-threatening flood at your feet would cause someone to expect death, and to get on with the task at hand when it happens, but still, I found it an unrealistic reaction.
#4 Reviews for Ninth Ward
Review #1
With a mix of magical and gritty realism, Rhodes's (Voodoo Dreams) first novel for young readers imagines Hurricane Katrina and the subsequent flooding through the eyes of resourceful 12-year-old Lanesna. Lanesna lives with Mama Ya-Ya, an 82-year-old seer and midwife who delivered Lanesha and has cared for her since her teenage mother died in childbirth. Living in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans, Lanesha is viewed as an unusual child (she was born with a caul and is able to see ghosts) and is ostracized at school. Lanesha finds strength in Mama Ya-Ya's constant love and axioms of affection and reassurance ("When the time's right… the universe shines down love").The story becomes gripping as the waters rise and Lanesha, with help from a young neighbor and her mother's ghostly presence, finds a way to keep body and soul together. The spare but vivid prose, lilting dialogue, and skilled storytelling brings this tragedy to life; the powerful sense of community Rhodes evokes in the Ninth Ward prior to the storm makes the devastation and the hardships Lanesha endures all the more powerful. Ages 10-up. (Aug.)
--Ninth Ward (2010). Publishers Weekly (257)30, 46.
Review #2
Gr 5-8 --Communicating with ghosts, including the spirit of her mother who died giving birth to her, is a gift that Lanesha, 12, has had for as long as she can remember. The girl's beloved caretaker, Mama Ya-Ya, a midwife and healer, has a gift that allows her to predict the future. When she begins to sense that a big storm is coming to their much-loved New Orleans neighborhood, both she and Lanesha must trust in their senses and in one another to survive. Lanesha is a wonderful character who exudes resilience and fortitude in the face of a catastrophe as well as a personal vulnerability in terms of her status as an orphan and an outsider. Words, numbers, and colors as seen through her eyes show the magic and wonder that exist in everyday things. The unique writing style even allows the unlikely combination of elderly Mama Ya-Ya's heady scents of Vicks Vapor Rub and Evening in Paris perfume to seem wonderful and inviting. Heartbreak and hope are reflected in Lanesha's story, which will capture even reluctant readers due to the inventive storytelling and the author's ability to bring history to life.
--Auguste, Maragaret (2010). Ninth Ward. School Library Journal (56)8, 110.
#5 Suggestions for Library Use
#4 Reviews for Ninth Ward
Review #1
With a mix of magical and gritty realism, Rhodes's (Voodoo Dreams) first novel for young readers imagines Hurricane Katrina and the subsequent flooding through the eyes of resourceful 12-year-old Lanesna. Lanesna lives with Mama Ya-Ya, an 82-year-old seer and midwife who delivered Lanesha and has cared for her since her teenage mother died in childbirth. Living in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans, Lanesha is viewed as an unusual child (she was born with a caul and is able to see ghosts) and is ostracized at school. Lanesha finds strength in Mama Ya-Ya's constant love and axioms of affection and reassurance ("When the time's right… the universe shines down love").The story becomes gripping as the waters rise and Lanesha, with help from a young neighbor and her mother's ghostly presence, finds a way to keep body and soul together. The spare but vivid prose, lilting dialogue, and skilled storytelling brings this tragedy to life; the powerful sense of community Rhodes evokes in the Ninth Ward prior to the storm makes the devastation and the hardships Lanesha endures all the more powerful. Ages 10-up. (Aug.)
--Ninth Ward (2010). Publishers Weekly (257)30, 46.
Review #2
Gr 5-8 --Communicating with ghosts, including the spirit of her mother who died giving birth to her, is a gift that Lanesha, 12, has had for as long as she can remember. The girl's beloved caretaker, Mama Ya-Ya, a midwife and healer, has a gift that allows her to predict the future. When she begins to sense that a big storm is coming to their much-loved New Orleans neighborhood, both she and Lanesha must trust in their senses and in one another to survive. Lanesha is a wonderful character who exudes resilience and fortitude in the face of a catastrophe as well as a personal vulnerability in terms of her status as an orphan and an outsider. Words, numbers, and colors as seen through her eyes show the magic and wonder that exist in everyday things. The unique writing style even allows the unlikely combination of elderly Mama Ya-Ya's heady scents of Vicks Vapor Rub and Evening in Paris perfume to seem wonderful and inviting. Heartbreak and hope are reflected in Lanesha's story, which will capture even reluctant readers due to the inventive storytelling and the author's ability to bring history to life.
--Auguste, Maragaret (2010). Ninth Ward. School Library Journal (56)8, 110.
#5 Suggestions for Library Use
Ninth Ward would be a great tool to use in learning about Hurricane Katrina. If there were a program on Hurricane Katrina (say, a survivor of the storm comes to speak to kids about his/her experience) then Ninth Ward could be heavily promoted during and after the program.
#1 Bibliographic Information
Alvarez, Julia (2002). Before we were free. New York: Dell Laurel-Leaf.
#2 Summary
#1 Bibliographic Information
Alvarez, Julia (2002). Before we were free. New York: Dell Laurel-Leaf.
#2 Summary
Anita del la Torre is a 12 year-old (soon 13 year-old) girl living in the Domincan Republic of 1960. She lives in a family compound with various uncles, aunts and cousins. But then mysterious things begin happening. Her relatives begin emigrating to the United States, and her mother and father are very secretive about why. Finally, she learns that her Uncle Tio and her father are involved in a revolutionary plot against El Jefe (General Trujillo, the Dominican Dictator). Their plot is in danger of being discovered at any moment, and she and her family are in great danger. Uncle Tio has already disappeared and her parents fear that their house has been bugged, so they speak in code. Uncle Tio finally returns, and Anita's sister and escapes to the U.S. with the help of an American ambassador. Finally, the plan is executed, and General Trujillo is assassinated. But just when things are looking up, the Secret Police arrest her father and her Uncle Tio. Anita and her mother are sent into hiding in a friend's closet for several days, and her brother is also flown to the U.S. Finally, Anita and her mother reach the last flight out of the country, and rejoin the rest of their family in New York. Sadly, word comes that her father and her Uncle Tio have been executed for their roles in General Trujillo's death. But she and her family will never forget their sacrifice in helping the rest of the family to be free.
#3 Reaction
I was not familiar with the long history of the Dominican Republic's political and civil upheaval, and I found this story fascinating. In some ways, this it reminded of the Diary of Anne Frank, especially when Anita and her mother go into hiding, and Anita's thoughts are primarily recorded in a diary. I also loved that Alvarez employed the use of several exclamation points and heavy sarcasm in Anita's writing style. I kept laughing at those points, thinking--yeah, that sounds like 13. What a great, informational, moving, coming-of-age story for a young reader. Its history, which unlike the holocaust, is not well-known to young people (or even to older ones, such as myself) is a truly harrowing tale of bravery. I would recommend this book for 6th-8th graders who enjoy historical fiction and mystery.
#4 Reviews for Before We Were Free
Review #1
Alvarez has written two outstanding adult novels set during the final days of the Trujillo dictatorship in the Dominican Republic: In the Time of the Buttterflies is a fictional account of real-life sisters martyred during the revolution; How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents is an autobiographical novel about a family adjusting to American life after escaping Trujillo's regime. Though written for a younger audience,Before We Were Free bridges those two novels with the story of the family the Garcia girls left behind, and of their continued involvement in the revolution. In the fall of 1960 the atmosphere is thick with secrets, and Anita, almost twelve, does not know why her "best-friend cousins" had to leave the country so suddenly or even why the SIM (secret police) are stationed in her driveway. Anita tries to gain some control over the frightening and confusing events by writing them down in her diary — but always in pencil in case she needs to erase the "evidence." Anita's final months in the Dominican Republic are a poignant blend of typical adolescent concerns — Alvarez deftly contrasts Anita's first superficial crush on brash American Sam with the sweet friendship of thoughtful Oscar — and the terrible realities of life under a violent dictatorship. Moments of sharp tension occur throughout: when the SIM invade their home, when El Jefe (Trujillo himself) appears at a party in the family compound, when a policeman discovers weapons in Papi's trunk but, miraculously, waves him on — an indication of the growing resistance. After Papi is taken away, Anita and her mother spend two months in hiding, living in a walk-in closet; Alvarez chronicles this period of time entirely through Anita's diary entries. If these can't compare to her historical predecessor Anne Frank's, well, few can. But Anita's own story is a realistic and compelling account of a girl growing up too quickly while coming to terms with the cost of freedom.
--Adams, Lauren (2002). Before we were free. Horn Book Magazine (78)5, 563-564.
#3 Reaction
I was not familiar with the long history of the Dominican Republic's political and civil upheaval, and I found this story fascinating. In some ways, this it reminded of the Diary of Anne Frank, especially when Anita and her mother go into hiding, and Anita's thoughts are primarily recorded in a diary. I also loved that Alvarez employed the use of several exclamation points and heavy sarcasm in Anita's writing style. I kept laughing at those points, thinking--yeah, that sounds like 13. What a great, informational, moving, coming-of-age story for a young reader. Its history, which unlike the holocaust, is not well-known to young people (or even to older ones, such as myself) is a truly harrowing tale of bravery. I would recommend this book for 6th-8th graders who enjoy historical fiction and mystery.
#4 Reviews for Before We Were Free
Review #1
Alvarez has written two outstanding adult novels set during the final days of the Trujillo dictatorship in the Dominican Republic: In the Time of the Buttterflies is a fictional account of real-life sisters martyred during the revolution; How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents is an autobiographical novel about a family adjusting to American life after escaping Trujillo's regime. Though written for a younger audience,Before We Were Free bridges those two novels with the story of the family the Garcia girls left behind, and of their continued involvement in the revolution. In the fall of 1960 the atmosphere is thick with secrets, and Anita, almost twelve, does not know why her "best-friend cousins" had to leave the country so suddenly or even why the SIM (secret police) are stationed in her driveway. Anita tries to gain some control over the frightening and confusing events by writing them down in her diary — but always in pencil in case she needs to erase the "evidence." Anita's final months in the Dominican Republic are a poignant blend of typical adolescent concerns — Alvarez deftly contrasts Anita's first superficial crush on brash American Sam with the sweet friendship of thoughtful Oscar — and the terrible realities of life under a violent dictatorship. Moments of sharp tension occur throughout: when the SIM invade their home, when El Jefe (Trujillo himself) appears at a party in the family compound, when a policeman discovers weapons in Papi's trunk but, miraculously, waves him on — an indication of the growing resistance. After Papi is taken away, Anita and her mother spend two months in hiding, living in a walk-in closet; Alvarez chronicles this period of time entirely through Anita's diary entries. If these can't compare to her historical predecessor Anne Frank's, well, few can. But Anita's own story is a realistic and compelling account of a girl growing up too quickly while coming to terms with the cost of freedom.
--Adams, Lauren (2002). Before we were free. Horn Book Magazine (78)5, 563-564.
Review #2
Gr 6-10- By the morning of her 12th birthday, in December, 1960, Anita de la Torre's comfortable childhood in her home in the Dominican Republic is a thing of the past. The political situation for opponents of the dictator Rafael Trujillo has become so dangerous that nearly all of her relatives have emigrated to the U.S., leaving only her uncle, T'o Toni, somewhere in hiding, and her parents, still determined to carry on the resistance. Over the next year, the girl becomes increasingly aware of the nature of the political situation and her family's activities. Once her father's cotorrita, or talkative parrot, she grows increasingly silent. When the dictator is assassinated, her father and uncle are arrested, her older brother is sheltered in the Italian Embassy, and Anita and her mother must go into hiding as well. Diary entries written by the child while in hiding will remind readers of Anne Frank's story. They will find Anita's interest in boys and her concerns about her appearance, even when she and her mother can see no one, entirely believable. Readers will be convinced by the voice of this Spanish-speaking teenager who tells her story entirely in the present tense. Like Anita's brother Mund'n, readers will bite their nails as the story moves to its inexorable conclusion.
--Jones, Trevelyn (2002). Before we were free. School Library Journal (48)8, 182.
#5 Suggestions for Library Use
This book, because of its similarity to Anne Frank, could possibly be used in conjunction with her story. Perhaps the library could promote a short series on tales of resistance, to include this book, Anne Frank's and perhaps one other for a young book club, or simply a book display; something in the vein of "if you liked The Diary of Anne Frank, you'll love Before We Were Free.
Gr 6-10- By the morning of her 12th birthday, in December, 1960, Anita de la Torre's comfortable childhood in her home in the Dominican Republic is a thing of the past. The political situation for opponents of the dictator Rafael Trujillo has become so dangerous that nearly all of her relatives have emigrated to the U.S., leaving only her uncle, T'o Toni, somewhere in hiding, and her parents, still determined to carry on the resistance. Over the next year, the girl becomes increasingly aware of the nature of the political situation and her family's activities. Once her father's cotorrita, or talkative parrot, she grows increasingly silent. When the dictator is assassinated, her father and uncle are arrested, her older brother is sheltered in the Italian Embassy, and Anita and her mother must go into hiding as well. Diary entries written by the child while in hiding will remind readers of Anne Frank's story. They will find Anita's interest in boys and her concerns about her appearance, even when she and her mother can see no one, entirely believable. Readers will be convinced by the voice of this Spanish-speaking teenager who tells her story entirely in the present tense. Like Anita's brother Mund'n, readers will bite their nails as the story moves to its inexorable conclusion.
--Jones, Trevelyn (2002). Before we were free. School Library Journal (48)8, 182.
#5 Suggestions for Library Use
This book, because of its similarity to Anne Frank, could possibly be used in conjunction with her story. Perhaps the library could promote a short series on tales of resistance, to include this book, Anne Frank's and perhaps one other for a young book club, or simply a book display; something in the vein of "if you liked The Diary of Anne Frank, you'll love Before We Were Free.
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