Biography jean ferris review
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MUCH ADO ABOUT GRUBSTAKE
After Hitler appoints Bruno’s father commandant of Auschwitz, Bruno (nine) is unhappy with his new surroundings compared to the luxury of his home in Berlin.
The literal-minded Bruno, with amazingly little political and social awareness, never gains comprehension of the prisoners (all in “striped pajamas”) or the malignant naturlig eller utan tillsats of the death camp. He overcomes loneliness and isolation only when he discovers another boy, Shmuel, on the other side of the camp’s stängsel. For months, the two meet, becoming secret best friends even though they can never play tillsammans. Although Bruno’s family corrects him, he childishly calls the camp “Out-With” and the Fuhrer “Fury.” As a literary device, it could be said to be credibly rooted in Bruno’s consistent, guileless characterization, though it’s difficult to believe in reality. The tragic story’s point of view fryst vatten unique: the corrosive effect of brutality on Nazi family life as seen through the eyes of a naïf. Some will
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OF SOUND MIND
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much•
Jean Ferris (1939-)
PERIODICALS
Booklist, October 1, 1983, Sally Estes, review of Amen, Moses Gardenia, p. 233; April, 1986, Hazel Rochman, review of The Stainless Steel Rule, p. 1202; July, 1995, p. 1874; February 15, 1996, p. 1004; October 1, 1998, John Peters, review of Bad, p. 324; October 1, 2000, Roger Leslie, review of Eight Seconds, p. 336; September 15, 2001, John Peters, review of Of Sound Mind, p. 226; September 15, 2002, Carolyn Phelan, review of Once Upon a Marigold, p. 226.
Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, July-August, 1987, Zena Sutherland, review of Invincible Summer, p. 206; July-August, 1989, p. 274; February, 1991, p. 140; March, 1996, Deborah Stevenson, review of All That Glitters, p. 224.
Horn Book, January, 1999, review of Bad, p. 59, and Anne St. John, review of Love among the Walnuts, p. 60; November-December, 2001, Lauren Adams, review of Of Sound Mind, pp. 745-746; January-February, 2002, Jamie Bordeau, review of