Moon Over Manifest by Claire Vanderpool

7 Stars

"After a life of riding the rails with her father, 12-year-old Abilene can’t understand why he has sent her away to stay with Pastor Shady Howard in Manifest, Missouri, a town he left years earlier; but over the summer she pieces together his story. In 1936, Manifest is a town worn down by sadness, drought, and the Depression, but it is more welcoming to newcomers than it was in 1918, when it was a conglomeration of coal-mining immigrants who were kept apart by habit, company practice, and prejudice." (Taken from Amazon.com)

Continuing on my quest to read all the Newberry nominees for this year, I finally obtained a copy of the winner. I was planning to save it for last, but when you are waiting for books at the library, you take it them when they come your way. At first I wasn't sure why this book and not the previous two that I read was the winner. I found the story not very engaging towards the beginning but it quickly picked up. It was not a fast read in that I felt compelled to read it every second, but by the end of the book it had me thinking about the issues addressed. I also loved the way that the author wove the past and present together so beautifully. In all, it was a very beautifully written book and I would highly recommend it to anyone who is interested.

Turle in Paradise by Jennifer L. Holm

6 Stars

"Eleven-year-old Turtle is not one to suffer fools gladly. And she runs into a lot of fools, especially the no-goods her starry-eyed mother meets. So it's a tough little Turtle who arrives in Key West in June of 1935. She's been sent to Florida to stay with relatives because her mother's latest housekeeping job doesn't allow children. Unfortunately, Mama has neglected to tell Aunt Minnie she's coming, and Turtle gets the stink eye from cousins with monikers like Buddy and Beans. As Turtle soon learns, everything is different in Key West, from the fruit hanging on trees to the scorpions in nightgowns to the ways kids earn money. She can't be part of her cousins' Diaper Gang (no girls allowed), which takes care of fussy babies, but when she finds a treasure map, she hopes she'll be on Easy Street like Little Orphan Annie." (Taken from Amazon.com)

I'm not sure if this was Newberry material but I loved this book. It was a quick and humorous read but what I most liked about it was the setting. It is set in Key West and now I'm craving a trip to Florida. I loved the quirky characters and the cultural touches such as sponge fishing and "cut-ups." My mom lived in the Bahamas for a while when she was a little girl, and while she was not there during 1931, it still reminded me of what it must have felt like to be there. I love all the little quirks about the people and the town, such as the nicknames they were given, the freedom that kids had to wander about, the food they ate, and the way their lives depending on the marine life around them. I very much enjoyed this book though I'm not sure the issues and challenges the characters faced were quite Newberry material. I guess that is why it was an honor book and not a winner.