Miscellaneous Fiction

The Kitchen Madonna

Author(s): 
Rumer Godden
This is a simple, lovely work, of fine literary quality, about a thoroughly modern brother and sister and their blunt Ukrainian maid, who feels out-of-place in London and misses having a "good place" in the kitchen. A good place, according to Marta is something like this: "In my home, Ukrainian home, we make a good place...A place on top of cupboard, perhaps, or perhaps on shelf. Little place but it holy because we keep there Our Lady and Holy Child." When questioned by the children, she explained further. It wasn't a statue and not a picture. "Like picture but more beautiful.

Past Suspicion

Book cover: 'Past Suspicion'
Author(s): 
Therese Heckencamp
ISBN # 1-59286-802-9

After the death of her mother, a young woman, Robin, must travel from her home in California to a small town in Wisconsin to live with an uncle she never knew existed. She is angry and determined to escape as soon as she turns eighteen, which will be very soon. Almost immediately upon her arrival mysterious things begin to happen. She moves into the room her mother lived in as a young woman and learns a lot about her mother by going through her things. Evidently her mother kept many other secrets, besides having a brother, from her.

Miracles on Maple Hill

Book cover: 'Miracles on Maple Hill'
Author(s): 
Virginia Sorenson
Marly and Joe (ages 10 and 12) are two siblings who have always lived in the city. They and their mother had endured the apparent loss of their father during wartime (unclear which war - perhaps Korean) only to discover that he had been a prisoner of war. The family is finally reunited, but their father has changed; he is bitter, touchy, angry, always tired.

Julie of the Wolves

Book cover: 'Julie of the Wolves'
Author(s): 
Jean Craighead George
Her Eskimo name is Miyax, her American name is Julie. She is journeying through the desolate North Slope of Alaska, from Barrow to Point Hope, and starving. There are no lemmings, which means there are no weasels, no white foxes, no snowy owls - in fact, no food that Miyax can catch with only a knife. Her only hope for survival, she feels, is to befriend the wolves, to become a member of their pack, and this she sets out to do.

Just David

Author(s): 
Eleanor Porter
Young David has grown up in an isolated cabin with his father (since his mother's death when he was only four) in a beautiful mountain setting. There, his father has given him an excellent but unusual education - he is fluent in several languages, knows a great deal about science and nature and plays the violin beautifully. His father has sheltered him from all evil and taught him only what is good and beautiful.

Homer Price

Book cover: 'Homer Price'
Author(s): 
Robert McCloskey
These clever and humorous stories of the adventures of a brainy, problem-solving small-town boy make great reading for grade-schoolers (especially boys) or a terrific read-aloud. This is suitable for rolling-on-the-floor type laughing (not terribly well-suited to bedtime!). A real classic! The sequel, Centerberg Tales is just as good. Older children may also appreciate allusions to liberal naming of townspeople after characters from the Iliad.

The Rose and Crown

Book cover: 'The Rose and Crown'
Author(s): 
Meriol Trevor
This fourth and final book in the Letzenstein Chronicles tells of young Toby who was found - lost and orphaned - by the eccentric and mysterious Raphael le Marre in a previous book. Raphael ("Raf") seems appropriately named after one of the archangels as he has a way of coming to the rescue of children in trouble and has in fact adopted (along with his wife) some 20 children of his own. In this story Raf brings Toby back to his relatives in London in order to decide his future. Toby has no interest in staying with anyone but Raf.

The Secret of Pooduck Island

Book cover: 'The Secret of Pooduck Island'
Author(s): 
Alfred Noyes
This is a story with many layers waiting to be discovered. On the surface, it's about a lonely boy who likes to spend time with his squirrel friends. The townspeople think him strange, but he is better understood by the priest. The squirrels and the boy have interesting adventures and the tale is engaging in itself. It's not hard to see, however, that there's more to the story than this - but what exactly is "the Secret"? An Indian with a beautiful old rosary and a very sad tale adds to the mystery.

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