it's a story with a lot of promise. two best friends, living in an orphanage in italy at the end of WWII, both looking for a family. however, for me, the book just fell flat. the characters felt hollow, and the book itself was not engaging at all. everything was too simplified. how convenien...
When a Vietnamese girl receives a visit from her half-American aunt, brimming curiosity — and cultural misperceptions — come to the fore.Every day nine-year-old Binh sells fruit and sodas to the girls whose families can afford to send them to school, and every night she returns to her one-room ho...
"A sensitive portrayal of a family in Thailand. . . . This gracefully told story will resonate with many young readers." — BOOKLIST (starred review)Eleven-year-old Noi is learning to paint like her grandmother. She and her older sister, Ting, spend many rapt hours in the jungle watching as Kun Ya...
"A quiet, lyrical story that sensitively explores issues of friendship and being true to oneself." — SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL When Mina, a self-professed "girlie-girl," discovers that she excels at track, her friends are as surprised as she is, especially competitive Ruth. Even more surprising is ...
Mami paces. She’s so upset about my becoming a miner that she doesn’t say a thing about my reading a Janosik comic at the table. When the soup grows cold and there’s still no sign of Tati, Mami sets the pot on the stove and covers it with a lid. The three of us go to the couch, but none of us fli...
Alicia called, jumping up and down on the path near Frog Heaven. She wore a very short yellow skirt, and her hair was tied back with a matching ribbon. Rosalba waved. Little did Alicia know how hard it had been to come! Not wanting to hurt her friend’s feelings, she decided not to mention Papa’s ...
Stay away from the windows!” He sat up sleepily, but then his eyes opened wide at the sound of gunfire. He rushed into the front room to see Baba standing to one side of a window, pulling the curtain back, peering out. Mama had barricaded herself behind a table turned on its side. The tablecloth ...
Blood seeped through the cloth, and Lan limped to her spot on the sleeping mat. Tinh bit his lip. “I’m sorry, Lan,” he said. “I should have gotten up from the sand faster.” Lan, as though to forgive him, laid a hand on his shoulder. Tinh lay down beside her. But he couldn’t sleep with the wind ro...