2013 Rebecca Caudill nominee. This was a story about fourteen year old Jackson Jones who lives next door to his cousins and a 300 tree apple orchard. One day the owner of the apple orchard challenged him that if he took care of the apple orchard for a whole year and paid her $8,000 from selling the apples he would be given the orchard. The owner is an elderly lady whose husband had passed away and she seemed to want to make this deal with Jackson to get back at her son for not helping her with the orchard. The story chronicles the year and how Jackson strives to meet the goal without letting anyone know what he is doing. I thought it was a good book but it didn't keep my interest. I don’t think many kids will be excited about reading the book. I look far and wide for books that show rural kids and teenagers. So many books, especially for teens, take place in major cities or at private schools, but that is as foreign to the students in my school as a book set in Europe or Africa or Asia. It's nice to find a good story that involves a background that is at least similar enough to my students' experiences growing up in a rural, apple producing area. I know that regardless of what the setting is, a book can speak to its reader. However, it is also nice for readers to see their lives displayed in books. Fun read.
What do You think about Year Money Grew On Trees (2010)?
I just don't see kids liking this book. I was a little bored by the minutiae.
—ebony
Lots of very interesting details and a story that made me care about it.
—Shiver
Persistent kids... background on growth of apple trees.
—RobinKnight
