编辑推荐:In this honest and moving novel, Martin (the Baby-Sitters Club series; P.S. Longer Letter Later) takes readers back to the era of the civil rights movement in the rural South to share the experiences of a poor white girl when her school becomes integrated. The author evokes the aura of hatred and fear permeating the small community of Coker Creek as skillfully as Belle Teal's empathy for her African-American classmate, Darryl. Martin sensitively captures the narrator's reactions to the events around her, such as when Belle Teal sees racist picketers outside of her school: "I feel my face grow warm, like I'm embarrassed, even though I haven't done anything." Besides feeling anger towards her insensitive classmates and their bigoted parents, the fifth-grade narrator resents a new rich girl named Vanessa (whom she dubs "HRH" for Her Royal Highness), who makes fun of the way she dresses. Yet the heroine learns some important lessons about not judging people by their appearances; she later learns a tragic secret that sheds some light on Vanessa. As well as capturing the climate of the early '60s, the author adroitly tackles timeless issues. Preteens will relate to Belle Teal, whose observations and realizations provide an eye-opening introduction to social and personal injustice. Ages 10-14.
内容简介:Ten year old Belle Teal Harper lives with her mother and grandmother in a small rural town in the early 1960s. Though they don't have much, Belle Teal feels rich with love and loyalty to her family and best friends, Clarice and Little Boss. As a new school year begins, Belle Teal faces unexpected challenges, including her grandmother's memory fading, her mother working longer hours to support the family, the bruises inflicted upon Little Boss by his father, and the two new students at her school: a shy African-American boy caught in the center of rampant prejudice and a girl who seems determined to taunt Belle Teal.
作者简介:Ann M. Martin, 1955 - Ann Mathews Martin was born on August 12, 1956 in Princeton, New Jersey. She graduated from Smith College and worked as a teacher, was an editor of children's books for both Bantam and Scholastic, and then became a full time writer.