A girl abandoned by her mother discovers the feeling of family
Pearl's mother, Ruby, just up and left her with Aunt Ivy, who's a complete stranger to Pearl. "Your mama's done gone off the deep end," Ivy says, and Pearl wonders if she'll ever come back - Ruby has always been wild and irresponsible. So Pearl is stuck with Aunt Ivy, and Moonpie, the neighbor boy whose mother doesn't want him, either, and John Dee, Aunt Ivy's Beau. But these three people seem to fit together like a jigsaw puzzle, in a way that Pearl can't comprehend, and she feels left out. As she starts to understand what connects them, and how much she wants to be a part of it, Ruby appears.
With a vividly depicted setting, emotional truth, and a distinctly Southern voice, Barbara O'Connor shows how Pearl develops a whole new notion of what she wants, and what she deserves.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
April 2, 2004 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9781466813021
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9781466813021
- File size: 124 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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March 1, 2001
Like O'Connor's Me and Rupert Goody, this novel set in the rural South features a spunky, independent heroine, a compassionate adult and a rival preteen peer who vies for that adult's affection. Twelve-year-old Pearl lands at her Aunt Ivy's door one day when Pearl's irresponsible mother, Ruby, decides she needs a break. As the sweltering summer progresses, Pearl grows to appreciate both Ivy and her odd-looking neighbor, 11-year-old Moonpie. Postcards that Pearl addresses to her absentee mother allow readers a glimpse into the girl's feelings and confusion, and Pearl learns a great deal about her mother and her roots through Ivy's and Moonpie's stories. Those who have read Rupert Goody may feel they have traveled this road before, but O'Connor's characters are just as eccentric and convincing as ever. Although the ending is ambiguous (Ruby returns, but is that good or bad?), readers cannot help but feel that resourceful Pearl will land on her feet and that Ivy is never far away. Ages 10-up. -
May 3, 2004
A 12-year-old lands at her aunt's door when her mother decides she needs a break. "This novel set in the rural South features a spunky, independent heroine, a compassionate adult and a rival preteen peer who vies for that adult's affection," wrote PW
. "O'Connor's characters are just as eccentric and convincing as ever." Ages 10-up.
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