Frances O'Roark Dowell is the bestselling and critically acclaimed author of Dovey Coe, which won the Edgar Award and the William Allen White Award; Where I'd Like to Be; The Secret Language of Girls and its sequels The Kind of Friends We Used to Be and The Sound of Your Voice, Only Really Far Away; Chicken Boy; Shooting the Moon, which was awarded the Christopher Award; the Phineas L. MacGuire series; Falling In; The Second Life of Abigail Walker, which received three starred reviews; Anybody Shining; Ten Miles Past Normal; Trouble the Water; the Sam the Man series; The Class; How to Build a Story; and most recently, Hazard. She lives with her family in Durham, North Carolina. Connect with Frances online at FrancesDowell.com.
* ...strong narration and the child's struggle with forgiveness
make for poignant, aching drama.-- "Booklist, starred review"
* This is a refreshingly well-written encounter with richly
developed and well-defined characters whom readers won't soon
forget.-- "School Library Journal, STAR"
* Tobin's own blossoming, through friendship, and the rediscovery
of his family, and the love for and of his chickens, is entirely
satisfying--just right.-- "Kirkus Reviews, STAR"
Gr 4-7-Tobin McCauley begins the seventh grade out of step with the rest of the world in Frances O'Roark Dowell's novel (Atheneum, 2005). Unexpectedly forming a bond with the new kid, Henry, introduces Tobin to Henry's "chickens have souls" philosophy, the delights of chicken raising, and the richness of having a friend. Tobin, whose mom died five years ago, lives with his father and siblings, but his dad is uncommunicative and often absent, so he spends plenty of time at his unconventional and absentminded Granny's house. Everything seems to be working out for Tobin and he's even figured out a way to make this awkward home situation work. Then Granny decides she wants custody of Tobin, and he ends up in foster care while the courts decide his fate. The characters are well defined, and the writing is both simple and evocative. Narrating in a slow Southern drawl, Stephen Hoye does a fine job of drawing out the nuances of the characters with different inflections and quirks for each one. A good choice for both public and school libraries.-Charli Osborne, Oxford Public Library, MI Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.
* ...strong narration and the child's struggle with forgiveness
make for poignant, aching drama.-- "Booklist, starred review"
* This is a refreshingly well-written encounter with richly
developed and well-defined characters whom readers won't soon
forget.-- "School Library Journal, STAR"
* Tobin's own blossoming, through friendship, and the rediscovery
of his family, and the love for and of his chickens, is entirely
satisfying--just right.-- "Kirkus Reviews, STAR"
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