Little Sure Shot by Matt Ralphs

Annie lives in Ohio. Her real name is Phoebe Anne Mosey. She lives with her Pa, Ma, four older sisters, a baby sister and a young brother. They are poor but surviving and this is a loving family. Annie is a little different from her siblings because she loves to go out with Pa hunting and he can see she has skill so he is teaching her, even though she is only six, to load his gun and how to shoot wild animals to give the family food. 

Pa sets out one day with grain for the Mill but on his return journey the weather takes a terrible turn and Pa arrives home frozen and desperately unwell. The family all try to keep him alive in the hope that he might recover but sadly, after a few months Pa dies. Things now become desperate and so Ma is forced to give her baby to a childless couple and then she decides Annie will need to go to the Infirmary. Luckily the people there are kind and Annie can eat well and have some freedom but all of this is cut short when a farmer requests a girl to come and help his wife with her new baby. Annie does not want to go but there is a promise of $2 to be sent to her Ma each week. 

Mr and Mrs Grace are despicable people. They starve Annie and beat her but she stays and tries to survive in this horrible place because she knows the money will be helping her family. Little does she know (spoiler alert) no money is actually being sent. Eventually the violence becomes so bad that Annie runs away back to the Infirmary. Now her luck and fortunes change. Annie is very skilled with a gun and this comes to the attention of a local butcher. He enters her in shooting competitions and she begins to win some money - enough money to help her family. Then Annie comes to the attention of a hotel owner and he takes her to see a sharp shooter called Frank Butler. From there she goes on to meet Chief Sitting Bull (yes this really did happen to Annie Oakley) and later Buffalo Bill or Wild Bill Cody. She joins his show with her new husband Frank Butler and she then travels all over the US, Canada and even Europe.  

Publisher blurb: Annie’s family work hard to survive on their Ohio farm. Annie’s happiest when hunting game with her pa, and she doesn’t care one bit that it’s not the kind of thing girls are meant to do. When tragedy strikes, the family is thrown into deepest poverty. Until one day, Annie dares to pick up Pa’s old rifle, and find a way to feed her starving family. As the family’s fortunes worsen, Annie is sent away to work, and life becomes an ever greater struggle. Yet Annie has the courage and pluck to survive – and her brilliance with a rifle starts to gain her more than just turkeys for the pot. Can Annie’s amazing skills take her all the way to fame and fortune?

Little Sure Shot is the story of Annie Oakley but readers will not know this until the final pages and the Afterword. I really enjoyed this story of courage and survival. As a young reader I loved books set in the pioneering days of the US such as the Little House books and Children of the Oregon Trail. Readers who enjoy stories about real people are sure to enjoy meeting Annie. I was totally caught up in her story. I sat down to read a few chapters of Little Sure Shot just after breakfast today and I then I kept reading right to the end (287 pages).

I do need to give a warning - the book is filled with guns and shooting and also the domestic violence in the scenes with Mr and Mrs Grace are very distressing. I would recommend this book for mature readers aged 11+.

Shot-through with courage and adventure, Ralphs’ rendering of Oakley’s incredible rags-to-riches story is an inspiration. Love Reading4Kids

Read more about Annie Oakley:

National Women's History Museum

History.com

Companion read:

May B: A novel

Matt Ralphs is the author of Fire Girl and Fire Witch - two books which totally engrossed me. Little Sure Shot is very different in setting and style but it is just as engrossing. 

Waiting for Anya by Michael Morpurgo

The setting for this book is the village in Lescun in France. This is a small town located near the Spanish border. The location is so important because from here one man, with the help of a network, is smuggling Jewish children across the border to safety. No one in the village knows about this until Jo stumbles on the remote farm house where he finds a small shoe and sees two little eyes peeking out at him from behind a haystack in the barn.

Jo is charged by Widow Horcada to keep this vital secret but then the German soldiers arrive in the village and the danger escalates.

"Jo was so occupied with this thoughts as he made his way home that he took no notice at all of the empty, silent streets; but as he reached the Square his thoughts were rudely interrupted. The whole village was standing hushed and unmoving like mourners at a funeral. ... An armoured truck stood in the centre of the Square with four soldiers in black uniforms and shining helmets sitting erect in the back of it."

This book was first published in 1990 but it is still available. I picked up a copy at a recent charity book sale. Right up until page 160 of the 170 pages I was ready to list this book for Middle Grade readers then the story events took a terrible turn and I can see why this book was listed as an ALA Best Book for Young Adults. I vividly remember the first "children's book" I read where a loved character was killed. Spoiler alert - the final scenes when young Hubert is shot could be very distressing for some students and even worse Benjamin and little Leah are captured and later we learn they perish in Auschwitz. This book is so short that you might think it is a junior book about WWII but recommend mature readers aged 11+. Here is the web site for Michael Morpurgo. Listen to an audio sample here. You can read a generous text extract here. Michael Morpurgo has written many other books with a WWII setting. 

I included lots of covers above because I do think it is interesting to discuss cover designs with students. Waiting for Anya was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal and Guardian Fiction award.

While harrowing journeys like these have become familiar, this particular story achieves special resonance in its depiction of the innocent and guilty living side by side, settling into uneasy alliances and learning the lessons of war that leave none untouched. Kirkus

In 2020 this book was made into a movie.

Companion books for middle grade readers:

Belle and Sebastien

The Little Riders

What about Me?

Beyond Belief

Blended by Sharon M Draper

"When I play the piano, I rock! It would be nice if the rest of my life came together like some kind of magical musical symphony. But, nah, not usually."

"Daddy ... Do you think people think I'm Black or white when they see me? Am I Black? Or white?"

Eleven year old Izzy/Isabella has a lot to cope with in her daily life. Dad is Black, mum is white. Mum and Dad are now divorced. The judge at the court, a man who has never met Izzy, says she must live one week with Dad and one week with Mum. This means Izzy constantly has to juggle her possessions, bedrooms, rules, relationships and even her identity. Dad now lives with Anastasia and her son Darren. Mum now lives with John Mark.  Izzy gets on well with Anastasia and especially well with Darren and she really likes John Mark but Mum and Dad cannot stop fighting especially on change-over day which happens every week.

Her one consolation is music. Isabella has real talent and passion. She is preparing for a big concert and when she practices the problems of every day life disappear. At school, though, the students are faced with some difficult conversations about race and injustice. Izzy experiences aspects of this in her daily life because she is mixed.  

This book packs a wallop right at the end - do not jump ahead but be prepared to stay for the whole ride because even though you might guess something dramatic might happen I guarantee you will not, in a million years, guess this ending.

I loved the honesty of Isabella as she navigates her complex life. I want to thank Darren for the kindness and love he gives to Izzy. And I would love a set of Mum's t-shirts - they sure are fun. If you look at the labels I have assigned this post you will see the way this Middle Grade novel (I would say for ages 10+) explores so many important issues. I do love the cover but don't be fooled into thinking this is a gentle story. 

Most people have probably already seen Blended especially in the US but I had to wait for the paperback copy to arrive here in Australia.  Hardcover US novels are way too expensive ($41!). 

You can hear Sharon M Draper reading a few pages of her book from Chapter One here. Here is the piece Izzy has been preparing for her big concert - Sonatina in C Major, op. 36, no. 1 by Clementi. When Izzy's dad proposes to Anastasia a man in the restaurant comes across with a violin to play this piece by Mendelssohn. Read this review by Ms Yingling for more plot details. Here is an interview with Sharon M Draper about her book. Colby Sharp talks about Blended. 

What begins as the story of a lively young piano player caught between two new families inexorably becomes a piercing interrogation of everyday racism that culminates in a terrifying, all-too-believable confrontation ... Kirkus Star review

I am a huge fan of Sharon M Draper.  Take a look at these books:

Stella by Starlight

Out of my Mind

After reading Blended you might look for The Watson's go to Birmingham by Christopher Paul Curtis or One Crazy Summer. 

One Crazy Summer

Talking to Alaska by Anna Woltz translated by Laura Watkinson

 

Parker has a very special dog. Her name is Alaska. 

"I've been missing her for four months now, so during the daytime it feels almost normal for her not to be there. I'm used to the dog-shaped hole at home. I know I don't need to be careful with the door any more, and all the blankets covered in white hairs went into the washing machine ages ago. But at night I dream about her."

When I read this I was sure Alaska had died. Luckily this is not the case but I really don't want to say too much more about what has happened except to say Alaska now has a new owner called Sven. Just why Sven has Alaska; how Sven needs Alaska; what has happened to Parker's father; and how Parker can get close to her beloved dog once again are questions I cannot answer - you need to read this book. Actually I am going to shout that YOU NEED TO READ THIS BOOK.

Told in alternating chapters between the two characters, this is a heartfelt story about understanding others. It’s a relatively short read, but Anna Woltz packs a lot in, including themes of bullying, trauma, and coping with life-altering situations, while the characters make unexpected discoveries about friendship – and a special discovery about Alaska too. Book Trust

The review from Book Trust also includes an interview with Anna Woltz about her book.

Every few weeks I visit Beachside Bookshop in Sydney and I pick up some advance reader copies of books for Primary school aged children.  I never really know what I am going to get. It's a bit like the scene in Forest Gump when he says “My mom always said life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get.”  I would change this to "A book can be like a box of chocolates. You never know what's inside until you open it up."

Talking to Alaska was one of the first books I picked up to read from my last set. I loved the cover - I'm sure you do too. Then I discovered this was a translated book and I adore discovering those. As a bonus I read Talking to Alaska won the most prestigious literary prize for Dutch children's books - the Zilveren Griffel which goes part of the way to explaining how it came to be translated into English.  Then I opened up the book and met Parker and I fell in love. I also discovered Anna Woltz uses alternating voices in her story which is a style of writing I really enjoy.

The hardcover edition of this book is now available and the paperback will be released early in May. The Publisher has the delightful name -  Rock the Boat.

Here are the Dutch, Hungarian and German covers:

If you look at my labels for this post you will see this book is about epilepsy, violence, fear, and of course dogs. We talk about genres for books. I think there needs to be a new genre - the heartfelt dog story. Here are some beautiful dog stories that I suggest are companion reads to go with Talking to Alaska:

One Dog and his Boy

A Handful of Stars

Too small to Fail

When friendship followed me home

Almost home

Because of Winn Dixie

Love that dog

The Dollar Kids by Jennifer Richard Jacobson

Lowen draws cartoons. With a lot of practice he has become very skilled. He and his family live in a city apartment building. Across the hall lives a younger boy called Abe.  Abe likes to visit Lowen and watch him draw. Abe always has lots of questions and comments and suggestions but often Lowen just wants to get on with his work - alone! Lowen knows Abe loves twizzlers. Lowen gives Abe some money and tells him to go to the store and buy some. Abe is gone for a long time then Lowen's mum arrives with the utterly shocking news that Abe has been shot and killed.

Lowen is wracked with grief. He sees an advertisement for one dollar houses in a little town called Millville. The town are selling five rundown houses for one dollar each as a way to boost their falling school enrollments and as a way to add players to the various sport teams in the town.

"It seemed like a way out. If they moved, he wouldn't have to walk past the Siskins' door every day. He would no longer be tricked into thinking that Abe was going to pop out at any minute. He would no longer have to hear Mrs Siskin crying."

Dad is keen to move because he is training to be a doctor and wants to help people in less affluent areas. Mum is keen to move because she has a dream of opening a restaurant to sell Cornish pasties. Clem is open to the idea of moving because he loves sports and he thinks in this small town he can rise to be a star. Anneth, Lowen's sister, does not want to move. She will miss her friends and shops and social life.

The family make the move knowing there are conditions. After all how can a house only cost one dollar? How will the community receive them? Will Lowen ever recover? Can he take a risk and make new friends?

The house:

"The kitchen cabinets had doors, but they were ill-fitting, crooked. Two of the cupboard doors had come off ... the floor was a patchwork of bare wood and linoleum. ... They passed through the dining room, which had water spots on the ceiling and floor ... the bathroom had black grunge growing on the walls, and several of the shower tiles had fallen off."

The town:

"What was the word Lowen was looking for? Downtroddenness. Former stores and businesses were boarded up. And even those still in business ... were all in desperate need of paint. The spotty patches of grass in front of the stores needed mowing; the garbage needed picking up."

The mill:

"This spot afforded them the best view of the mill, or what used to be a mill. Here again, what had looked so proud and shiny on the website now looked decrepit. It was an enormous tangle of boxy structures, pipes, and vaporless smokestacks - a breathless giant."

Early one evening this week I picked up The Dollar Kids intending to read a chapter or two. I ended up reading late into the night and then I finished the whole book (400 pages) by mid morning.  This book engulfed me.

Here is an example of the graphic novel  pages by Ryan Andrews which appear in this book. I hesitate to call it a graphic novel because less than 20 pages use this format.

Jacobson insightfully examines the dynamics of small-town life and strategies for revitalization as well as the landscape of Lowen’s complex grief and survivor’s guilt. The story incorporates Lowen’s graphic-novel panels contemplating his feelings about his deceased friend, Abe,whom he calls “the unseen force,” …  A rich, thoughtful exploration of individual and community resilience. Kirkus

Jacobson manages to tell an excellently nuanced story of all sorts of after-lives—after death, after failure, after loss, afterwards.Bulletin of the Centre for Children’s Books

This was a great look at a different type of life that will be new and informative for many readers. The Grovers are struggling financially, although they were doing okay in the city. The family bonding because of the move was interesting, and the reality of setting up a restaurant was fun to read. The reaction of the townspeople was also intriguing, and the story moved at a decent pace. … the story of small town life is such a fantastic one that I can't wait to hand it to my readers. Ms Yingling

If I haven't convinced you to READ THIS BOOK! then take a look at this personal insight by Jennifer on the Nerdy Book Club page.

Listen to an audio sample here.  I loved a previous book by Jennifer Richard Jacobson - Paper Things.

I would follow The Dollar Kids with Each Little bird that Sings.