Ann Turner (1) (1945–)

READING LEVEL: 3.6 AR POINTS: 4

Sam White, the oldest of two sons of a pioneer family, tells the story of their travel from Kentucky to the Dakota Territory nine years after the Civil War, in 1874.

They left behind grandparents and good friends in search of a better life. The government was issuing 160-acres of land free to new settlers, as long as they planted 10-acres, built a house, and stayed for 5 years. The White's first year corn crop, along with everyone elses around them, including surrounding states, were wiped out by a grasshopper plaque. They borrowed money for the first time in their lives for seeds and supplies to try again the following year, but others left defeated.

I didn't think this was very well written, even for elementary aged kids. The author just jumps right into characters in the first sentence with no introductions. I'm a grown ass adult and was lost on what was going on and who was who for a chapter or two. The story later flowed a little better, but the author's got a strange way of wording her sentences which often left me with the question of...wait... what did I just read? And had to read it again.
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The grasshopper plague, was a real thing and occurred from 1873 to 1877, every summer destroying crops and eating pretty much everything in sight, from Minnesota, the Dakotas, and Iowa.… (altro)

: I read this as an adult last year, and was delighted at how swept back in time I felt. These books tend to have writing styles I really connect with. I grew up with this series, I'd say. This year, though, a month ago, I read "A Broken Flute," edited by Doris Seale. It's a critique of portrayals of Native Americans in childrens' media, and this book was one of the many examined. The review pointed out that this book is in no way historically accurate, and detailed why. I was stunned, ashamed I didn't know, and I so readily believed historical fiction without doing research of my own. This book takes place during an event that has negative effects to this day, and still hurts a lot of people. The author should have done far, far more research in order to portray such with the sensitivity it deserved. Better yet, this should have been written by someone of the community. This book, even last year, was one I planned to read only once. If I find out the Mary Driscoll one was also historically inaccurate, or the Oregon Trail one, I will be even sadder and more ashamed. Those were my two favorites, but I like nearly two dozen others. I'm doing a reread of the ones I liked, and will do more research on those time periods so I can know what really happened.… (altro)