E-book
Getting near to baby
Record details
- ISBN: 9781101064757 (electronic bk.)
- ISBN: 1101064757 (electronic bk.)
- ISBN: 9781101076194 (electronic bk.)
- ISBN: 1101076194 (electronic bk.)
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Physical Description:
electronic resource
remote
1 online resource (211 p.) - Publisher: New York : Puffin Books, 2001.
Content descriptions
| Awards Note: | Winner of the 2000 Newbery Honor Book. |
| Source of Description Note: | Description based on print version record. |
Search for related items by subject
| Genre: | Electronic books. Fiction. Juvenile works. |
Electronic resources
- Book Report : The Book Report Reviews 2000 March-April
Willa Jo and her young sister climb onto the roof of their aunt and uncle's house as the sun is rising. As the neighborhood awakens, they attract the attention of their aunt and uncle and their neighbors, who are vividly described. As the day evolves, the story of Willa Jo and Little Sister is gradually revealed to the reader. After the death of the baby of the family and the desertion of the father, the mother temporarily cannot care for her two daughters. Well-meaning Aunt Patty swoops in to take care of the pair and brings them into her home, which is so different from the home they have left. Missing their mother and their youngest sister, the girls try to adapt to a new home. With the day ending and the arrival of their mother, the two sisters find their reason to be on the roof and also realize that it is time to come down. Readers will know they have read a tender and satisfying book. Recommended. Linden Dennis, Library Media Specialist, Dennis Middle School, Richmond, Indiana [Editor's Note: Getting Near to Baby is a 2000 Newbery Medal Honor book.] Frank, Lucy © 2000 Linworth Publishing, Inc. - Booklist Reviews : Booklist Monthly Selections - #1 November 1999
Gr. 5^-9. When their baby sister dies and their mother slips into a depression, 12-year-old Willa Jo and Little Sister are taken to live with their mother's older sister. Aunt Patty is a take-charge kind of person--good-hearted but bossy. It doesn't take long for Willa Jo, herself an older sister, to get fed up her with her aunt's ideas of what's good for her nieces. That's not why the girls wind up out on the roof, but it may be why they refuse to come back into the house. Don't ask Little Sister for the answer, though; she stopped talking when Baby died. No amount of cajoling will force her to speak, but Willa Jo is eloquent enough for both. Set in North Carolina, the story is told in Willa Jo's distinctly Southern voice, a treat to hear but sometimes too adult to believe. The characters are credible, though, engaging and multidimensional. So is their grief and the ways they deal with it so they can, once again, get "near to Baby." Couloumbis' first novel wears its heart on one sleeve and its humor on the other. Together, they make a splendid fit. ((Reviewed November 1, 1999)) Copyright 2000 Booklist Reviews - Horn Book Guide Reviews : Horn Book Guide Reviews 2000 Spring
Ever since well-meaning but bossy Aunt Patty swooped in and declared Mama unable to care for the girls, headstrong Willa Jo has struggled with her, followed everywhere by Little Sister, who ""hasn't said word one since Baby died."" Plainly worded but evocative descriptions give life to the characters and tender poignancy to even simple observations in a story that honors the importance of finding one's own way through grief.Copyright 2000 Horn Book Guide Reviews - Horn Book Magazine Reviews : Horn Book Magazine Reviews 1999 #6
As the novel opens, Willa Jo is sitting on the roof watching the sunrise-"a thin rim of orange-red, so deep and strong my heart almost breaks with the fierceness of that color." Little Sister sits beside her; she follows Willa Jo everywhere and "hasn't said word one since Baby died." Aunt Patty is horrified to discover the girls on the roof, and Willa Jo can't even give her a reason for being there. The story unfolds by moving backward from this point, but only a piece at a time. First, to the day the girls arrive at Aunt Patty's, where no one uses the front door and you only walk on the plastic runners laid over the carpet. Several chapters on, Willa Jo recalls the days at home with Mama after Baby died, when the house was a shambles and they kept irregular hours, but found some solace in sleeping all together and watching the sun rise and set each day-until Aunt Patty swoops in and declares Mama unable to care for the girls and in need of rest. The measured pace of the narrative suits the Southern summer setting of some thirty years ago and allows ample time for getting acquainted with reflective, headstrong Willa Jo; silent Little Sister, always watching carefully for clues to understanding why someone dies; and well-meaning but insufferably bossy Aunt Patty. Willa Jo cracks, "It wasn't enough Aunt Patty had her own opinion, she liked to have everyone else's, too." But Willa Jo is a solid match for Aunt Patty, walking out on the horrible Bible school camp Patty sends them to and choosing her own friends from the Finger children across the way, who Patty says are "let to run wild." Throughout Willa Jo's struggles with Aunt Patty, there are signs of the terrible tragedy that has befallen the family, but only toward the end of the book does Willa Jo's narrative take us back to the day that Baby died (from drinking tainted water at a carnival). When we finally meet the sweet, curly-haired toddler, we know her death will break our hearts along with her family's. The author's plainly worded but evocative descriptions give life to the characters and tender poignancy to even simple observations, like the "sweet curve" of a child's neck that makes Willa Jo "miss Baby something fierce." Patty's misguided attempts at social improvement and the girls' lively new friendship with the Finger family lend some lightness to the story, which above all honors the importance of finding one's own way through grief. l.a. Copyright 1999 Horn Book Reviews - Kirkus Reviews : Kirkus Reviews 1999 September #2
Couloumbis's debut carries a family through early stages of grief with grace, sensitivity, and a healthy dose of laughter. In the wake of Baby's sudden death, the three Deans remaining put up no resistance when Aunt Patty swoops in to take away 12-year-old Willa Jo and suddenly, stubbornly mute JoAnn, called ``Little Sister,'' in the misguided belief that their mother needs time alone. Well-meaning but far too accustomed to getting her way, Aunt Patty buys the children unwanted new clothes, enrolls them in a Bible day camp for one disastrous day, and even tries to line up friends for them. While politely tolerating her hovering, the two inseparable sisters find their own path, hooking up with a fearless, wonderfully plainspoken teenaged neighbor and her dirt-loving brothers, then, acting on an obscure but ultimately healing impulse, climbing out onto the roof to get a bit closer to Heaven, and Baby. Willa Jo tells the tale in a nonlinear, back-and-forth fashion that not only prepares readers emotionally for her heartrending account of Baby's death, but also artfully illuminates each character's depths and foibles; the loving relationship between Patty and her wiser husband Hob is just as complex and clearly drawn as that of Willa Jo and Little Sister. Lightening the tone by poking gentle fun at Patty and some of her small-town neighbors, the author creates a cast founded on likable, real-seeming people who grow and change in response to tragedy. (Fiction. 11-13) Copyright 1999 Kirkus Reviews - Library Journal Reviews : LJ Reviews 1999 December #1
Gr 6-8-When their baby sibling dies, two sisters are sent to stay with their domineering Aunt Patty. A poignant and uplifting novel told from a child's wise and down-to-earth perspective. (Oct.) Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information. - Publishers Weekly Reviews : PW Reviews 2001 July #3
"Couloumbis deftly constructs an intricate montage of thoughts and memories from the perspective of 12-year-old Willa Jo Dean who, with Little Sister, mourns the death of their baby sister," said PW in a starred review. Ages 10-14. (Aug.)n Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information. - Publishers Weekly Reviews : PW Reviews 1999 September #2
In her first novel for children, Couloumbis deftly constructs an intricate montage of thoughts and memories from the perspective of 12-year-old Willa Jo Dean who, with Little Sister, mourns the death of their baby sister. As the story opens, Willa Jo and Little Sister are sitting on the roof, ignoring their Aunt Patty's orders to come down. Over the course of a single day, Willa Jo, from her high perch, mulls over the events of the past few weeks: her mother's depression, Little Sister's refusal to talk and Aunt Patty's efforts to make things right by taking the girls into her home. But Aunt Patty and her nieces don't see things the same way. Willa Jo and Little Sister would rather play with the children across the street (dirty "mole rats," in Aunt Patty's opinion) than attend Bible School or associate with the socially acceptable daughters of Aunt Patty's friends. The tension rises until Uncle Hob, in his soft-spoken way, forms a bridge of understanding that unites them all. Willa Jo's narrative, with its subtle cadences of a Southern drawl, achieves a child's sense of the timelessness of long summer days stretching before her. Coloumbis infuses the heroine's voice with an elegiac quality, even as the child's humor and determination to keep up Little Sister's spirits shine through. The tale of this one day on the roof chronicles the changes in the other three characters as much as the changes in Willa Jo, and the combined strength of this unforgettable cast of characters leaves a lasting and uplifting impression. Ages 10-up. (Sept.) Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information. - School Library Journal Reviews : SLJ Reviews 1999 October
Gr 6-8-A touching examination of grief and healing, of the affects of a tragedy on a family, and of loss and acceptance. Willa Jo Dean, one week shy of her 13th birthday, crawls onto the roof of Aunt Patty's house to watch the sunrise. Little Sister follows her, as always. Much to Aunt Patty's chagrin, the sisters stay on the roof, ignoring her pleas and threats to come down. The novel encompasses one day's sunrise to sunset. In a series of flashbacks, Willa Jo tells of the death of Baby from drinking tainted water at a carnival, of their mother's blaming herself and incapacitating grief, and of Little Sister's refusal to talk. The girls have been taken to their aunt's house, where they have spent an uncomfortable three weeks, missing their mother, their baby sister, and being at odds with the well-intentioned yet bossy and humorless Aunt Patty. By day's end, the girls are reunited with their mother, reconciled with their aunt, and realize that death is not to be feared, that life is short, and that love brings healing. Couloumbis's writing is strong; she captures wonderfully the Southern voices of her characters and conveys with great depth powerful emotions. Indeed, this is a book about feelings and relationships, and the reverent tone and child-focused attempts to understand the unknowable ring true in a deeply satisfying manner. While the lack of action as well as the nonchronological flashbacks may prove a challenge for some youngsters, this is a compelling novel that will speak to special readers.-Connie Tyrrell Burns, Mahoney Middle School, South Portland, ME Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information. - School Library Journal Reviews : SLJ Reviews 1999 December
Gr 6-8-When their baby sibling dies, two sisters are sent to stay with their domineering Aunt Patty. A poignant and uplifting novel told from a child's wise and down-to-earth perspective. (Oct.) Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information. - Voice of Youth Advocates Reviews : VOYA Reviews 2000 February
Thirteen-year-old Willa Jo and eight-year-old Little Sister, who now refuses to talk, are mourning the sudden, stinging loss of their toddler sister, Baby. When Aunt Patty discovers that the girls' mother, previously deserted by their father, seemsunable to cope with the death, she takes the girls to live temporarily with her and Uncle Hob. Willa Jo, contrary and critical of her aunt, regularly climbs out on the roof with Little Sister to "get near to Baby." Eventually Uncle Hob manages tobreak through to the girls and set them on the path to recovery. Couloumbis has a knack for perception and concise description, saving the book after a rather ho-hum beginning and allowing it to come to a relatively satisfying conclusion. The scene in which Baby dies, a result of accidentally drinking taintedwater at a carnival, is especially powerful, poignant, and startling. The frustrating situation of an aunt trying to assist in the face of tragedy is reminiscent of Suzanne Freeman's The Cuckoo's Child (Greenwillow, 1996), while the suddenness andintensity of Baby's loss is similar to the sibling death in You Take the High Road by Mary Pershall (Dial, 1989/VOYA February 1990). Both of these are superior works, yet Getting Near to Baby evokes a mood and sensitivity that makes this author'sfirst try for young people a worthwhile read.-Diane Tuccillo.Getting Near to Baby is best described as limp. Although dealing with the death of a young child is an important subject, Couloumbis manages to make it horrifically boring. I found the characters difficult to relate to and unrealistic, and could notimagine anybody I know acting like them. The writing is fairly good but run-of-the-mill. I would not recommend this novel.-Erin Hutchinson, Teen Reviewer. Copyright 2000 Voya Reviews
