Overview / 简介: |
| The summer Hattie turns 12, her predictable smalltown life is turned on end when her uncle Adam returns home for the first time in over ten years. Hattie has never met him, never known about him. He's been institutionalized; his condition invovles schizophrenia and autism.Hattie, a shy girl who prefers the company of adults, takes immediately to her excitable uncle, even when the rest of the family -- her parents and grandparents -- have trouble dealing with his intense way of seeing the world. And Adam, too, sees that Hattie is special, that her quiet, shy ways are not a disability. |
From Organization / 国外机构评价: |
| Grade 5-8-Watching home movies, Hattie looks back over the summer of 1960 and the events that changed her perception of life. The 12-year-old has difficulty making friends her own age, but enjoys the company of an elderly boarder, the friendly cook, and her artist father. Her relationship with her mother is sometimes difficult because they must always negotiate clothing and behavior to suit her wealthy, overbearing maternal grandmother. Suddenly, an uncle whom Hattie has never heard of comes to live with her grandparents because his school has closed. Although she is totally shocked at the existence of this rapidly babbling, Lucille Ball-quoting, calendar-savant child in a man's body, Hattie comes to appreciate his affection for her, his exuberance for life, and his courage in facing society's rejection. When she suggests that he sneak out to join her for a night of fun at a carnival, tragedy ensues. Hattie's narration is clear and appealing. Her recollection of the smallest of behaviors shows that each family member has felt both love and pain for her uncle, but could not express it. As she comes to understand what Uncle Adam meant when he spoke of being able to lift the corners of our universe, she is hopeful that her family can learn to heal and communicate. Martin delivers wonderfully real characters and an engrossing plot through the viewpoint of a girl who tries so earnestly to connect with those around her. This is an important story, as evocative on the subject of mental illness as Ruth White's Memories of Summer (Farrar, 2000). |
Foreign Customer Review / 国外客户评价: |
| Hattie's universe is permanently altered the summer she turns twelve, when for the first time she meets her 21-year-old mentally ill Uncle Adam, of whom no one in the family had ever mentioned previously. His presence disrupts the orderly life of her wealthy and controlling grandparents, who are left with no other option than to accept him back into their home when his school closes. Hattie, an introspective only child with few friends, feels alternately enchanted by Adam's childlike exuberance and concerned that she might be somehow "like him." She becomes protective of him as she witnesses the cruel reaction of those who deem him a "freak."
Ann Martin's authentic writing takes us back to 1960 with such details as rickrack as a fashion statement, nylons and garter belts, and "Dobie Gillis." Her sympathetic treatment of the characters draws the reader into this poignant story, earning a well-deserved Newbery honor for 2003.
Though the reading level is listed as 9-12, I would offer a caution that the emotional content is rather mature for this age group. I consider this appropriate for middle school and older. Younger readers might find Betsy Byars' "The Summer of the Swans," a book with similar themes, to be a bit more emotionally on target. |
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