Saturday, August 6, 2011

Bird in a Box by Andrea Davis Pinkney

Bird in a Box by Andrea Davis Pinkney
Little, Brown
2011
278p.

In 1936, three children meet at the Mercy Home for Negro Orphans in New York State, and while not all three are orphans, they are all dealing with grief and loss which together, along with the help of a sympathetic staff member and the boxing matches of Joe Louis, they manage to overcome. Includes author's notes.

1 comment:

  1. A strong book--I enjoyed the setting (1930s upstate New York, orphanage, mostly) and the backdrop of Joe Louis's fights. Gave a lot of great background about how African-Americans rallied around Joe Louis and saw his achievements as theirs--very moving.

    The book was strong in presenting the sadness of the 3 orphans, and how they found each other as well as a way to survive & thrive.

    I'm still mulling whether I feel this one's strong enough to win. I enjoyed it; I think there was a lot to learn & savor here, but I didn't feel the characters lived as strongly in my mind as May Amelia in Holm's latest book. May have something to do w/ 3 protagonists instead of 1...So I'm giving thought to this & haven't decided yet how I would vote if I were on the committee. Part of me feels like my winner's still out there.

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