bookshelf

STEPPING ON THE CRACKS

Name: STEPPING ON THE CRACKS
Author: Mary Downing Hahn
ISBN: 0547076606

by Mary Downing Hahn ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1991

bookshelf

It's late 1944; Margaret and friend Elizabeth, 12, are hoping that their brothers, who until recently were at the local high school, will be home from Europe for Christmas. Meanwhile, tracking their archenemy, bully Gordy, they discover that his older brother Stuart is hiding in the woods near their Maryland community of College "Hill" (a.k.a. Park). The girls are outraged because Stu is a deserter, but as they learn about his family's circumstances—his alcoholic father is violently abusive; thoughtful, scholarly Stu is a pacifist out of deep conviction—they gain sympathy for his stand. Gordy hasn't been able to bring Stu enough food, and, as winter deepens, he contracts pneumonia; reluctantly, Gordy accepts the girls' help, and they bring in another neighbor—a young war widow Stu's age—to get Stu desperately needed medical care. In the end, Stu is discovered because he chooses to confront his father in the hopes of saving the rest of his family. HIS father almost kills him; Margaret is left to make peace with her conventional parents, just when they are grieving for her brother, killed in action. Like Theresa Nelson's And One retail (1989), about the Vietnam era, Hahn's story re-creates the tensions and moral climate of its period in authentic detail. Subtly portraying the contrasting attitudes of several adults during a time when any "unpatriotic" thought was quickly condemned, she sets the stage for the girls' compassionate, unorthodox response to their moral dilemma. Suspenseful, carefully wrought, and thought-provoking—a fine achievement. (Fiction. 10-14)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1991

ISBN: 0547076606

Page Count: 218

Publisher: Clarion Books

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 1991

Categories:

CHILDREN'S HISTORICAL FICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE OLD WILLIS PLACE GRAPHIC NOVEL
by Mary Downing Hahn ; adapted by Scott Peterson ; illustrated by Meredith Laxton ; color by Sienna Haralson

- BOOK REVIEW
ALL THE LOVELY BAD ONES
by Mary Downing Hahn ; adapted by Scott Peterson ; illustrated by Naomi Franquiz ; color by Brittany Peer

- BOOK REVIEW
WAIT TILL HELEN COMES
developed by Mary Downing Hahn ; adapted by Scott Peterson ; illustrated by Meredith Laxton ; color by Russ Badgett

bookshelf

THE BLETCHLEY RIDDLE

by Ruta Sepetys & Steve Sheinkin ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 8, 2024

A rich, enthralling historical mystery that engages and educates.

bookshelf

Siblings decode familial and wartime secrets in 1940 England.

Headstrong 14-year-old Lizzie Novis refuses to believe that her mother, a U.S. embassy clerk who was working in Poland, is dead. After fleeing from her grandmother—who’s attempting to bring her back to America—Lizzie locates her 19-year-old brother, Jakob, a Cambridge mathematician who’s stationed at the clandestine British intelligence site called Bletchley Park. Hiding from her grandmother’s estate steward, Lizzie becomes a messenger at Bletchley Park, ferrying letters across the grounds while Jakob attempts to both break the ciphers generated by the German Enigma machines and help his sister face the reality of their mother’s likely fate. With a suspicious MI5 agent inquiring about Mum and clues and codes piling up, the siblings, whose late father was “Polish Jewish British,” eventually decipher the truth. Shared narrative duties between the siblings effectively juxtapose the measured Jakob with the spirited Lizzie. Lizzie’s directness is repeatedly attributed to her being “half American,” which proves tiresome, but Jakob’s development from reserved to risk-tolerant provides welcome nuance. The authors introduce and carefully explain a variety of decoding methodologies, inspiring readers to attempt their own. A thoughtful and entertaining historical note identifies the key figures who appear in the book, such as Alan Turing, as well as the real-life bases for the fictional characters. Interspersed photos and images of ephemera help situate the narrative’s time period.

A rich, enthralling historical mystery that engages and educates. (Historical mystery. 10-14)