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Welcome to Camden Falls -
Ann M. Martin
Scholastic, $6.99. 2007 Reviews:
- Ilene Cooper (Booklist, Aug. 1, 2007 (Vol. 103, No. 22))
In Welcone to Camden Falls, Flora and her younger sister, Ruby, recently orphaned, have come to live with their grandmother, Min, who co-owns a fabric shop in a New England town. The adjustment to life in Camden Falls is difficult, but the girls make new friends, and Flora finds solace as she gets more deeply into her hobby, sewing. Martin does some unusual things here, telling the story from several perspectives and filling it with modern-day problems, even as the feel of the book harkens back to an earlier time. An almost dizzying array of characters is introduced, including one neighbor who has Down syndrome, another who has Alzheimer’s disease, and a third who is struggling with aging. A new friend must deal with a mother who drinks and a father who is abusive. Sometimes these problems overwhelm the story, but Martin’s easy style, appealing characters, and obvious love of place will keep readers going. Grades 3-6Amie Rose Rotruck (Children's Literature)
Sisters Ruby and Flora have only just begun to cope with the death of their parents. Now their grandmother Min is uprooting them from their familiar town and transplanting them to Camden Falls. Min lives in a row house and Ruby and Flora quickly get to know her neighbors on Main Street. Olivia, their next-door neighbor, is around Ruby and Flora’s age and they become friends. It is harder to get to know Nikki, who comes from a poor family and is hesitant to trust anyone. While Main Street is very different from Ruby and Flora’s home, they quickly befriend their neighbors, from Robby, a teenage boy with Down Syndrome, to an older woman who works with Min and whom many of the children fear. While the story is a bit slow at times, the relationships are varied and help Ruby and Flora realistically cope with the loss of their parents. This book launches Ann M. Martin’s new series “Main Street.” 2007, Scholastic, $6.99. Ages 9 to 12.Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, May 1, 2007 (Vol. 75, No. 9))
Orphans Flora and Ruby are moving in with Min, their maternal grandmother. Min lives in 350-year-old Camden Falls, Mass., a town filled with all sorts of people who are ready to embrace the girls. Min's friendly sewing-and-needlepoint shop is the heart of the girls' new world. Camden Falls, with its row houses, quirky characters and strong, level-headed women is almost a character itself. For such a small town, there is a dizzying array of folks: an older boy with Down's Syndrome, an abused girl, a woman with Alzheimer's, a forgetful elderly black man, a shoplifter, a cranky shop owner and a girl who lives with her widowed father. Girls who have outgrown Cynthia Rylant's Cobble Street Cousins will find the same familiar sense of community here, and they will forgive the saccharine tone, especially when the narrator slips into the second-person voice. They will long to know how the girls fare in fourth and sixth grade and will be able to find out soon: The second in the series arrives in August just in time for school. 2007, Scholastic, 192p. Category: Fiction. Ages 8 to 12. © 2007 Kirkus Reviews/VNU eMedia, Inc. All rights reserved.
| Language | Call Number | LCCN | Dewey Decimal | ISBN/ISSN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English (eng) | - |
9780439868792 0439868793 |