Couloumbis, Audrey. Summer's End.COULOUMBIS, Audrey Audrey awkward rural wench who jilts a countryman for a clown. [Br. Drama: Shakespeare As You Like It] See : Rusticity . Summer's end. Penguin penguin, originally the common name for the now extinct great auk of the N Atlantic and now used (since the 19th cent.) for the unrelated antarctic diving birds. , Putnam Put·nam , Israel 1718-1790. American soldier active in the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War. During the Battle of Bunker Hill (June 17, 1775), he supposedly issued the order, "Don't one of you shoot until you see the whites of their . 192p. c2005. 0-399-23555-8. $16.99. J The day before Grace's 13th birthday, her older brother Collin sets fire to his draft card at a sit-in. It's the Vietnam War Vietnam War, conflict in Southeast Asia, primarily fought in South Vietnam between government forces aided by the United States and guerrilla forces aided by North Vietnam. era, and feelings both for and against the war are running high in their rural community--and in their family. Their father is enraged en·rage tr.v. en·raged, en·rag·ing, en·rag·es To put into a rage; infuriate. [Middle English *enragen, from Old French enrager : en-, causative pref. by Collin's act, but their mother is sympathetic. When Collin is kicked out of the house, Grace feels caught in the middle, and runs off to her grandmother's farm. Even there she can't escape the war: her cousin Dolly's brother has gone off to fight in Vietnam, and Dolly is consumed con·sume v. con·sumed, con·sum·ing, con·sumes v.tr. 1. To take in as food; eat or drink up. See Synonyms at eat. 2. a. by worry for him, while her cousin Theo's brother went to Canada to avoid the draft. When Collin decides to head for Canada too, Grace sticks her life savings in his pants pocket, and tries her best to understand why he's chosen this course of action. When tragedy strikes on the farm, she learns that there is "no promise of safety" anywhere, and she also comes to appreciate the importance of family: "Family was there to catch you." This poignant tale by the author of Say Yes and Getting Near to Baby adeptly captures the confusion of the times, as Grace sorts through her conflicting feelings and she and her family try to come to terms with Collin's decision. An affecting and well-written novel. Paula Rohrlick, KLIATT J--Recommended for junior high school students. The contents are of particular interest to young adolescents and their teachers. |
|
||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion