Wholesalers Books

Very interesting article that describes a fast growing non-alcoholic beverage company called Mojito Empire that is intoducing an ultra-premium Mojito Island mixer.

In "Working at Cross-Purposes", the authors help distributors and suppliers improve their relationships with each other. The authors learned through their research findings--drawn from responses from distributors to a comprehensive written DREF survey as well as candid interviews with distributors--that thinking a relationship was "win-win" could be dangerous. The more time both partners spend managing the relationship, the more beneficial the economics. Spend less time, get fewer rewards. This book is written with both distributors and suppliers in mind and both partners can benefit. Anyone, at any level, within an organization who is interested in preserving relationships with partners will benefit from exploring the ideas presented. Sales managers, product marketing managers, or local supplier reps can have a significant impact on the relationship, because it is here that the players do not always understand the big-picture impact of their decisions.

Authors Peter W. Merlin and Tony Moore have given us an accessible and engaging first person account of their adventures in locating the crash sites of experimental airplanes in the Edwards AFB area. They have uncovered the story behind each crash with details on the airplane type, the specific airplane, how they found the site and what they found there. They are respectful of the airmen who were lost in some of these crashes. The then and now photos are particularly fascinating.

Specialty Press has been really turning out the aviation titles. These are all fine looking books, filled with informative writing and terrific photos. Somehow, though, they are a bit of slog to get through. Even though I enjoy these kinds of books and have bought many of the Specialty Press titles, I find that my eyes glaze over a bit when reading them.

But not this time!

This book sparkles and is highly recommended.

Welcome to the world of the heyday of jazz. The year is 1936, and the world is open to a young orphan who has happened to find himself on the run.

Curtis writes with zesty personality for Bud and paints a portrait of a very likeable young boy who simply wants what all of us want: a family. He's a great kid with plenty of sass who is ready to take on the world and do what he needs to do to find himself his biological father.

Curtis does an excellent job of painting the culture, joys, and hardships of this time period even as they are combined with Bud's wild imagination.

Plenty of fun and heart, even for adults.

I would just like to say that this book was wonderful. Loved it. Would love to read more from the author. Very good job Curtis

Being born decades after the Depression, in the South, to a middle-class white family, I'm about as far remvoed from Bud, not Buddy as one can be, yet I felt right at home with Bud.

I found his overall attitude and persistence interesting. He never in the book said, "I give up", instead he continued to his goal no matter how far away or far fetched it seemed to be, and when he got to his goal it didn't seem as far fetched as I thought it was.

This is a great book for all readers, I enjoyed reading it, I found it to be right on par with the other Newbery books I've read in terms of story, delicate issues, and the like.

I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 because I didn't like the ending. I was left wanting more, and while there is some closure it wasn't closed enough for me. I wish Curtis had put 2 more chapters in the book to describe what happened after the news broke.

It is in our most difficult times that we discover our true character and that of those around us. This type of discovery is at the heart of the tale of Bud, the 10 year-old main character of Bud, Not Buddy (Random House 1999), a novel by Christopher Paul Curtis. In this wonderful piece of historical fiction, Curtis artfully crafts Bud's story, weaving together inspiration, humor, and the realities of the Great Depression to create a heartwarming and upbeat story about the power of the human spirit.

Bud's story is a fast-paced narrative describing a resilient, determined orphan in search of a new home at a time that was difficult for many Americans. After running away from an abusive foster family, Bud is forced to move through a difficult world in search of a compassionate and caring new home that he hopes he will find with the man he believes to be his father. Armed with a beat-up suitcase filled with all of his possessions and only a flyer as his guide, Bud sets out to find a better life and ends up finding more than he could have imagined.

In his search, Bud encounters a number of helpful and interesting individuals who assist him along the way. At one point, Bud meets a homeless family who helps him sneak into a line to get bread. Bud also encounters a shantytown, known as a Hooverville, where families sleep in tents after becoming homeless. Bud meets families who wait while fathers and husbands hop trains in search of work. Bud's tale recounts the difficulties for many individuals, especially African Americans, during the Great Depression. Throughout his travels, Bud encounters the difficulties of finding food, shelter, and money, as he looks to others and his own strength to continue his journey.

Fortunately, Bud meets a number of individuals who are willing to share the little bit that they have in order to help him. Bud's search eventually leads him to the man in the poster that he believed to be his father. Although Bud's final destination may not be exactly what he thought when he set out, it is exactly what he needed. Despite the difficult times, Bud's journey is a heartwarming tale about the compassion of strangers, the beauty of music, and the power of family.

Curtis' novel is a great read for families and a perfect selection for middle school children. The 243-page novel moves quickly as Curtis' narrative-style leaps off the page. Based on the Fry readability formula, this book has a fifth grade reading level, but it may be a great for students above that level as well. Although the realities of the Great Depression may be difficult for younger readers to grasp, the life lessons that Bud encounters are valuable for any student. Despite the bleakness and difficulty of the historical setting, Curtis does an excellent job of describing the strength and compassion of the individuals. I personally enjoyed this book a great deal and would recommend it to others.

My 3rd grade class really enjoyed listening to this story. The adventures of Bud, while many times being funny, touch my students and help them to see what another 8 year old in a past era had to endure. Great story line.

I have been interested in the B70 for decades. I read earlier reviews of this book which were critical of the book's publishing quality. If there were any, I certainly didn't notice them.

This is a well written, exceptionally readable book about a fascinating aircraft developed during the apogee of US aviation history. The book had just the right mix of text and photographs. My only regret is that I waited so long to buy the book. This is a MUST for any aviation buff's library.

This book was the best book I have ever read concerning the XB-70 bomber. Not only do the authors give facts on the XB-70, but they give additional data concerning the events and aircraft that led to the eventual evolvement of this aircraft. The footnotes are numerous leading creedance to the information provided. Volumes of technical data and actual check lists are included as well as actual pilot reports of the flying qualities of the XB-70. If you are a pilot or aviation enthusiast, this is the book for you.

Michael LeBlanc

An amazingly comprehensive view of the B-70 project and other military projects that were associated with it. It's a glimpse into a frantic period when weapons systems were evolving so rapidly and the stakes couldn't have been higher... nuclear annihalation.

As the US and Soviet Union jockey furiously trying to allocate their finite resources to the most promising weapons, the B-70 emerges as the last gasp of the high speed high altitude manned penetrator school of thought... just as unmanned ICBM's and SAM's render this idea untenable.

Although this book is written entirely as a rather detached factual account, the result is remakably dramatic. The stops and starts and misdirections that our government takes desperately trying to stay "ahead" of the Soviets gives a glimpse of how highly charged this issue was.

The book is well-written and well-researched. Not to be missed.

Answered all my questions and more. Definitive book on a monumental aircraft. Additional chapters on other subjects would be worth the price as a separate volume.

Valkyrie - North American's Mach 3 Superbomber
Dennis R. Jenkins & Tony R. Landis
© 2004 Specialty Press
Review by Ned Barnett


Ohmygosh - this book is remarkable. Fantastic. Fascinating. Detailed almost beyond belief. This is without a doubt the most comprehensive volume on a single experimental aircraft type that I have ever read, and considering the fact that I've been a voracious reader of books on aviation technology since 1962, that's saying a lot.

First of all - this book, produced by Specialty Press, is a beautiful example of the printer's art. It is remarkably well-manufactured, well-designed and well laid-out. The balance of color and B&W photography, graphs and charts and line drawings - and text, reams of informative text - is a classic example of what an aviation-technology book ought to be about.

If you have any interest in the B-70, this book is for you. However, if you DON'T have any interest in the B-70, this book is still for you - it absolutely will change your mind about the Valkyrie. I know. Before I got a review copy of Valkyrie from Specialty, I never really cared much for this failed exercise in creating a high-speed manned bomber. I'd seen the cine-film shots of the plane's fatal crash on a test flight, and viewed the B-70 Valkyrie as a tragic technological "bridge too far," one that cost the lives of brave men, yet led nowhere. Besides, as a modeler, I could hardly get too interested in an aircraft that had basically one marking scheme during its too short test career. It never flew combat, never carried squadron markings or nose art, never flew in camouflage - or even bare metal. It was white, dull, unadorned - a failure.

Wrong! Oh, sure, the plane flew in one basic marking scheme. But it still offers modelers a lot of opportunities for creating something distinctive. The Valkyrie flew so fast that the paint burnt off, leaving the plane looking like it had a bad case of acne. The Valkyrie landed at such high speed that burnt-up tires were a constant companion, offering modelers interesting vignette/diorama possibilities - the famous (at least famous among B-70 fans) "tip-toe" landing just begs for a diorama. This plane had more than it's share of landing incidents, including a near-disaster on it's maiden flight - all of which could be modeled. And that's just the beginning.

The Valkyrie went through more provisional designs - many of them visionary, others nothing short of bizarre - than you can shake a large-sized stick at, and this exceptional book covers them all, with line drawings, photos of desktop models, and remarkably informative text. I literally had no idea just how fascinating the development of this Superbomber really was, but this book was enough to open my eyes.

The B-70 was not an aircraft developed in isolation - a series of Mach 3 fighters were created in lock-step; none went into production, but when you see these sleek machines and marvel at their performance, you've got to wonder why. In addition, the Valkyrie was planned to be more than "just" a multi-sonic strategic bomber. Designers saw it as a launch vehicle for the X-15 rocket plane, for nuclear-armed ICBMs, for manned Gemini spacecraft and for low-earth-orbit satellites. And that was just for starters. However, no matter how remarkable the aircraft was (and it was VERY remarkable) the Valkyrie ultimately fell victim, first to the potential threat from Soviet SAM missile technology such as the SA-2 that shot down a high-flying U-2 spy plane, and more directly to the dubious management style and budget-cutting talents of President Kennedy's Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara. This is the man who also gave us the botched TFX program ... and, perhaps coincidentally, the man who finally admitted that he lied to Congress and the American people about Tonkin Gulf in order to "justify" an aggressive war in Vietnam, a war that cost American 58,000 fighting men to no good purpose.

While it's a shame that the Valkyrie didn't become operational - this is a conclusion I reached after reading the book - McNamara's budget-cutting decision that killed the B-70 is a minor issue compared to this once-respected Secretary of Defense's blood-soaked dishonesty over Vietnam. If McNamara ever made a good decision as Secretary of Defense, I'm not aware of it. Killing off what was arguably the most remarkable aircraft developed to that time is merely an example of the kinds of bad decisions McNamara made while serving under Presidents Kennedy and Johnson.

Almost none of this political rant is in the book - I just have strong feelings about McNamara's lies and the blood-price America paid for his misguided decisions - but his impact on the B-70 is noted. No matter how you feel about McNamara - or Vietnam - set that aside and enjoy this book. It's about technology, not politics, and it's perhaps the most stellar book on a single airplane I've ever seen.

I generally skim review books - except those that really zero in on my areas of personal interest. This should have been a "skim-job" - but instead, I invested an entire weekend reading it from cover to cover in one giant gulp. Sleep? Who needs it!

Unless I haven't made it clear, I cannot recommend this book too highly. From every perspective - text, illustrations, design, even printing - this is an exceptional book and well worth your investment in time and dollars.

The finest book I've seen that combines both excellent technical descriptions of the various 777 aircraft systems together with an excellent Captain's narrative of a North Atlantic crossing from London's Heathrow airport to Boston, Massachusetts. If you want learn about the Boeing 777 and how it's flown in actual line operations, this is the book to read!

United 777 from Chicago O'Hare to London Heathrow Washington Dulles to Paris Charles De Gaulle Los Angeles to Tokyo Narira San Francisco to Tokyo Narita route New York Kennedy to Frankfurt.

I was excited to read this book given I have always been interested in what it is like to fly these massive hunks of metal. I have also read a few books by this author about airline crashes, which always proved to be interesting. So here is my problem, I was expecting an interesting and maybe at times even exciting book, what I got was a somewhat bland, even dull at times book that spelled out all the facts about flying a jet. OK, I know that is exactly what the author stated the book would be about on the dust jacket, but he did not mention that the text would be bone dry.

With that criticism out of the way, I did enjoy learning about flying a commercial jet. I thought the run down of the mechanical operations of the aircraft and the actual job of flying the aircraft were the most interesting. The rest of the book was informative and in enough detail to be considered a good overall review, it was just a bit dry, textbook dry. To be honest I do not know exactly what I would have done to make the book more exciting, but hey, he is the author. It is his job to make the book interesting. And to be a nitpicker, how much actually changes with each new version of the book? Overall the book was ok, it had some interesting parts but really is only for someone that is truly interested in how these aircraft work and what it is like to fly them.

Stanley Stewart does an excellent job describing the basic knowlege and procedures for flyng a 747-400. Obviously, you won't learn to fly one just by reading this book, but you will have a good appreciation of the sort of background a senior pilot has.

The prose is dry, and Stewart's occasional attempts at humor fall totally flat, but otherwise this book is totally authoritative and therefore a mandatory addition to the armchair pilot's bookshelf.

On the one hand, what did I expect? This doesn't exactly promise to be a whole new book. On the other hand, this is so much like Stewart's "Flying The Big Jets--The 747," that it's clear though most of the text all he did was use a word processor to change "747" to "777." There are of course some areas where this won't do--the aircraft have some differences that must be addressed--but even here he didn't sit down and write new material but rather simply inserted individual sentences and paragraphs as needed, wherever the Triple-7 differed in some way from the 747. Even the flight that's the last chapter is exactly the same except we're going to Boston's Logan Airport now instead of New York's JFK. But the weather and flying condititions, and the descriptions and experiences the pilot has along the way, are identical to those of the 747 book. He could have had it snowing in this trip, for instance, to discuss how a pilot deals with a wintery snow landing vs. the rainy landing of the last book.

There are a few plusses: diagrams of the cockpit gauges have been redrawn--much better this time. The section on avionics is updated a bit to reflect new technology. And the text is laid out a little better by the publisher. But if you already have Stewart's 747 version of the book (which I've also reviewed), no need to get this one. If you don't, and you're curious as to what goes into flying a jumbo from chocks away to chocks under, then this is a reasonably good book, if bland at times. (The chapters on meteorology are particularly challenging to stay awake while reading.) There is a near-complete lack of anecdote or personal observation. For a man who has flown around the globe, he has little to say. There are a few attempts at levity, but they fall painfully flat. Stewart may be a fine pilot, but he doesn't sound like he'd be interesting company at a dinner party. He makes something this exciting sound as dull as driving to work. Well, maybe to him that's what it is.

You may think this story is only about Lily and her strange way of life, but it is so much more. It is also about her mother, her mother's empty life, although it would appear to be so full, her mother's loss of love, and other family wounds. Then , also woven into the story is the life and beliefs of her son, Charlie, who narates the tale of the strange legacy this family carries.

At times there are sad situations, sometimes a moment of joy and happiness also seems sad, because you realize how fleeting that moment will be for the characters involved. The madness of a woman so desperate to also be a mother and the way her needs all intertwine are very well written, and I think the author deserves huge kudos on this fact. the plot is interesting, the details are well written, and the story is intriguing. I love feeling like I am somewhere, for instance at a silent film, taking in the details Findley offers and so you also learn about a whole different time and way of life.

While some of the other reviews have criticised his over use of italics I found them so important to the book- for they usually revealed the true thoughts behind ones words and they showed how often we are not honest in what we say to what we are really thinking. All in all there is a lot to be learned from this book, whether it is a sympathetic moment, a new understanding of a different time, or the need to take what good you can from life at all times (a lesson we always need to be reminded of) you will not put this book down without thinking and enjoying some new and interesting thoughts.

Those fans of old time movies and the likes of Charlie Chaplan...etc. would probably enjoy many of the stories in the book even more, for these old time favorites may have been the only escape for some of the tragedy in these characters lives, and parts of the book revolves around them. I think for people who enjoy reading an interesting tale, especially one that touches on the need to break free from generational issues, this book would be a good additon to your reading list.

A very beautifully written tale narrated from the son's perspective. Findley's characters are very well developed though the use of italics becomes slightly annoying as the book progresses.

This wasn't great but it wasn't that bad either. At times the constant jumping around was confusing. Timothy Findley does tell a good story but there were a lot of gaps that rather left me hanging.
It's a long, long story of a boy/man trying to find out who his father is. His mother suffers from various forms of maddness and the reader follows her mother's and then her life up to her death. I found the first part of the story better than the second. The part where Lily goes to Europe was vague and disjointed and none of the people she meets there were developed.
Having said that, I still quite enjoyed it.

This writer is very adept at describing surroundings and different characters. I liked the story very much and yet I felt he left out key emotional responses to huge shifts in Lily's life. It is an interesting book and I was sad when it ended but I felt it would have been enhanced by more in-depth emotional descriptions.

The winner of numerous awards, Canadian author Findley shapes this 1996 novel around a young man's quest for his father and his dread of becoming a father himself.

Narrator Charlie Kilworth is the son of mad, beautiful, evervescent and tormented Lily Kilworth, who cannot or will not remember who Charlie's father is. It is her story Charlie tells, after her death in an asylum fire, a fire she may herself have set.

Lily's story begins before her birth, when her mother, Ede, meets an itinerant piano man. "The sight of him was like a match being struck," Ede recalls, beginning the incendiary allusions that punctuate the novel and haunt Lily's private world.

The piano man dies before he can wed Ede but eight years later she marries his brother, Frederick, an ambitious piano manufacturer whose one unorthodoxy is falling in love with Ede. He accepts Lily but without knowing of her affliction - severe epileptic seizures.

He is as repelled by Lily's epilepsy as Ede is frightened by it and becomes, for Lily, the demon of her childhood, the focus of rebellion and despair. But even though Frederick locks her in the attic whenever company is expected and finally banishes her to a school for difficult girls, Lily blossoms.

A beautiful, vibrant young woman, "hampered" not "handicapped" (the word makes her indignant) by her illness, she goes to England with a friend and it's there that Charlie is conceived. He knows only that the event occurred in January 1910 and he examines Lily's photos intently, imagining fathers, and questions her friends, adding pieces to the life she has already related to him.

Lily and Charlie return to Toronto before World War I but Frederick, outraged by Charlie's birth, refuses to see them. They begin a round of living in expensive hotels, going to dances where Charlie is always her partner, and seeing movies. For Charlie the life is a series of enchantments and nightmares as his mother's demons pursue her and drag him along. A child, he learns to watch over his mother although his dependency often renders him helpless.

When tragedy pushes Lily over the edge into madness, Charlie is liberated into normalcy - school, friends his own age, relatives. "It made a decent life - secure in ways I had never known." Lily emerges from the asylum but never permanently.

Charlie's voice is wistful, awed, admiring, impatient, petulant and wise. But it is Lily who colors and shapes the story, taking flight from her son's narration. Findley's writing is deeply atmosheric, enveloping the reader in the Canada of 1890 to 1920. He invites an intimacy with his characters (many not even touched on here) that creates a bond without violating their essential human secrecy.

A rewarding novel, which will linger in the mind.

Big book for lovers of the big bikes, don't miss "THE SECOND COMING OF AGE" by: Vedrine

A photographically rich history of the Motor Company. From the beginnings in 1903 up through the Evolution, this book covers the rich history of HD and the riders that have kept them going through the years

I would give this book 3 1/2 stars. I found it good but not quite riveting. I loved the main character and her funny ways, for example sleeping in a dung heap to keep warm. The Midwife finds her there and seeing how she was smart enough to know that a dung heap gave off heat, decides to take her on.
Beetle is what the girl is eventually called, she never had a name before .
The girl starts off as a nobody but eventually becomes a somebody in the small town. She becomes the midwifes apprentice and enjoys her life to an extent. Jane the midwife is rather sharp with her, and the town boys tease her and her cat a lot, yet she doesn't let that get her down. One day though something terrible happens and Beetle who starts calling herself Alyce runs away from the town.
Beetle has a lot to learn about life in a town, being a midwife, and finding who she is and what she wants. Learning these things take her to a fair, a new name, an inn and the places where babies are being born into the world.
Karen Cushman did a good job of writing a satisfying story in this short book. I did not feel that the story was rushed in any places. I liked her word usage and how she softened some of the subjects in the book that might be considered risqué, especially for a younger audience. For example the Midwifes secret love affair with the baker.
All in All it was a good, quick read. It was also fun to break into a different time era then the every day.

Well, I certainly admire Beetle's(Alyce) courage, and her ability to cope with hard situations. Otherwise, I really didn't like the book. The writing was mediocre, and a lot of the content just plain inappropriate. I gave this book three stars out of mercy. I don't reccomend this book to anyone, and definitely not elementry kids!!

I enjoyed Karen Cushman's novel, Catherine, Called Birdy, so I was excited to read a second offering from her. The Midwife's Apprentice was published in 1996 by HarperTrophy. The Flesch-Kincaid grade level is 10.6. At 128 pages, it is a shorter novel and lacks some of the charms of Catherine, Called Birdy. For example, the diary format and the inclusion of the stories of the saint's days were one fascinating aspect of the earlier novel. But still present are Cushman's use of wit and vivid detail to propel one young woman's story. Those who were originally engaged by her use of historical detail and her commentary on women's roles that resonates with modern readers will not be disappointed. Cushman tells her story with a great deal of wit, while maintaining the gritty perspective on medieval life she demonstrated in Catherine, Called Birdy.

Rather than introducing us to a girl of some manner of privilege, Cushman introduces us to Beetle, a nameless orphan who lucks upon a career. As the midwife's apprentice, Beetle encounters some scenes not for the faint of heart, discovers town secrets, and learns her own strength. The contrast between medieval and modern birthing ideas is fascinating, as is the truly prominent role the midwife actually plays in her society. She plays the wise but stern grandmother, the physician, and even the spiritual authority by turns in the novel. As Beetle, or Alyce, trains for this role, she transforms from fearful to capable. She also faces many challenges of becoming a young woman, including dealing with her sexuality and determining what kind of role she wants to play in her relationships.

As Cushman's details sometimes lean more toward entertainment or shock value than historical accuracy, it might be an interesting project for students to research the roles of women in medieval times themselves. Comparing Cushman's ideas to those of historians might broaden students' perspectives and also help them to engage more with historical records. Another positive aspect of the book is that Cushman sheds light on the interest in the history of women, previously often lost or ignored, that has arisen since the 1970s. Together with Cushman's books, young readers could be introduced to some of the impressive work that has been done in this field.

This book may initially attract young adult readers who are interested in the historical fiction genre, but the issues addressed will be relevant for many more. As young people toy with the idea of different career paths, watching the way adults themselves fulfill these roles, they make judgments that ultimately guide their future decisions. The decisions Alyce makes in the end reflect the changes she has undergone. Like Catherine, Alyce is an observant and opinionated young woman; an unlikely role model, but certainly an engaging one.

The Midwife's Apprentice is a historical fiction set in a small English village early in the 14th century. The setting allows the reader to compare the values and ways of the culture in which we live to the ways of the past. The exact time the story takes place isn't really divulged by the author. The setting is shown not necessarily by a date, but more by the speech, dress, and behavior of the characters as well as the ideas contained in the village in which they all reside.

Readers are first introduced to the main character of the book while she is sleeping in an alley; she is unloved, unknown, unnamed, and doesn't even know her own age. Throughout the story and through many trials of will and strength the young girl discovers that even she has a place in society. The girl, Alyce, pairs up with a cat and a midwife who help her to learn what it means to be needed as well as appreciated. Through her journey Alyce learns some hard lessons and slowly develops a since of purpose and self-esteem. She grows into a person who respects herself and others who work hard and are understanding to those who earn it.

The book contains an author's note at the end that helps the reader to become aware of the origin and the history of midwifery. The author also takes the opportunity to discuss some of the herbs and superstitions that midwifes of the past have used to help in the delivery of babies. This helps to show that the information presented in the story is authentic as well as a reflection of the values of the past culture.

The story helps to show young readers that times have changed but our basic needs have remained the same throughout history. The need to belong is strong, and it often holds us together even when the odds are against us.

I am glad I read this first before I handed it over to my 8 year old. We're wrapping up a year of homeschooling using Story of the World Book 2 about the Middle Ages and I was excited to find a relatively short novel from that time period.

I read it in a few hours and because I find the Middle Ages fascinating, I enjoyed the book for what it is: historical fiction. Well written and intriguing, the moral of the story is worthwhile: never give up.

Unfortunately, the situations involving fornication, adultery, and dishonest gain are enough to make me NOT recommend this to anyone, particularly a young person.

This book won a Newberry Award. I suppose I was naive enough before reading this book that the highest honor in children's fiction would be given to books that exemplify moral behavior in a way that is appropriate for children. Apparently not.

The Midwife's Apprentice would stand just fine without insinuating immoral sexual behavior. It is suppose to be a children's book, for heaven's sake.

So for me, that's the rub. I will be returning this post haste to the library.

The story takes place in rural Alabama, where Francie, our 12-year-old protagonist, lives with her mother and little brother. Francie's father, who left them about a year ago, is in Chicago trying to `make it.' Francie lives in expectation of the day she will receive `the letter' from him, asking his family to join him. By this time Francie has grown skeptical of his past empty promises. One day, a new boy comes to school. He doesn't know how to read and Francie is assigned the job of teaching him. At first she seems daunted by the prospect, but soon changes her mind as she sees the boy is smart and eager to learn. Then one day he's unjustly accused of a crime. In order to help him, Francie risks everything, including her own family.

I had trouble connecting to this book. Nothing happens until around page 40, when the new boy joins Francie's class and she is asked to teach him to read. I had to force myself to keep reading, waiting for something to happen. Francie's voice is sweet but not particularly forceful or insightful enough to sustain those first several chapters without action. The story picks up in the middle but slows down and disappoints at the end. The climax somehow happens too soon, turning the event into an anticlimactic episode.

One gets the feeling that the author didn't do an outline for this story and that the events evolved as the author wrote them, giving the impression of an unbalanced structure. The ending is ambivalent. It boils down to the plot not being compelling enough, the characters not engaging enough.

Technically speaking, the writing is good, but although the story has a strong premise, I feel the execution didn't live up to its full potential. Still, this is a book that deals with important issues of prejudice and racism and for this reason has good value for classroom reading and group discussion. But read only for entertainment? I doubt the general middle reader will get past those first few chapters.

Armchair Interviews agrees.

Francie
By Karen English
The book I read Francie is about this African American 13 year old girl who lived in Noble, Alabama. She lived with her mom and brother. Her dad lives in Chicago because he is trying to earn enough money so they will hopefully soon be moving there with him. Meanwhile at school Francie is having a bad time because of racism. She goes to an all African American school. There is a school bully who's name is Augustine Butler who all ways makes fun of her. At the end of the book her and her family worked everything out and so it was all good.

I think this is a really good book but at sometimes I didn't like because I don't like when people make fun of people just because of there race

Francie
By: Karen English
The book I read was Francie. It is about a girl who lived in Noble, Alabama. She lives with her mom and brother, Prez. Her father lives in Chicago because he si trying to earn enough money to move there with his family and have a better life. Thought out the story Francie struggles with racism. She also goes to an all African-American school. Her family is fairly poor. At school she meets a boy who can not read. She teaches him to read. Then his father appears at school and tells him he needs to go home and work on the family farm. She is determined to find him. At the end of the story everything works out fine.
This book was a reality check for me because I didn't ever realize how much blacks were persecuted after they were freed. I had herd of the civil rights movement but never really thought that hard about how much they were hurt. No days I find my self hanging out with all African-American friends! This book has a good lesson to it! Never give up and just keep trying and trying. In the end you will receive many gifts!

This book was about a girl helping a boy that is wanted for murder. Francie knows that he didn't murder anybody. She just is trying to help him escape. Her family is also trying to move up north with Francie's father to get away from some of the prejudice peple where they live. This book showed me alot about frinndship, courage, and to always work herd to get what you want and nevr give up.

I recomend this book to students or people who enjoy an adventure type story.It was really good because it was relatable in many ways for younger girls.It was an amazing experience reading this book.It is about a girl who is going through hard times and she is just always trying to help,which gets her in trouble. Its a very good book.