Tag: Betsy Byars

Shorts.

I’m back! Pardon the unexpected hiatus — it’s been a busy, busy week month year and I’m still catching up on my blogging.

And I thought the holiday stress was bad! I could barely read last December (at least until after Christmas), so aside from finishing all my trivia books for the year end, my December reads were mostly short kidlit that I unearthed from the annals of my TBR: Pippi Longstocking, A House of Tailors, The Key Collection, Granny Torrelli Makes Soup, Catwings, The Cybil War, and The Great Mom Swap. These make books 199-205 for 2010, and after this I owe you one more (for a total of 206; apparently I overlooked one book), and then will proceed to my 2011 reviews.

Continue reading “Shorts.”

Bounce Bounce Bounce

Book #9 for 2009: The Pinballs by Betsy Byars

(ALA Notable Children’s Book)

They really don’t make books like this anymore — the stark honesty of the book is the most striking thing about it. I remember checking it out at the library when I was in grade school but I don’t remember that I read it, maybe at that time I was too young to appreciate it.

A story about three kids of unfortunate circumstances (one abandoned as a toddler; one abused by her stepfather; one whose drunk of a father runs over him with the car, breaking both his legs) who meet at a foster home and somehow find the strength to pull through, The Pinballs is a bit somber for my taste but I appreciate the way it deals with grief and domestic issues.

The tough-as-nails Carlie comes up with the pinball metaphor:

“Harvey and me and Thomas J are just like pinballs. Somebody put in a dime and punched a button and out we came, ready or not, and settled in the same groove…“

It’s chillingly realistic, especially in the issues it presents, but it’s laudable because it maintains its credibility, even as the kids find hope and trust in their new home.

***
My copy: trade paperback from the NBS bargain bin for about P20, a bit spotty.

My rating: 4/5 stars

Photo from HarperCollins.com