Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos is the 2012 Newbery medal winner. It's about Jack, who lives in the small, literally-dying-off town of Norvelt in Pennsylvania and has a constant bloody nose. When he gets grounded for the summer and is stuck in his house all day long, Jack starts enjoying the one outing his mom allows--helping old Miss Volker. Miss Volker, the town medical examiner, soon finds herself very busy as all the Norvelt originals start dying off, and Jack finds himself very involved as he works as Miss Volker's scribe as she prepares the obituaries.
This was an interesting book--lots of history tied in to it. (Norvelt is an actual small town that was named for Eleanor Rooselvelt, who had great interest in the town when it was created as part of the New Deal during the Great Depression.) The author put in lots of detail, so it was fun to follow Jack's adventures and to imagine what life was like for him in Norvelt. I didn't feel like the plot was particularly strong or engaging, but the characters were definitely original and entertaining.
Rating: * * (2/3 = Liked it)
No comments:
Post a Comment