The Small Adventure of Popeye and Elvis by Barbara O'ConnorMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Now anyone who knows me, knows I am a fan of Barbara O'Connor. I am also a sucker for a good southern accent and a backwoods setting. This book has backwoods written all over it and this is what I loved the most!
My favorite part of the book is the family in the rambling RV. I wanted to know them. I thought maybe I did know them. Oh, the characters... Gosh, Barbara is so good at character development. I knew all those characters. I put a face with them in a split second. (Or split page) The NAMES, the NAMES, the NAMES! I am always complaining about authors using obscure character names. These were obscure in a perfectly lovely way.
The book is short. A quick read. Perfect for that reluctant reader that isn't going to pick up a book over 200 pages, even if paid to do so.
Of course there were dogs in this book. But maybe not in the way that you would expect. Knowing a little bit about Barbara O'Connor, this part of the plot just tore me up.
Mrs. O'Connor is such a fan of vocabulary. I see that theme in many of her books. There is no exception here. Does it fit? Maybe. That might be my only complaint. Sometimes I wasn't sure the vocabulary added to the story. However, as teacher I have to view vocabulary building as a good thing no matter what.
I recommend this book to students in grades 3-5.
Way to go, my friend. Homerun! Sorry for the rambling post.
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2 comments:
Oh, wow! Thanks so much for this lovely review, Megan! It means a lot coming from a real book pro who knows kids so well.
Hi Megan, it's nice to *find* your blog! I adore Barb's books, too, for all the reasons you cite. She and I have been email pals for 13 years even though we've never met. She's awesome!
I hope you'll keep a lookout for my upcoming novel with Scholastic next July, THE HEALING SPELL. It's all about da backwoods in the swamps of Louisiana and mysterious traiteurs. :-D
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