You can smell and taste Timberlake's sentences like beef bourguignon drenched in a saporous burgundy wine sauce. That's a mouthful, no? I've never used the word, "saporous." Makes me sound smart, don't you think? Okay, I know you are not fooled by me, but you might be fooled by Georgie. Georgie has a high-kickin' vocabulary too. She uses words like veneration, ornithology, ablutions, to name a few. She delights in using big words. Listen to her conversation with the young Garrow's girl: "'It's a More...

Richie's Picks: ONE CAME HOME by Amy Timberlake, Knopf, January 2013, 272p., ISBN: 978-0-375-86925-9

"Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got
'Til it's gone?"
-- Joni Mitchell, "Big Yellow Taxi"

"Before white settlement, more than one-quarter of the birds in what is now the United States were Passenger Pigeons. They were so abundant that in 1810 Alexander Wilson saw a flock pass overhead that was a mile wide and 240 miles long, containing over two billion birds. That flock cou More...

This was recommended as a possible Newbury contender for this year, but I don't know. I found the whole pigeon story fascinating, it was evident that the author had done some research into the passenger pigeons. I guess I just wasn't sure what the story the author wanted to tell was.

Georgie is a 13 year old girl in 1871 in Placid, Wisconsin where she lives with her mother, grandfather and 18 year old sister, Agatha. At least she did, until her sister runs away and is later thought to be dead wh More...

This book didn't quite make it for me. First of all, I am not sure what age group the book is for. The things that are of major concern in the book seem more like interests of teens, but the main character is what I would consider to be a tween.

Secondly, the narrative seems to be uneven - at times venturing into grown up things; then abruptly switching to more childish things. I suppose that is the nature of this age group, but it didn't feel natural to me. In fact, some of the plot twists seem More...

Plot Centered Book Talk:

This story is filled with both adventure and humor. In this book Georgie Burkhardt has two talents, which are shooting better than anyone else in town and always speaking her mind. Georgie’s life changes when her older sister who she is extremely fond of runs away after telling her sister’s fiancé something the she accidently saw. When her sister runs away the whole town looks for her, and they find a body that is hard to identify but it was wearing her sisters distinct More...

Thirteen-year-old Georgie Burkhardt's strong voice anchors this gripping historical novel (1871 Wisconsin). Against the backdrop of the largest recorded passenger pigeon nesting, Georgie sets off to find her sister, Agatha, who is presumed dead (the first paragraph begins with her funeral: "...it was the day of my sister's first funeral and I knew it wasn't her last..."). Sharpshooter Georgie is headstrong, in touch with the natural world, and determined that Agatha cannot be dead. (And if she i More...

This was such a fun read! I wish I could have discussed it. It moved along so fast and was interesting and fun and suspenseful. I did picture True Grit mixed in with Two Mules for Sister Sara(which I had to watch that night and no the only thing that was similar was they rode mules) But it made me in the mood for a good western, because that was what this book was a good western. I loved little Georgie and her search for her sister Agatha. She was a great heroine. Every time I thought "But what More...

The setting was extremely well done. I especially loved the way that the author handled the differing worldviews of the people in 1871 and the modern world when it comes to the mass hunting of animals. Georgie is nonchalant (for most of the book anyway) about hunting pigeons, and while the sight and smell of millions of rotting pigeon heads and destroyed nests disgust her, it is an evisceral reaction, not a philosophical one. On the other hand, however, the descriptions of the eviscerated nestin More...

Lately it seems most of the books I have been reading for young readers ages 9 to 12 have taken place in modern times and dealt with modern issues. Which is one of the reasons why I was happy to pick up One Came Home by Amy Timberlake, a historical novel set in Wisconsin in 1871. Timberlake’s tale reminded me of what I like so much about stories set in other times—their ability to transport me to an age that no longer exists and learn about what life was like for the people then. Often the issue More...

This historical novel for tweens has a strong female 13-year old protagonist named Georgie who is funny and outspoken. Georgie goes to find out what really happened to her sister who is believed to be dead. 1871 in Wisconsin was an eventful time that included mass pigeon migration and historic fires.

As much as I liked the book, there were times I was exasperated with Georgie and her actions, much as her caretakers must have felt. I don't know why one of the characters had to die, I felt like th More...

Historical fiction for tweens who want a really good yarn with a fantastic main character in Georgie Burkhardt. She is tough, smart, and pulls no punches. She can shoot a finger right off a trigger -- which she does -- , she can teach herself to ride a horse (okay, a mule) by jumping right on it, and she has no qualms about sneaking out of her house at midnight to trek across Wisconsin looking for her missing sister, who she absolutely does not believe is dead. And let's not forget the pigeons. More...

This is a slow boil of a story, set in 1871 in a small town in Wisconsin. A series of events leads to the sheriff bringing home the body of a young girl, a death her younger sister refuses to accept. As she leaves home to investigate, the story becomes part mystery, part adventure. However, it develops at a pace equivalent to two people rocking on a porch, chatting mildly about the weather. In part, this is due to a choice of the main character of Georgie as the narrator. She lends a humorous to More...

It's 1871 and in the small town of Placid, Wisconsin not much is happening. Then the passenger pigeons come, like a black cloud. They bring tourists and ne'er-do-wells, pigeon poop, feathers, and the stink of what's left behind after the hunters. 13-year-old Georgie is a sure shot herself, and enjoys the change of pace. She's also a bit of a snoop and likes to know what is going on. Her mistake was in reporting a kiss. Now her sister has run off. Was it her fault? If so, Georgie considers hersel More...

Georgie Burkhardt refuses to accept that the body that the sheriff brought back to Placid is her sister. Sure, the corpse has red hair and is wearing the same dress that her sister owned, but the body is too decomposed to convince Georgie that her older sister Agatha is really gone. Even though her mother and grandfather accept that Agatha is dead, Georgie wants to retrace the steps that her sister took when she ran away weeks ago to find out what really happened. Putting her own life in danger, More...

Excellent historical fiction. Sophisticated writing drives this story through its many twists and turns. Set in Placid, WI (based on the WI Dells area) and mentions other real places (Madison, Prairie du Chien), it delves deeply into a specific time and place in history. Georgie is 13 and the book begins with her burying her older sister, who had run off with "pigeoners" (people who followed the great flocks of pigeons that would make giant nestings, which is a crazy part of the historical story More...

Amy Timberlake's latest book, One Came Home, is the story of 13 year old Georgie Burkhart who doesn't believe that the body the Sheriff brought home was that of her missing older sister. Set in rural Wisconsin in 1871, Georgie runs away from home to find the sister that everyone else believes is dead. She finds an unexpected ally and more adventure than she'd anticipated. Part historical novel, part mystery, this is a YA book that adults will find enjoyable, too. Well-drawn, believable character More...

I really like when an author knows the subject so well and loves it so much that she draws you in, lets you see everything and you care about it all instinctively. Young Georgie is a great heroine, in the True Grit sort of way - brash, bold, passionate. Agatha is a great supporting actress, clearly as bold as her sister because she knows what she wants, needs and is not content with the status quo. I loved the description of her spinning with the birds, of Georgie yearning to join but not being More...

I love when a book takes me out of my reality and plops me square in the middle of another. One Came Home is that book. The setting alone made me wish with all my might that I might live in the middle of nowhere before cell phones and Pinterest just so that I could look up into a night sky and hear silence.

Big sister disappears and everyone presumes she is dead. Little sister has done lost her mind and decides to pick up a shotgun, hit the trail on a mule (yes, a mule, as in half donkey, half h More...

Suggested for middle school readers, historical fiction. 1871 Placid, Wisconsin and Georgie, age 12, has an eventful year. Georgie is kept busy at the general store her famiy owns when the largest recorded nesting of carrier pigeons comes to Placid. This is a fascinating part of our natural history. The book offers a discription of the enormity of the pigeon population of 1871. It was so unbelievable that I read parts of the description aloud to Vic.
In addition to this, Georgie's sister, Amanda More...

This might be the next book I start forcing on people! Even though the story sounded a bit like the typical spunky girl in a time period that does understand her type of thing by the description, but this pretty much sunk its hooks into me right away (and isn't really like that)!

Georgie refuses to believe that the unrecognizable body found wearing her sister's dress is in fact that of her sister Agatha, and so she sets out to solve the mystery of Agatha's disappearance. She is accompanied by a s More...

True Grit, Junior. Georgie's the only person in Placid, Wisconsin, who doesn't believe her sister is dead -- so she sets out to look for her. Along the way, she faces dangers of both the natural and human sort. While this book gets off to a slow start, once Georgie's on her way the pace picks up and won't let you off. Plus, Georgie's voice is tremendous -- smartly old-fashioned without sounding affected, and snapping with dry humor.

Some blurbs describe One Came Home as a mystery, and though ther More...

Georgie Burkhardt, spunky 19th century girl girl who is an ace shot and never afraid to bluntly tell someone what she thinks, is sure that the girl her family buried isn't her sister who ran off a few weeks earlier. Determined to prove to her family and town that her sister is still living, Georgie takes off in the middle to find out what happened to her. Accompanying her is her sisters possible beau, Billy, and together they find themselves in the middle of something that is bigger than either More...

One Came Home by Amy Timberlake is a charming coming-of-age story set in 1871 Wisconsin. The narrator, Georgie Burkhardt, is 13. Her beloved older sister ran away; one week later, the Sheriff brought back an unidentifiable body wearing her sister’s dress. Georgie, a crack sharpshooter, is certain that her sister is alive and is determined to prove it. Woven in to the plot is information about the large flocks of passenger pigeons that existed before they were hunted to extinction and details abo More...

Georgie’s ambitious and dreaming sister Agatha left home with a trio of strangers following the recent pigeon migration, and now the mayor has brought back a body that seems to be Agatha’s. But timid, rule-following Georgie isn’t convinced. She decides it’s time to break a few rules and sets off on a journey to trace her sister’s steps, accompanied by the mayor’s son, who had proposed to Agatha and been turned down. But even as she seems to be learning nothing about what happened to Agatha, Geor More...

I like children's books that sock you in the gut. Not the books that telegraph their hits or do the old one-two punch you can see coming from a mile away. No way, man, I'm talking about the books where you're reading along, merrily as you please, and then this hammer of a hit comes in from out of the blue and just hocks the wind right out of you. Middle grade fiction, also known as chapter book fiction for kids, can sometimes feel like one long unending stream of samey sameness. Then you get a w More...

First Impression: I have always loved a solid historical fiction novel, so when I heard about this book, I knew I would love to dig right into the story.

While Reading: Georgie is not a typical girl, she loves to shoot and cannot think of anything better than taking over her Grandfather's store when she grows older. Her older sister has her mind set on other plans and Agatha flees one day after her engagement is broken off to a wealthy man. A body with the dress she left in was brought back to t More...

Starts on a macabre note with Georgie disputing the idea that the body being buried is in fact her sister Ashley's remains. With prarie trail manual in hand, 14-year-old Georgie takes off to retrace her sister's steps and hopefully locate Ashley, who she believes to be alive. It is by turns frightening (i.e. when she is being stalked by a hungry cougar) and funny. The contrast between the gun-toting Georgina and her bookish older sister adds to the humor and drama. The plight of the passenger pi More...

I had a hard time getting into this one (probably having to do with the fact that I read it at a crazy time of year), but Georgie's voice won me over. I can't remember the last book that I've read that has a narrator with such a distinctive, unique and winning voice - probably Hazel Grace from The Fault in Our Stars. The language in the book was truly beautiful: "Pause a moment. Feel the air surround the moment. Push against it, and find that it truly exists." Loved, loved, loved the language an More...

This was a well-written book. The historical details are communicated clearly. I could feel the development of the story unfold almost like a movie, but it was a movie I just didn't care about following. I appreciated many aspects of the beautiful writing, but I never fully connected with the characters. I gave this one a 3 simply because I had to make myself finish. It's hard to read a book that you are not interested in knowing how things end. I know there is an audience out there, but I'm not More...

Georgie’s ambitious and dreaming sister Agatha left home with a trio of strangers following the recent pigeon migration, and now the mayor has brought back a body that seems to be Agatha’s. But timid, rule-following Georgie isn’t convinced. She decides it’s time to break a few rules and sets off on a journey to trace her sister’s steps, accompanied by the mayor’s son, who had proposed to Agatha and been turned down. But even as she seems to be learning nothing about what happened to Agatha, Geor More...