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The Wonder of Charlie Anne
by
Kimberly Newton Fusco (Goodreads Author)
Charlie Anne is devastated when her father must go north to build roads after the Depression hits. She and her siblings are left with their rigid cousin, Mirabel, and a farm full of chores. The only solace Charlie Anne finds is by the river, where the memory of her mother is strongest.
Then her neighbor Old Mr. Jolly brings home a new wife, Rosalyn, who shows up in pants—pa...more
Then her neighbor Old Mr. Jolly brings home a new wife, Rosalyn, who shows up in pants—pa...more
Hardcover, 272 pages
Published
August 10th 2010
by Knopf Books for Young Readers
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Fusco, Kimberly Newton. (2010). The Wonder of Charlie Anne. New York: Random House/Knopf. 266 pp. ISBN 978-0-375-86104-8 (Hard Cover); $16.99.
Charlie Anne’s mother has died and now her father is taking her brother Thomas far from home to build roads. The depression is forcing many families to sacrifice. Charlie Anne has eaten potatoes about a hundred different ways. Charlie Anne will be staying with cousin Mirabel who attempts to civilize her by reading to her from a manners book. When Old Mr....more
Charlie Anne’s mother has died and now her father is taking her brother Thomas far from home to build roads. The depression is forcing many families to sacrifice. Charlie Anne has eaten potatoes about a hundred different ways. Charlie Anne will be staying with cousin Mirabel who attempts to civilize her by reading to her from a manners book. When Old Mr....more
The Wonder of Charlie Anne
By Kiimberly Newton Fusco
Genre: Historical Fiction
It is the Great Depression, and Charlie Anne has suffered tremendous loss. There is no school for the children since the last teacher left their small town. Charlie Anne’s mama has gone to heaven, and her father has had to go up north with her brother, Thomas, to earn some money building roads and bridges in order to keep the family farm. Cousin Mirabel has come to help out on the farm, giving the children endless chore...more
By Kiimberly Newton Fusco
Genre: Historical Fiction
It is the Great Depression, and Charlie Anne has suffered tremendous loss. There is no school for the children since the last teacher left their small town. Charlie Anne’s mama has gone to heaven, and her father has had to go up north with her brother, Thomas, to earn some money building roads and bridges in order to keep the family farm. Cousin Mirabel has come to help out on the farm, giving the children endless chore...more
Reviewed for www.compassbookratings.com
Overall Review:
Like many during the Great Depression, Charlie Ann's family is down on their luck. Author Kimberly Newton Fusco details this disheartened family's farm life in a beautifully poetic and touching manner. And while life initially seems full of heartache, an unexpected friendship brings much-needed sunshine into Charlie Ann's life.
Charlie Ann is an amazing character. She has an incredible amount of spunk and can't help but say exactly what she'...more
Overall Review:
Like many during the Great Depression, Charlie Ann's family is down on their luck. Author Kimberly Newton Fusco details this disheartened family's farm life in a beautifully poetic and touching manner. And while life initially seems full of heartache, an unexpected friendship brings much-needed sunshine into Charlie Ann's life.
Charlie Ann is an amazing character. She has an incredible amount of spunk and can't help but say exactly what she'...more
Kimberly Newton Fusco's new novel, her second book for young people, introduces us to the spirited Charlie Anne, who narrates this unforgettable story of family, friendship, prejudice, courage, and vinegar pie set in a small town during the Depression.
Charlie Anne's mama has just died in childbirth when the story begins. Her "new mama," come to take care of her and her four siblings, is her cousin Mirabel, who showed up with all her suitcases and her no-nonsense manner to take charge of her Pap...more
Charlie Anne's mama has just died in childbirth when the story begins. Her "new mama," come to take care of her and her four siblings, is her cousin Mirabel, who showed up with all her suitcases and her no-nonsense manner to take charge of her Pap...more
Charlie Anne's life has just gotten harder. First her mother dies in childbirth, and the baby also dies. Her cousin Mirabelle moves in to help her dad. Since it is the 1930's and the Great Depression is in full swing, her father has decided to leave her and the other children in the care of Mirabelle while he and his oldest son leave to work on President Roosevelt's roads. Mirabelle makes Charlie Anne do most of the chores, then chastises her for not being more lady like. Then their neighbor Mr....more
Charlie Anne is trying to adjust to her new life on the family's MA farm. Her mother died in childbirth and her father and her eldest brother have gone north to build roads with New Deal money. Her mother's cousin Mirabel has stepped in as chief cook and bottle washer. She is harsh and unsympathetic. Charlie Anne comforts herself by spending time at her mother's grave, the river and with her beloved friends, the animals who live on the farm. When her neighbor marries Rosalyn and brings her home,...more
This book grew on me. The more I read (okay listened, it was a book on cd) the more I kept wanting to read. I really liked Charlie Anne. She was a very interesting character. I enjoyed watching her discover how to deal with the hard parts of life that were forced upon her: her mother dying, her father going away to work on FDR's roads to support the family, having to live with an aunt who doesn't understand how to show her love, having a best friend who is "colored" and that the rest of the town...more
I read this b/c I saw it on a list of 2011 Newbery contenders. In small town Massachusetts during the depression, Charlie Anne's family is slowly disintegrating. Her mom recently died during childbirth, and her father and older brother have had to go south to find work. The remaining children have been left behind with a crabby aunt, whom Charlie Anne just can't get along with. Money is tight, and all of the children work hard helping with household and farm chores and harvesting the garden. Whe...more
I read this book over the course of two afternoons and it made me cry more than once. Charlie Anne is a young girl who has lost her mother, her father and brother have gone north to work, and she is left with her obnoxious cousin, Mirabel, and three of her siblings. The only places she finds comfort is with her cows and by the river, where her Mama is buried. She still hears her mother talking to her plainly and I love that this is never explained or explored in more detail - it just kind of is....more
Times are difficult for Charlie Anne. Her mother and mother's baby have died from childbirth, and the Depression is in full swing. Papa leaves Charlie Anne and her 3 siblings with their rigid cousin, Mirabel, while he goes north to find employment building roads. Charlie Anne would love to spend her days with her cows in the field, but cousin Mirabel demands that many indoor chores be completed and that Charlie Anne learns manners. Then their neighbor brings home a new wife and with them comes P...more
So I'm thinking that even though I am all done reading Charlie Anne's story, I really do miss her 'cause I got to know her like a real good friend, how she missed her Mama and all, and then her Daddy went north and left her with that Mirabel, who was trying to make a proper lady out of her, but I guess we'll just see about that, won't we? And Charlie Anne felt like she was my best friend, too, the way she talked to her cows and her hens and her cat named Big Pumpkin Face and the things that happ...more
I thought I would like this book more than I did, but it took me awhile to get sucked into it. I think mostly I had a hard time with her hearing things around her talk, like the river. I was ok with her hearing her mom talk to her (her mom is dead) but the rest kind of threw me off at the beginning. The more I got into the book though the more I liked it. Charlie Anne is missing her mom and even sadder when her dad heads north to find work leaving her and her sibling with an aunt (cousin?) Then...more
This is an amazing book. I love Charlie Ann's funny and honest voice. Her inner dialoguing with her dead mother and with her beloved cows and chickens is so endearing and realistic. Her spunkiness and resistance to the ladymaking ways of her Aunt and the superficial leanings of her older sister are heroic. The author gracefully intertwines historically relevant (1930s) perspectives on race as well as racism into a story about a powerful friendship between two young girls of different races: Char...more
After losing her mother, Charlie Anne is devastated when her father and brother head north to build roads after the depression hits. She and her sibs are left in the care of cousin Mirabel whose M.O. is chores and manners to keep the kids in line. Charlie Anne is a wonderfully likable character, feisty and stubborn,whose survival mechanism is an ongoing dialogue with her dead mother. Adding to the complexity of the story is Old Mr. Jolly on the next door farm who suddenly brings home a new wife...more
Young adult novel written by a friend and former newspaper colleague. Set during the Depression, it tells the story of Charlie Anne, a young girl whose mother has died, and father and older brother leave to work on a road construction project. She and her other siblings are left in the care of her mother's bossy cousin, who spends the day making them do chores and correcting their behavior. All seems bleak until a young African-American girl moves in next door. Interesting characters. Lovely sto...more
I am still currently reading this book but to all my fellow classmates this is a very good book.It takes place back in the great depression so her father has left to find a job to get money for his chirldren.The main characters name is Charlie Anne. She is probaly about our age.She takes care of almost all the animals on her farm.Sh takes care of the cows Belle and Anna May.She also has to clean the privy.The privy is an outhouse.She didn't always have to clean the privy and take care of the cow...more
This is definitely a novel about the terrible things racism does to a community, but I also loved the not-so-subtle endorsement of feminism. Charlie Anne constantly complains not only about doing chores (which is par for the course, because who likes chores?) but also about the types of chores she has to do - namely all of the housekeeping work while her brother gets to do the outdoor chores, including milking Charlie Anne's beloved cow. And then of course there's the neighbor with those red pep...more
This book was a little strange with Charlie Anne hearing her deceased mother talking to her, as well as the cows, the river, the flowers, etc. Charlie Anne was a feisty character who nevertheless evoked sympathy for her and the situation she was in. This story takes place in an unnamed town during the Depression when everyone was suffering. Most people were kind to each other and helped each other out, but not everyone.
Charlie Anne is such a spunky narrator. Her family is going through a rough spot. Her mother has died, the Great Depression has her family down on their luck, her father and brother have gone off to build roads, and Mirabel has come to look after the rest of the family. Charlie Anne's luck starts to turn around though, when her neighbor brings home a new wife and daughter. The little girl, an African American, is Charlie's age and the two become friends. This is a great story about friendship an...more
Recommended Ages: grades 4-6
Charlie Anne is devastated when her father must go north to build roads after the Depression hits. She and her siblings are left with their rigid cousin, Mirabel, and a farm full of chores. The only solace Charlie Anne finds is by the river, where the memory of her mother is strongest.
Then her neighbor Old Mr. Jolly brings home a new wife, Rosalyn, who shows up in pants—pants!—the color of red peppers. With her arrives Phoebe, a young African American girl who has als...more
Charlie Anne is devastated when her father must go north to build roads after the Depression hits. She and her siblings are left with their rigid cousin, Mirabel, and a farm full of chores. The only solace Charlie Anne finds is by the river, where the memory of her mother is strongest.
Then her neighbor Old Mr. Jolly brings home a new wife, Rosalyn, who shows up in pants—pants!—the color of red peppers. With her arrives Phoebe, a young African American girl who has als...more
Depression era, times are hard, and Charlie Anne feels responsible for the death of her mother. She's a stubborn child, a hard worker, and dealing with a rather obnoxious cousin who doesn't like Charlie Anne very much. Really beautiful story of a young girl who learns to read, who learns much about her family, and the world around her.
historical fiction -Great Depression - how the poor survived
race relations
Charlie Anne- loss (mother, father and brother gone away to work, brother taken by aunt)
reading disabilities
Charlie Ann is a likable gutsy character with a lot of spunk
friendship,
helping neighbours
Phoebe - lost her mother
race relations
Charlie Anne- loss (mother, father and brother gone away to work, brother taken by aunt)
reading disabilities
Charlie Ann is a likable gutsy character with a lot of spunk
friendship,
helping neighbours
Phoebe - lost her mother
I didn't think I would like this book, but I loved it. Charlie Ann's voice is very funny and spirited. I love her spunk and courage. At times I wanted to jump in the book and give the other characters a piece of my mind. I can see why this was a nutmeg nominee!!
I wasn't expecting I would like this book since it was written about 1930 times, but I found it surprising delightful. A lot of life lessons taught through the spunky Charlie Anne. Characters are continually developed and grow from their mistakes.
I liked it but it's a depressing book. Her mom is dead and of course it's the Great Depression, everyone is poor, sick and hungry. But as depressing as this kids book is, it is very well written, there's a lot to talk about, it's just sad.
Great read. Deals with race, the Depression, death of mom, reading disability, caring for others, what real manners are, acting like a proper girl, friendship, courage.
Charlie Anne is a spunky, honest character-- a great narrator.
Charlie Anne is a spunky, honest character-- a great narrator.
Summary: In a 1930s Massachusetts farm town torn by the Depression, racial tension, and other hardships, Charlie Anne and her black next-door neighbor Phoebe form a friendship that begins to transform their community.
RI author!
RI author!
I think this would have been a four star book if I had read it rather than listened to it. It had all the makings of a book that I would love, but the narrator did not seem like a good match for Charlie Anne.
Recommended for 4th grade and up
Recommended for 4th grade and up
This book was very good and had sad and exciting parts. I liked his the author explains phoebe in the book. Everyone ignores her and some people stare at her, but Charlie Ann sees it in a different way
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I love, love, love this book. Set in the Depression, Charlie Anne has just lost her mother. Her father leaves the family with a stern cousin so he can work on building roads to send money home to the farm.
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