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What strange subject matter for a middle-grades book! 11-year old Annie and her younger brother, Rew, have been cared for by their unconventional grandmother for as long as they can remember. An odd recluse, Gran and the children live in an unkempt house, miles away from anyone else. The wooded area behind the property is full of trees with dark and light trunks, and the kids affectionately refer to it as the Zebra Forest.
In many ways, Gran's unstable psyche has forced Annie and Rew to grow up ...more
In many ways, Gran's unstable psyche has forced Annie and Rew to grow up ...more
I had already heard some buzz about this book so I was excited to get a copy for review for the Maine Student Book Award.
Annie has three wished for the summer - get tall, have an adventure, and meet her father. She has had the same wishes for years but she hasn't gotten taller, nothing like the Iran Hostage Crisis would ever happen in her town, and her dad is dead. Everything changes one night after a riot at a nearby prison. One of the escapees comes to her house to hide. This is of course whe ...more
Annie has three wished for the summer - get tall, have an adventure, and meet her father. She has had the same wishes for years but she hasn't gotten taller, nothing like the Iran Hostage Crisis would ever happen in her town, and her dad is dead. Everything changes one night after a riot at a nearby prison. One of the escapees comes to her house to hide. This is of course whe ...more
Annie and her brother Rew have lived with their grandmother most of their lives and know little about their mother who abandoned them and father who Gran says was killed by a bad man. They long for adventure and excitement in their lives, but with their Gran mentally unstable, they often have to fend for themselves and their excitement mainly comes through discussions of Treasure Island in the Zebra Forest, the woods behind their house.
Summer has arrived, and it promises to be long and boring, ...more
Summer has arrived, and it promises to be long and boring, ...more
Zebra Forest by Adina Rishe Gerwirtz – Realistic Fiction, 5th grade and up – Such a touching, angry and forgiving book. Annie, young girl takes charge of her family when her grandmother goes through phases of silence and inactivity. She has a little brother named Rew she helps care for as well. She and Rew enjoy time together storytelling, relaxing amongst the trees near their house. But unfortunately once night an escapee from a nearby prison breaks into their home and holds them hostage. The s
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Very good book. Loved the characters. Kind of ironic the house Andrew comes to is his family's... but very good book.
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mock newbery 2014
I absolutely loved this book, but I'm not exactly certain of its audience. I'm not sure of the appeal it will have for an elementary, or even middle school, readership. A difficult book to categorize, to say the least, but a beautiful story.
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Sep 05, 2013
Donna
marked it as to-read
Nov 14, 2013
Cynthia Shutts
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Jan 15, 2014
Sylena
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Jun 25, 2014
BunnyDumpling
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Aug 17, 2014
Marnie
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Oct 03, 2014
Amy
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Jan 16, 2016
Lynne Keith
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Jun 10, 2016
Kathy
marked it as to-read
