Happy Tuesday! Guess what I get to do today?!? I get to announce that Bluerose (of the Bluerose’s Heart blog) won the giveaway copy of “The Hero’s Guide to Being an Outlaw” by Christopher Healy (Read my review HERE).
Congratulations – Josie picked your name out of the hat!!! I will be emailing you to get your mailing address!
Another Day as Emily by Eileen Spinelli
By: Eileen Spinelli
Illustrated by: Joanne Lew-Vriethoff
240 pages – ages 8+
Published by: Knopf Books for Young Readers on May 13, 2014
Summary– Suzy Quinn has had enough. Ever since her younger brother, Parker, got called a “hero” in the news (for calling 911 when a neighbor had “a spell”), Suzy has felt unimportant.
She and her best friend, Allison, have totally different personalities. Things get even worse when Allison gets a party in a play that they both try out for, but Suzy doesn’t. Suzy feels like she is “nothing.” While taking summer classes with a theme of “The 1800s” at the local library, Suzy chooses Emily Dickinson for a report.
After reading about Emily, Suzy thinks that she and Emily have a lot in common. So, she decides to live her life as Emily Dickinson did – to the exact. She changes her name to Emily Dickinson, changes her goldfish’s name from Ottilie to Carlo (Emily Dickinson’s dog), cooks, sews, and writes poems.
Suzy Emily even becomes a recluse, not seeing anyone – not even her friends. But does she really want to spend another day as Emily or face all the things bothering her in her life?
Another Day as Emily by Eileen Spinelli – Our Review
What I Thought- This was another great novel-in-verse from Eileen Spinelli. The verse is in a style that I think makes the story read like a diary or journal. I like how Mrs. Spinelli writes the story so you can really understand how Suzy/Emily feels about the stuff going on in her life.
I think Suzy/Emily went a bit over-the-top in handling her problems, but at least it was inventive! The problems Suzy is having is pretty much what a lot of middle school aged kids have and I think it makes the characters more realistic.
I thought it was cool to learn a bit about Emily Dickinson too from the story. I’ve heard of her and read some of her poetry, but this story taught me about Emily Dickinson as a person. It was a quick read for me, but the story felt complete when I was done.
I think this book is terrific for young advanced readers and middle-grade readers will enjoy reading about characters that are a lot like them. There are random black and white, small illustrations scattered in the book by Ms. Lew-Vriethoff. They are a nice addition to the story.
Five out of five bookworms for “Another Day As Emily”!