Prairie School (I Can Read Level 4)

Avi

ISBN 10: 0060276657 ISBN 13: 9780060276652

Publisher: HarperCollins, 2001

Synopsis

It is the 1880s. Noah Bidson works hard on the family farm on the Colorado prairie. One day his mother tells him that his aunt Dora is coming to give him some schooling. Noah is angry. What use is reading on the prairie?

Aunt Dora arrives, and all the Bidsons are surprised to find that she is confined to a wheelchair. But Aunt Dora doesn't let it stop her. When Noah refuses to learn inside the sod farmhouse, Aunt Dora finds a unique way to show him that there's a whole new world waiting for him.

Avi's compelling story is brought to life by Bill Farnsworth's luminous paintings.

About this title

About the Author

Avi is the award-winning author of more than seventy-five books for young readers, ranging from animal fantasy to gripping historical fiction, picture books to young adult novels. Crispin: The Cross of Lead won the Newbery Medal, and The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle and Nothing But the Truth were awarded Newbery Honors. He is also the author of the popular Poppy series. Avi lives outside Denver, Colorado. You can visit him online at www.avi-writer.com.

From School Library Journal

Gr 2-4-Nine-year-old Noah loves living on the Colorado prairie in the 1880s where he helps his parents with all of the work. When Aunt Dora comes from the East to teach him how to read, he sees no need to do so and refuses to cooperate with her. However, his aunt refuses to give up. She asks Noah to show her the land even though he warns her that her wheelchair may make it difficult to get around. As he wheels her along, she consults the book in her lap and begins to tell him about the natural things around them. Impressed by her knowledge, the child decides to learn to read and write, and realizes that his aunt has opened a world beyond the prairies to him. Warm, soft-edged illustrations capture the intimacy of the loving family relationships and the vastness of the landscape on dark, starlit nights and glorious, sky-blue days. A combination of double-page spreads, full-page, and half-page illustrations appealingly reinforce the mood and action of the text. This gentle story with a great message that is nicely woven into the daily events would make a pleasant read-aloud as well as a good addition to easy chapter-book collections.-Carol Schene, Taunton Public Schools, MA

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0060276657
• ISBN 13: 9780060276652
• Binding: Library Binding
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 48
• Illustrator: Farnsworth Bill