Going Going

Nye, Naomi Shihab

ISBN 10: 0060293667 ISBN 13: 9780060293666

Publisher: Greenwillow Books, 2005

Synopsis

Florrie's favorite coffee shop, with its open mike night, dreamy candles,and cute waiters ... Going?

The mysterious little hut selling fresh lemon ice on the west side of town ... Going?

The boutique featuring clothes you don't find at the mall, allowing you to look like ... an interesting person ... Going?

Individuality. Originality. Quality.
Independence. Opportunity.
Going, going, gone.

What's a girl to do?

About this title

About the Author

Naomi Shihab Nye is a poet and anthologist and the acclaimed author of Habibi: A Novel and Sitti's Secrets, a picture book, which was based on her own experiences visiting her beloved Sitti in Palestine. Her book 19 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle East was a finalist for the National Book Award. She has taught writing and worked in schools all over the world, including in Muscat, Oman. She lives in San Antonio, Texas.

From School Library Journal

Grade 7-10–Sixteen-year-old Florrie turns political activist when she takes notice of the changing landscape of her beloved San Antonio hometown. Upset by the loss of small independent businesses to money-hungry corporations, she first begins her grassroots campaign with her family, who own their restaurant, encouraging them to support other local businesses and to avoid the chain stores. Supported by her family and a few close friends, she organizes rallies and calls for her fellow residents to refuse to patronize all franchises for the last 16 weeks of the year. The boycott begins strong with support from local businesses, but eventually wanes at what seems like an impossible task. However, Florrie never gives up her fight to preserve the past and encourage independent retail. The plot offers a good look at the life of a high school activist and all the work involved in fighting for something one believes in. Unfortunately, the story does not engage readers. Nye's poetic language is beautiful and rich and certainly creates a strong sense of place, but Florrie and the secondary characters never fully come to life and lack the multidimensionality necessary to evoke empathy. As a result, the novel comes off as more purposeful than compelling.–Leigh Ann Morlock, formerly at Vernonia School District, OR
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About this edition

• Publisher: Greenwillow Books
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 0060293667
• ISBN 13: 9780060293666
• Binding: Library Binding
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 232