Red-Dirt Jessie - Softcover

Myers, Anna

Softcover

ISBN 10: 014038734X ISBN 13: 9780140387346

Publisher: Puffin Books, 1997

Synopsis

From the author of Tulsa Burning and Stolen by the Sea

A farm can be a lonely place when it’s filled with grief and worry. After Jessie’s little sister dies, her father just gives up on life. Caring about nothing, he sits and rocks all day long in grandmother’s old chair. With her mother struggling to keep the family afloat during the hard days of the dusty Depression, it is up to Jessie to breathe some life back into her family. But how can a twelve-year-old girl pull her father out of his chair and back to the land of the living? The answer comes to her in the form of Ring, a one-hundred-pound dog that was abandoned on a neighboring farm. Wary of people, Ring refuses to accept Jessie’s friendship or assistance. But Jessie is determined to win Ring’s trust. She just knows that if she can tame a fine dog like Ring, together they will have the power to heal her father’s broken spirit.

"Myers writes with a rare understanding of a young girl's highs and lows. The simplicity of the language goes right to the heart." --Kirkus Reviews

"An author worth keeping an eye on. . . This is a well-written, spare story." --School Library Journal

About this title

About the Author

Anna Myers is the award-winning author of more than 15 novels for young readers. She is the recipient of four Oklahoma Book Awards for her books Red Dirt Jessie, Graveyard Girl, Assassin, and Spy. Myers was inducted into the Oklahoma Writers Hall of Fame in 2013. She lives in Chandler, Oklahoma. To learn more, visit annamyersauthor.com.

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-6-- Myers is an author worth keeping an eye on, for behind a decidedly unattractive jacket illustration a very fine first novel. Jessie, 12, is growing up in Oklahoma during the dust-bowl Depression. She is a strong child with wisdom beyond her years. When her young sister dies of pneumonia, she watches her father sink into a severe depression, making him lethargic and unreachable. Jessie comforts her mother and watches after her brother, H. J. When her aunt and uncle leave their farm to seek their fortune in California, she tries to make their nearly wild dog a pet. Ring is shot by a neighboring farmer, and Jessie sees a tie between the wounds the dog and her father suffer. This is a well-written, spare story. The waves of heat in late summer countryside emanate from the pages. Every member of this family comes to life, and the hard work and isolation on the farm are evident. Jessie and her brother's feelings are so real at times that readers will hurt with them. There is also humor in the actions of H. J. and down-to-earth dialogue and action. Coyotes and wild dogs add excitement that leads to a cliff-hanger climax. This is good historical fiction and a sensitive family story. Recommend it to Wilder fans, or for teachers to read aloud. --Susannah Price, Boise Public Library,
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Puffin Books
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 014038734X
• ISBN 13: 9780140387346
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 128