Fitchett's Folly - Hardcover

Rodowsky, Colby F.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0374323429 ISBN 13: 9780374323424

Publisher: Farrar Straus & Giroux, 1987

Synopsis

Sarey resents a new family member, Faith, blaming her for her father's death which occurred when he saved Faith from a shipwreck off the Atlantic coast.

About this title

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-8 Sarey's world is an island off the Atlantic coast, and she relates how her predictable life becomes upset one stormy night. The sea, which she calls the ``devil ocean,'' causes the death of her beloved father and brings Faith, the shipwreck victim that he saved, into her home. Fitchett's Folly, a new jetty planned to protect the island from the battering waves, serves as a metaphor for changeboth Sarey's struggle to cope and the island's survival. Despite the strong theme, action scenes are secondary to mood, setting, and character development. Rodowsky brings the island and its people to life by authentic dialogue, memorable characters, and Sarey's intense observations. Even though the time period and Sarey's age are never specificed, the story succeeds in portraying a way of life through one girl's summer. The setting and characters do bring to mind two classicsMarguerite Henry's Misty of Chincoteague (Rand McNally, 1947) and Theodore Taylor's Teetoncey (Doubleday, 1974). Although this story is strong, both earlier titles remain superior because they are richer in character development and plotting. Charlene Strickland, Los Angeles County Public Library, Valencia, Calif.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Publishers Weekly

Rodowsky deftly balances adventure, pathos and surprising comedy in a tale about early days on the New England coast. Sarey-Ann enjoys life with "Aunt-Mama," her late mother's sister, a little brother and her own father, Captain Henry, keeper of the life-saving station. Captain Henry drowns one foggy night after rescuing a child named Faith, who is orphaned by the shipwreck. Aunt-Mama takes in Faith, whom Sarey-Ann blames for Captain Henry's death. Sarey-Ann schemes to get rid of Faith, and the novel hinges on these plots. An unhappy Faith slips out at midnight to look for the rumored ghost ship, and conscience-stricken, Sarey-Ann follows. The girls meet on Fitchett's Folly, dangerous boulders at the shore, where tensions run high before the story's uncontrived resolution abundantly satisfies the reader. Ages 812.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Farrar Straus & Giroux
• Publication date: 1987
• ISBN 10: 0374323429
• ISBN 13: 9780374323424
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 166