Woodford Brave - Hardcover

Jones, Marcia Thornton

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1629793051 ISBN 13: 9781629793054

Publisher: Calkins Creek, 2015

Synopsis

Cory Woodford, aka “The Kid”, is determined to live up to his intimidating family legacy of bravery. While his father is off fighting in World War II, eleven-year-old Cory and his friends spend the summer building go-carts, drawing comics, playing baseball . . . and tracking down Nazi spies. Right and wrong are more complicated than in Cory’s beloved comics, and he and his friends soon learn that the world isn’t as black and white as they thought. In an age when friendships are deep and complex, Cory makes mistakes and hurtful decisions. Based on the author’s personal experience and research, Woodford Brave is a deeply satisfying novel of summer and friendship, but also explores what it means to be a son, a friend, a neighbor—and truly brave. Includes an author’s note and selected bibliography.

About this title

About the Author

Marcia Thornton Jones is the author/co-author of more than 130 books including seven popular series for children with sales totaling more than 42 million copies. She lives in Lexington, Kentucky. www.marciatjones.com.

Kevin Whipple graduated from the College for Creative Studies in Detroit and received a MFA from the School of Visual Arts in New York. He lives in Brooklyn, New York. kevinwhipple.com.

Reviews

Gr 5–7—Cory Woodford longs to be considered brave like his grandfather, a World War I hero, and his father, currently a solider fighting in Europe in 1943. He is convinced that his neighbor, Mr. Ziegler, is a Nazi spy, simply because he's German. Cory also wants to prove himself to Sawyer, the local hotshot baseball player. Cory's hoping to win back his best friend, Aidan, who has been spending more time with Sawyer lately. When Anne moves into the neighborhood and begins to challenge all of Sawyer's assumptions about girls, Cory struggles with how to react. As he draws cartoons to send to his father, which mimic the superhero comics he reads, he struggles with what it means to be brave. When it is revealed that Anne is really Anya and that her family is German, Cory is torn. He has begun to view her as a friend, but how can that be, when she's the enemy? Through a series of dares and life-changing news and revelations, Cory grows to learn what it means to be a hero, also coming to understand that people are not always as they appear. This is a strong coming-of-age story that contains important truths for today's readers. While the character development is a tad thin and the ending is a bit abrupt, this would nevertheless make a wonderful book for classroom reading or book group discussion. VERDICT A solid work of historical fiction that's perfect to spark discussion.—Necia Blundy, formerly at Marlborough Public Library, MA

Edition details

• Publisher: Calkins Creek
• Publication date: 2015
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1629793051
• ISBN 13: 9781629793054
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Whipple Kevin
• Number of pages: 200