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k_lee_reads_it's review against another edition
4.0
Yolanda collects new words from the dictionary at the library. She did it in Chicago and continued after Mama moved them to Grand River to be safer. The day she found a good definition for genuis, she realized who her brother really was.
"True genius rearranges old material in a way never seen before."
"She stood there for a long time, her finger on genius. She was so accustomed to the things Andrew could do that she never really noticed them. Everyone was always more concerned about what Andrew couldn't do--like taking forever to learn to talk. And Yolanda remembered the fuss over why baby Andrew wasn't walking. Other kids his age were toddling bowlegged from chair tomchair, and Andrew sat contentedly blowing sounds from his harmonica...
Now suddenly, she thought of the things that angel-faced boy could do. If rhere was music on the TV or the blaster, he could keep it company by beating out a rhythm on anything...Or he would play a sweet line of sound on his harmonica just underneath the music, like water under a bridge. He played people's voices--an argument, cries of surprise, hushed conversation. The harmonica lived in his pocket. He fell asleep with it in his hand."
Yolanda sets out to let her mother and the world know that Andrew is a genius.
"True genius rearranges old material in a way never seen before."
"She stood there for a long time, her finger on genius. She was so accustomed to the things Andrew could do that she never really noticed them. Everyone was always more concerned about what Andrew couldn't do--like taking forever to learn to talk. And Yolanda remembered the fuss over why baby Andrew wasn't walking. Other kids his age were toddling bowlegged from chair tomchair, and Andrew sat contentedly blowing sounds from his harmonica...
Now suddenly, she thought of the things that angel-faced boy could do. If rhere was music on the TV or the blaster, he could keep it company by beating out a rhythm on anything...Or he would play a sweet line of sound on his harmonica just underneath the music, like water under a bridge. He played people's voices--an argument, cries of surprise, hushed conversation. The harmonica lived in his pocket. He fell asleep with it in his hand."
Yolanda sets out to let her mother and the world know that Andrew is a genius.
saviecee's review against another edition
5.0
I’ve never seen anyone describe big people do lovingly.
sammah's review against another edition
4.0
I am always trying to read not only Newbery Medal winners, but also books that were nominated. I've had this one for a year or two, and I finally got around to picking it up last night! This was a wonderful little book, exploring the ideas of what it means to be a genius and how, sometimes, we overlook those around us who are truly brilliant because they're a little bit different. Yolanda was a wonderful character who grew throughout the story, and I adored her relationship with her little brother. Kudos to Carol Fenner for this lovely story!
skyjordie's review against another edition
5.0
The first novel that I read <3
This is the book that gave me the initiative to love reading. It showed me a strange but significant connection with Yolonda who was actually trying to cover her true self with her bad reputation. She started off being stubborn and scornful in her new town, in Chicago. Then finds out that her brother who never talks much has a problem with reading. He loved to play the old harmonica that their father left him. He can imitate any sound he hears, like bacon sizzling, or express any mood he feels, like the freshness of an early morning. Yolanda understands that that's the way he "talks." It strikes me most when she actually saw something that neither her own mother or the teacher of his brother can - the genius in her brother. She sees his talent as something so special and priceless.
This is the book that gave me the initiative to love reading. It showed me a strange but significant connection with Yolonda who was actually trying to cover her true self with her bad reputation. She started off being stubborn and scornful in her new town, in Chicago. Then finds out that her brother who never talks much has a problem with reading. He loved to play the old harmonica that their father left him. He can imitate any sound he hears, like bacon sizzling, or express any mood he feels, like the freshness of an early morning. Yolanda understands that that's the way he "talks." It strikes me most when she actually saw something that neither her own mother or the teacher of his brother can - the genius in her brother. She sees his talent as something so special and priceless.
tamarayork's review against another edition
3.0
Newbery Challenge 154/412. I just didn’t like this very much, but I can’t pinpoint the exact reason. Yolanda, the protagonist, was not very likable. There was more of a drug presence than I was prepared for, cocaine and crack being given to first graders by the middle school drug pushers. There was also some slightly uncomfortable pubescent wondering and crushes that I could have done without. Overall, I would give it a pass.
deniset's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
lep42's review against another edition
4.0
It's been awhile since I gave a 4 star or higher rating to a kids book (other than Cat Valente's stuff). This, however, was just so perfect and full of splendid descriptions of food and music. I loved Yolanda's fierceness and flaws... and the ability of her musical prodigy little brother to turn things into music...my favorite of which was when he played the sound of bacon on his harmonica.
I can see why this was a Newberry Honoree ("The award is given to the author of "the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children")
I can see why this was a Newberry Honoree ("The award is given to the author of "the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children")
scaifea's review against another edition
2.0
Yolanda is big for her age, but she knows how to handle herself when the 'whale' jokes happen. She's smart but surly, and she doesn't really have any friends. Her little brother is quiet and has trouble reading, but Yolanda becomes convinced that he is a genius with their father's old harmonica, so she sets out to create a scheme that will convince her mother he needs special schooling to foster his gift.
There were things I really appreciated about this book, but then there were others that I really didn't. From the start, I didn't at all like Yolanda's character; I assumed that the story was traveling along the 'closed-off and prone-to-roughness kid learns to open up and empathize' theme so prevalent in Newbery Honor books, but Yolanda remains fairly selfish, unsympathizing, and unsympathetic throughout. The ending was abrupt and too pat, with a last-minute attempt to make Yolanda seem as if she has changed (although not done well enough for me to buy it). There are also a few threads to the story that fail to connect by the end, which leaves the whole thing feeling incomplete. And then the narrator made some strange choices in the character-voice department, making one fifth-grade girl sound like an old diner waitress with a decades-long smoking habit. Strange.
All this is too bad, really, because of the good things here: Yolanda's little brother and his musical abilities are nicely painted, especially in contrast to his struggles with reading and speaking. It seems clear that he's on the autism scale, and although his mother doesn't seem to want to admit that, he finds a strong ally in a speech therapist at school, and that relationship (although not completely fleshed out) is nicely portrayed. Also, Yolanda's family is made up of her mother and her aunt, who are self-made black women from Chicago and are easily members of the upper-middle class there. What I love about this is that it's presented as no big deal, as in clearly achievable to the point that it's not something to make the focus of the story. Most Middle Grade books featuring black families seem to revolve around those families living in poor neighborhoods and struggling financially, and those stories are important, yes, but it's also important to show other possibilities and other realities to young readers of color. I want them to live in a world in which successful women of color are so commonplace that that idea takes a far back seat to the rest of the story in the books those young readers read. So I'd like to see more of this, but I'd also like this particular story to live up to this background setting.
There were things I really appreciated about this book, but then there were others that I really didn't. From the start, I didn't at all like Yolanda's character; I assumed that the story was traveling along the 'closed-off and prone-to-roughness kid learns to open up and empathize' theme so prevalent in Newbery Honor books, but Yolanda remains fairly selfish, unsympathizing, and unsympathetic throughout. The ending was abrupt and too pat, with a last-minute attempt to make Yolanda seem as if she has changed (although not done well enough for me to buy it). There are also a few threads to the story that fail to connect by the end, which leaves the whole thing feeling incomplete. And then the narrator made some strange choices in the character-voice department, making one fifth-grade girl sound like an old diner waitress with a decades-long smoking habit. Strange.
All this is too bad, really, because of the good things here: Yolanda's little brother and his musical abilities are nicely painted, especially in contrast to his struggles with reading and speaking. It seems clear that he's on the autism scale, and although his mother doesn't seem to want to admit that, he finds a strong ally in a speech therapist at school, and that relationship (although not completely fleshed out) is nicely portrayed. Also, Yolanda's family is made up of her mother and her aunt, who are self-made black women from Chicago and are easily members of the upper-middle class there. What I love about this is that it's presented as no big deal, as in clearly achievable to the point that it's not something to make the focus of the story. Most Middle Grade books featuring black families seem to revolve around those families living in poor neighborhoods and struggling financially, and those stories are important, yes, but it's also important to show other possibilities and other realities to young readers of color. I want them to live in a world in which successful women of color are so commonplace that that idea takes a far back seat to the rest of the story in the books those young readers read. So I'd like to see more of this, but I'd also like this particular story to live up to this background setting.