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3.98 AVERAGE
3.98 AVERAGE
Jewell Parker Rhodes has written another moving novel focused on a winning young heroine. Maddy spends her first ever summer on the Bayou with her Grandmere as she's about to turn 10, and discovers her own capacity for love, strength, and even magic. Woven together with the story of the BP Gulf of Mexico oil spill, this novel is hopeful in the face of life's challenges, especially those out of our control.
My six year old daughter and I read this book together. We loved the story. She is scared and sensitive with many stories. She felt very connected to Maddy, and we both want to experience the Bayou! Thanks for this great story.
Maddy is sent to Louisiana to visit her grandmother who lives on the Bayou. She isn't thrilled but soon comes to love everything about it. Fantasy light.
Beautiful, important story with poetic writing that flows and fits the setting and tone very well.
I was reading this aloud with my sensitive 7yo and want to give a content note for animal death (both through hunting and environmental harm), child abuse, and high tension.
I was reading this aloud with my sensitive 7yo and want to give a content note for animal death (both through hunting and environmental harm), child abuse, and high tension.
“In real life, it’s hard to be a hero. Bad things happen and you can’t fix everything yourself. You need good friends and hope.”
Maddy, Bayou Magic
Maddy, Bayou Magic
"Who do you want to be? Strangely, I feel like I can tell Grandmere things I can't tell Ma.
'A hero. Like in my stories,' I rush. 'I want to do good. Be brave.' I stop, embarrassed.
Grandmere gazes at me, curious. 'To be a hero, bad things have to happen.'"
Bayou Magic is the third book in a collection of books about young girls living in Louisiana throughout history. This book is set in the present day where we follow Maddy as she spends the summer with her Grandmere in the Louisiana Bayou. When Maddy arrives, it's clear that she has an immediate connection with nature as she takes in the water, landscape, and fireflies. As Maddy spends more time on the water, she realizes she can see and communicate with a mermaid in the water. When an oil leak happens nearby, Maddy knows she has to use her unique gifts in an attempt to save this new community she has connected with.
I'm a big fan of [a:Jewell Parker Rhodes|135707|Jewell Parker Rhodes|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1412087670p2/135707.jpg] and her books so I decided to read some of her backlist titles. While I enjoyed Rhodes' Louisiana Girls trilogy, I could also tell this was both written for younger readers and is some of Rhodes' earlier work. I'm not sure this is a book that would be enjoyed by a casual reader but for fans of magical realism, historical fiction, or Rhodes' work in general, I think this book would be devoured. It's nice to see an author like Rhodes focusing on issues like oil spills and other things those who live out of the area don't spend a lot of time thinking about. I also appreciate the cultural elements of Maddy's family being left in the book. It's so important for everyone to see themselves represented in the books they read and I think it's equally important for readers to see other cultures reflected in the books they read as well. All in all, this was an okay read, but I definitely prefer Rhodes' more modern books.
TW: Alcoholism, child abuse, racism, animal death, abandonment, death of a parent, grief, fire
'A hero. Like in my stories,' I rush. 'I want to do good. Be brave.' I stop, embarrassed.
Grandmere gazes at me, curious. 'To be a hero, bad things have to happen.'"
Bayou Magic is the third book in a collection of books about young girls living in Louisiana throughout history. This book is set in the present day where we follow Maddy as she spends the summer with her Grandmere in the Louisiana Bayou. When Maddy arrives, it's clear that she has an immediate connection with nature as she takes in the water, landscape, and fireflies. As Maddy spends more time on the water, she realizes she can see and communicate with a mermaid in the water. When an oil leak happens nearby, Maddy knows she has to use her unique gifts in an attempt to save this new community she has connected with.
I'm a big fan of [a:Jewell Parker Rhodes|135707|Jewell Parker Rhodes|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1412087670p2/135707.jpg] and her books so I decided to read some of her backlist titles. While I enjoyed Rhodes' Louisiana Girls trilogy, I could also tell this was both written for younger readers and is some of Rhodes' earlier work. I'm not sure this is a book that would be enjoyed by a casual reader but for fans of magical realism, historical fiction, or Rhodes' work in general, I think this book would be devoured. It's nice to see an author like Rhodes focusing on issues like oil spills and other things those who live out of the area don't spend a lot of time thinking about. I also appreciate the cultural elements of Maddy's family being left in the book. It's so important for everyone to see themselves represented in the books they read and I think it's equally important for readers to see other cultures reflected in the books they read as well. All in all, this was an okay read, but I definitely prefer Rhodes' more modern books.
TW: Alcoholism, child abuse, racism, animal death, abandonment, death of a parent, grief, fire
Asked P for her star review after we finished and she said "5" but then backtracked to zero when she thought about dolphins dying. I settled on 4. Great read aloud for us getting ready to travel to Louisiana this summer.
I love this book. I think it's beautifully written and full of magic! The development of the relationship between Maddy and her grandmother is so sweet and her fast friendship and adventures with Bear kept the story moving when it could have lagged.
This was a book club selection for our homeschool group, but as of this review Amelia & I have only read half the book aloud. I had to finish it so I read ahead!
This was a book club selection for our homeschool group, but as of this review Amelia & I have only read half the book aloud. I had to finish it so I read ahead!
I really enjoyed "Sugar" by Jewell Parker Rhodes, so I was pretty excited to read "Bayou Magic" which was everything I wanted and more. The book was a little slow for me in the beginning, but all of the setup was well worth it. The people that Maddy meet in the bayou of Bon Temps are wonderfully crafted and the communities described are reminiscent of those from the film "Beasts of the Southern Wild." They have deep bonds and a network of support that I think the character needed to experience.
This is a good read-a-like for Carl Hiaasen's book and as a juvenile introduction to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Parker Rhodes has captured the magic of the bayou in this one.
This is a good read-a-like for Carl Hiaasen's book and as a juvenile introduction to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Parker Rhodes has captured the magic of the bayou in this one.