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3.63 AVERAGE
3.63 AVERAGE
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was disappointed overall. The narrator’s voice didn’t resonate with me and I didn’t connect with the humor either. It resolved nicely with a good message but was a miss for me
This is very much an insider’s story. Quigley, a Turtle Mountain Chippewa woman, relates that the book is based in stories from her growing up and from people around her. While I feel confident in reviewing this #ownvoices book that is outside my culture, I did feel the need to verify some of the facts and to be sure my names and descriptions were correct. From reading the Notes at the end of the book and checking with Cynthia Leitich Smith and Debbie Reese, I think I know a little more about Native American culture than I did before beginning this review. We have to learn to ask what we don’t know. There are elements of the book that belong in a Native American book, but not in a review written by an African American woman. Given that ‘Apple’ is in the title and is the name of the character, I had to use it and explain it. Slurs should be left alone. But, Apple Starkington wasn’t that slur. She was the apple of her mother’s eye.
full review is on my blog https://campbele.wordpress.com/2018/10/04/review-apple-in-the-middle/
full review is on my blog https://campbele.wordpress.com/2018/10/04/review-apple-in-the-middle/
I had a hard time getting into this at first. I didn't really like Apple very much in the beginning. Possibly because she didn't like herself very much. As she learns more about her Native family, she also learns to like herself more and that changes the whole feel of the book. Recommended for grades 6 & up.
Please read this book! You will not regret it. Such a sweet and interesting story.
Great book, especially if you want to know more about Native identity and issues. The part about blood quantums is particularly striking. Though I will say near the end, the author brought up plot points that could have been done earlier, because I don’t think 1-2 chapters did them justice.
I appreciate Quigley’s effort here and this title is a rare and welcome addition to the canon of Native YA literature. However, Apple comes across as very juvenile and kind of an absurd character (especially in the beginning). I’m not sure if it is a cultural difference that makes the humor in this book seem odd to me, but it seems possible based on the author’s note. The out-of-nowhere tragedy toward the end seemed unnecessary and didn’t really add much to the story or character development. Still, as mentioned, this novel is a rarity and I respect Quigley’s dedication to portraying Native teens and Native life accurately.
Read for Librarian Book Group
Reasons this book needs a copyeditor:
*Grandfather served in WWII
*Grandfather is in his 60s
*The book is set in approximately 2002
*This makes Grandpa about two years old when serving in WWII
*Mom graduated high school in 1988
*Mom had Lief Garrett posters in her room
*Leif Garret was not popular in the 70s, not the 80s
*Mom was born in 1968
*This makes mom 20 when she graduated high school even though she was "very smart"
*House depicted as being on a long, gravel road
*House has alley behind it with another house on the other side of the alley. This doesn't fit any framework I've experienced when getting to a house on a long, graveled road.
In matters of style, the voice of this character felt like a 10–12-year-old, not someone in high school.
A lot of the writing is very conversational—many parenthetical asides and talking to the reader. This makes the book feel very unsophisticated and increased my dislike which is too bad, because I'm interested in the story's framework of a girl who had not been exposed to her Native American heritage.
Also, her grandparents dialog was great, but got lost by Apple's chatter.
I'm glad the North Dakota State University Press is recognizing contemporary indigenous voices. It would also be good if they employed some basic publishing standards such as a thorough copyedit, and possibly a better developmental and line edit.
Reasons this book needs a copyeditor:
*Grandfather served in WWII
*Grandfather is in his 60s
*The book is set in approximately 2002
*This makes Grandpa about two years old when serving in WWII
*Mom graduated high school in 1988
*Mom had Lief Garrett posters in her room
*Leif Garret was not popular in the 70s, not the 80s
*Mom was born in 1968
*This makes mom 20 when she graduated high school even though she was "very smart"
*House depicted as being on a long, gravel road
*House has alley behind it with another house on the other side of the alley. This doesn't fit any framework I've experienced when getting to a house on a long, graveled road.
In matters of style, the voice of this character felt like a 10–12-year-old, not someone in high school.
A lot of the writing is very conversational—many parenthetical asides and talking to the reader. This makes the book feel very unsophisticated and increased my dislike which is too bad, because I'm interested in the story's framework of a girl who had not been exposed to her Native American heritage.
Also, her grandparents dialog was great, but got lost by Apple's chatter.
I'm glad the North Dakota State University Press is recognizing contemporary indigenous voices. It would also be good if they employed some basic publishing standards such as a thorough copyedit, and possibly a better developmental and line edit.
This was an excellent read, a little difficult to get into, but once I did, the masterful use of the "apple" metaphor radiates through everything in a fantastic way.
Apple is the main character, a 14-year-old girl who's been raised by her emotionally clueless, wealthy white dad. She was named Apple by her dying Michif mother after she gave birth and whispered, "you're the apple of my eye."
However, "apple" is also a derogatory term for someone who is Native on the outside but white on the inside. I had a strong negative reaction to this term, knowing as I do how my husband suffered from being called "not Mexican enough" by other kids in high school back-in-the-day, as if any one person is the sole arbiter of how much of any identity one needs to be or to display to be considered "enough."
It's important to know both meanings, however, as Apple will turn that term on its head through the course of the book.
Yes, she's grown up rather spoiled with a rich, physician white dad and white step-mom and step-brother. And no, she's not given any thought at all to her Chippewa origins, not after the kids on the playground call her a racial slur, a "prairie n-word." I don't want to use the word, but teachers need to know it's there and plan a discussion around it, what it means, and specifically why Apple reacts the way she does, turning her back on her Chippewa heritage completely. She wears long sleeves so her skin won't darken in the sun, and while at school, she even pretends to be a foreign exchange student, complete with English and Aussie accents.
When her father drops her off in the Turtle Mountain Reservation so he and his wife can go on an extended summer vacation, her Michif family is waiting with open arms -- even if she's never seen them and honestly, never given them a serious thought before this. They are wonderfully accepting, non-judgemental and loving and welcome her into the fold.
Not everyone on the Reservation is as generous and open or non-judgemental, and that's where the "apple" slur comes in.
The author also plays with the concept of "middle," starting the book in the "middle" of Apple's life, as a teen in high school, long after her birth or the event that sets the whole story in motion. And if stories have beginnings, middles and ends ... well, the ending makes much more sense, is all I'm going to say.
This is a young adult book. There's nothing inappropriate for middle grade / younger readers, but the use of the racial slurs warrants classroom discussions or a read with an adult, parent or guardian so younger readers can ask questions. And, when the book first came out, there was a Twitter discussion of Apple's grandmother's use of the term "voodoo" derogatorily. If using this book in class, know it's there and use it as an opportunity to discuss why the grandmother may have such stereotypical misconceptions about other people and their religions. Also, there's one particularly harrowing situation in which Apple is threatened and assaulted. Younger readers who haven't yet been exposed to this kind of violence or trauma may need an adult nearby to ask questions about what's implied (i.e. not on the page) and what purpose the scene serves in the story.
I loved this book, and wouldn't hesitate for a second to teach it in 9th grade, except I couldn't find a free teaching or educational guide (typically offered by the publisher) to get started.
Looking for more book suggestions for your 7th/8th grade classroom and students?
Visit my blog for more great middle grade book recommendations, free teaching materials and fiction writing tips: https://amb.mystrikingly.com/
Apple is the main character, a 14-year-old girl who's been raised by her emotionally clueless, wealthy white dad. She was named Apple by her dying Michif mother after she gave birth and whispered, "you're the apple of my eye."
However, "apple" is also a derogatory term for someone who is Native on the outside but white on the inside. I had a strong negative reaction to this term, knowing as I do how my husband suffered from being called "not Mexican enough" by other kids in high school back-in-the-day, as if any one person is the sole arbiter of how much of any identity one needs to be or to display to be considered "enough."
It's important to know both meanings, however, as Apple will turn that term on its head through the course of the book.
Yes, she's grown up rather spoiled with a rich, physician white dad and white step-mom and step-brother. And no, she's not given any thought at all to her Chippewa origins, not after the kids on the playground call her a racial slur, a "prairie n-word." I don't want to use the word, but teachers need to know it's there and plan a discussion around it, what it means, and specifically why Apple reacts the way she does, turning her back on her Chippewa heritage completely. She wears long sleeves so her skin won't darken in the sun, and while at school, she even pretends to be a foreign exchange student, complete with English and Aussie accents.
When her father drops her off in the Turtle Mountain Reservation so he and his wife can go on an extended summer vacation, her Michif family is waiting with open arms -- even if she's never seen them and honestly, never given them a serious thought before this. They are wonderfully accepting, non-judgemental and loving and welcome her into the fold.
Not everyone on the Reservation is as generous and open or non-judgemental, and that's where the "apple" slur comes in.
The author also plays with the concept of "middle," starting the book in the "middle" of Apple's life, as a teen in high school, long after her birth or the event that sets the whole story in motion. And if stories have beginnings, middles and ends ... well, the ending makes much more sense, is all I'm going to say.
This is a young adult book. There's nothing inappropriate for middle grade / younger readers, but the use of the racial slurs warrants classroom discussions or a read with an adult, parent or guardian so younger readers can ask questions. And, when the book first came out, there was a Twitter discussion of Apple's grandmother's use of the term "voodoo" derogatorily. If using this book in class, know it's there and use it as an opportunity to discuss why the grandmother may have such stereotypical misconceptions about other people and their religions. Also, there's one particularly harrowing situation in which Apple is threatened and assaulted. Younger readers who haven't yet been exposed to this kind of violence or trauma may need an adult nearby to ask questions about what's implied (i.e. not on the page) and what purpose the scene serves in the story.
I loved this book, and wouldn't hesitate for a second to teach it in 9th grade, except I couldn't find a free teaching or educational guide (typically offered by the publisher) to get started.
Looking for more book suggestions for your 7th/8th grade classroom and students?
Visit my blog for more great middle grade book recommendations, free teaching materials and fiction writing tips: https://amb.mystrikingly.com/