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A review by poachedeggs
The Red Umbrella by Christina Diaz Gonzalez
2.0
This completely reminded me of [b:Life, After|7163245|Life, After|Sarah Darer Littman|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1262451680s/7163245.jpg|7507764] - both are more suitable for middle-grade children, and about young children who have to move to the U.S. from other countries (Cuba in this book and Argentina in Life, After). Both are pretty feel-good despite some of the horrifying incidents mentioned in the respective political climates... and both are just so-so in terms of writing.
Reading this did make me wonder how some children's/middle-grade books can be so well-written as to captivate even adults like me - [b:Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie|318404|Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie|Jordan Sonnenblick|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1285381604s/318404.jpg|2129865] and even [b:The Strange Case of Origami Yoda|7150174|The Strange Case of Origami Yoda|Tom Angleberger|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1275872767s/7150174.jpg|7415356] come to mind. Simplicity need not be equivalent to superficiality, after all. I think it is the creativity and humour of my favourite children's books that distinguish them from the run-of-the-mill ones - either that or the evocativeness of the landscape (I read the [b:Little House on the Prairie|77767|Little House on the Prairie|Laura Ingalls Wilder|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1266467294s/77767.jpg|2884161] series only when I was 23, and loved it).
The Red Umbrella has the usual cliches - the mischievous younger brother, the (disillusionment with the) love interest, even the pillar-of-strength father who crumbles physically at one point (very much like Life, After - only the falling apart there is psychological). The unusual details are provided for by history - and even so, presented in broad strokes (e.g. the best friend who becomes a fervent supporter of the Communist revolution).
It was readable, but much like with Littman, I felt that Gonzalez had some interesting facts to share and used the story as a platform to convey these to young readers, rather than told a story for its own characters' sake.
Reading this did make me wonder how some children's/middle-grade books can be so well-written as to captivate even adults like me - [b:Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie|318404|Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie|Jordan Sonnenblick|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1285381604s/318404.jpg|2129865] and even [b:The Strange Case of Origami Yoda|7150174|The Strange Case of Origami Yoda|Tom Angleberger|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1275872767s/7150174.jpg|7415356] come to mind. Simplicity need not be equivalent to superficiality, after all. I think it is the creativity and humour of my favourite children's books that distinguish them from the run-of-the-mill ones - either that or the evocativeness of the landscape (I read the [b:Little House on the Prairie|77767|Little House on the Prairie|Laura Ingalls Wilder|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1266467294s/77767.jpg|2884161] series only when I was 23, and loved it).
The Red Umbrella has the usual cliches - the mischievous younger brother, the (disillusionment with the) love interest, even the pillar-of-strength father who crumbles physically at one point (very much like Life, After - only the falling apart there is psychological). The unusual details are provided for by history - and even so, presented in broad strokes (e.g. the best friend who becomes a fervent supporter of the Communist revolution).
It was readable, but much like with Littman, I felt that Gonzalez had some interesting facts to share and used the story as a platform to convey these to young readers, rather than told a story for its own characters' sake.