Looking for a girl hero in a middle-grade novel with a heart to protect
the abused? You'll find her in THE TROUBLE WITH HALF A MOON's Dellie
(Putnam | 2011). The author,
Danette Vigilante,
grew up in Brooklyn's Red Hook housing project, and her "insider's"
mastery of the setting magically transports us there. We feel the blue
flakes on the playground benches, hear the sound of approaching sirens,
basketballs dribbling, and neighbors' fights, and smell the antiseptic
used by Dellie's mother to clean the elevators.
Vigilante's first person
tween voice effortlessly weaves in details about Puerto Rican culture
in this debut novel. Dellie honors her hard-working, loving, strict
parents, staying true to the culture's norms, even as she decides to
break a few rules for the sake of someone in need. Perfect read to illuminate for
tween girls that so-called "small" choices can make a difference in
their own lives and in their communities.
2 comments:
Danette Vigilante, being raised up in Brooklyn's Red Hook housing project is very lucky because, Red Hook is the only part of New York City that has a full frontal view of the Statue of Liberty. Anyways, I find the title of her book quite interesting to read.
I think it really helps to her imagination and creativity that she grew up on that housing project. I'm hoping that my daughter will be like her and that she will be inspired to the environment where we are living right now.
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