The Bread Winner - Hardcover

Arvella Whitmore grew up in Great Bend, Kansas. She currently resides in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where she is a full-time writer.

The Depression and its people come alive in this touching and well-crafted novel. Sarah Ann Puckett thinks her father is joking when, having lost their farm during the Depression, he pulls up to a shabby shack and announces that it is to be their new home. In her new neighborhood and school, Sarah becomes a target for bullies until she learns to fight for her rights and begins to adjust; unfortunately, her father isn't as quick to adapt to his new circumstances. Unable to find work and believing he is a burden to his family, he leaves home to ride the rails, hoping to find employment elsewhere. Sarah's mother takes in laundry but proves unable to support herself and her daughter, and Sarah's breadmaking skills save the day. When her father returns home at last, a thriving bakery is waiting for him. Although it's hard to believe that a child could so determinedly and creatively turn poverty around, the Depression fostered many such scenarios, and they are warming to read. But even more rewarding here is the description of the Depression--the devastating changes in many peoples' lives, how bravely they acted, how generous people could be even in poverty, and how serious life was, even for children. --Susan F. Marcus, Pollard Middle School, Needham, MA
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