Module/Genre 5 Historical Fiction

Module/Genre 5 Historical Fiction

THE BALLAD OF LUCY WHIPPLE

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Cushman, Karen. 1996. THE BALLAD OF LUCY WHIPPLE. New York, NY: Clarion Books of Houghton Mifflin Books. ISBN 0395728061


2. PLOT SUMMARY
Karen Cushman has written a novel of young girl California Morning Whipple and her family’s move West during the California Gold rush. This story is not typical with a widowed mother and her four children moving westward from Massachusetts to the desolate mining town of Lucky Diggins to pursue “the hearts desire.” California or Lucy, as she renames herself at age 12, is the oldest of four children and hates everything about Lucky Diggins. Gone are Grandma and Granpop, the library, and the fresh tomatoes that were so abundant back home. Throughout the story Lucy plots her return to Massachusetts only to be derailed by the death of her only brother Butte and a saloon fire that takes everything they owned. Lucy’s complicated relationship with her mother comes full circle at the end of this novel when mama pursues her knew heart’s desire and Lucy pleads to let her too pursue her own. As Lucy packs up to pursue her own heart’s desire she finds that she has had it all along, her family. Lucy realizes that she can no longer find them in Massachusetts, but she will always have them in her heart.


3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Cushman’s writing provides readers with descriptive details that create the element of a “living past”, and it will leave them sympathizing with California and her living conditions. Upon arrival at Lucky Diggins, mama is thrilled with the promise of the land that lies before them. On the contrary, Lucy, describes the air as heavy with heat and dust burning her nose and stinging her eyes. Lucy describes the land as sunburned and barren and that, “Surely Hell was not far away.” California’s hate for the land eventually leads her to rename herself. In one of her many letters to her grandparents she explains she cannot hate California and be California.

Karen Cushman focuses on Lucy’s love for books and writing with the many letters that close the beginning chapters. Lucy has her one and only book, Ivanhoe, that she reads over and over. Finally there is a light at the end of the tunnel when her former teacher from New England sends her a box full of books. With her new collection Lucy soon becomes the makeshift Librarian of Lucky Diggins loaning her beloved books to miners and those miners loaning them to others. With Cushman’s focus on Lucy’s hobby of reading, the historical period will become a realization for readers whose own pastimes include cell phones, televisions, and computers. Lucy’s passion for reading and writing may lead young readers to a new found appreciation for their own books.

The novel takes on more dimensions with the different perspectives from characters and the relationships in Lucy’s life. One of the relationships that Lucy struggles with the most is that of her deceased father. She refers to him as Pa and always reminisces about him being the skinniest man ever, with his beard that she loved to rub against her face. As life goes on in Lucky Diggins she remembers him by always telling stories about him to her younger siblings. Lucy tells stories of when she was younger and would walk in the woods or to Oakbridge with her Pa. The day finally comes when she fears that she has forgotten him, and things get even more complicated when miners try and woo Lucy’s mother for marriage. Lucy is stubborn and steadfast that no one will ever take the place of her father. Her feelings only begin to change with the arrival of Brother Clyde Claymore, with his big hands and beliefs that even sway the non-marrying mind of her mother. The importance of Lucy’s father is also evident when she befriends a runaway slave and gives him the name of her adored father. The slave, Bernard as she calls him has a very important role in this story, because he explains how different is compared to the rest of the community of Luck Diggins. His goals are simple, not to strike it rich, but to simply be free.

Another relationship that gave shape to this novel is that of Lucy's brother Butte. Butte, the man of the household, has a conflicting relationship with his eldest sister that grows into love when he almost drowns. When Butte finally passes Lucy writes a letter making a statement that will resonate with all siblings, “Dear Gram and Grampop, Butte is dead. He is eleven years old, could do his sums, and knew fifty words for liquor. I didn’t know it but I loved him.” Readers will find it hard to believe that a young boy, during this time had to work and earn money to help the family.

All of these relationships are important because they give shape to the story and the details within the relationships give readers a glimpse into the life and times during the gold rush era. Readers will be astounded to find what life was like before television, cell phones, and Ipods.

Readers will be shocked by Cushman’s conclusion. With the amount of time that Lucy spent trying to leave Lucky Diggins, it is ironic that this would be the place she called home even after her family and Brother Clyde departed for the Sandwich islands. Karen Cushman leaves readers with an authors note about the California gold rush and where the idea for this story came from. Cushman explains that 90% of people came to California looking for gold, and that this story was about the other 10% of people. This story was inspired by the women and children, who came without a man and had to make their own way. Cushman states, “Lucy Whipple personifies the gold rush pioneers. She came to California to get rich and get out; yet beguiled by the land and the people, she stayed to be a Californian and enrich her new home with the experiences, culture, and expectations she brought with her.” Cushman has taken a time in history and interweaved it with imaginary people to resemble what life was like for families who headed westward in pursuit of their dreams.

4. REVIEW EXCERPTS
Publishers Weekly - 05-18-1998
A starred review to this gold-rush novel by Newbery Medalist Cushman, calling it "a coming-of-age story rich with historical flavor." Here she also renders serious social issues through sharply etched portraits: a runaway slave who has no name of his own, a preacher with a congregation of one, a raggedy child whose arms are covered in bruises. The writing reflects her expert craftsmanship; for example, Lucy's brother Butte, dead for lack of a doctor, is eulogized thus: "He was eleven years old, could do his sums, and knew fifty words for liquor."
School Library Journal
The two main characters are 12-years-old Lucy, who uses her considerable drive toward a much longed for return to the civilized world of her native New England, and Lucy's widowed mother, Arvella, a down-to-earth pioneer with an unquenchable thirst for adventure. This is also a tale of two strong-willed women locked in a mother-daughter conflict. Cushman's forceful writing combined with a narration in which the characters live and breathe make this a first choice for libraries.
Booklist
Cushman's research shows at times, but there's joy in the daily details (bread made with flour and water, with a drop of molasses to kill the taste of weevils) and in the tall-tale exaggeration of Lucy's narrative (she lives in a space so small "I can lie in bed and stir the beans on the stove without getting up”). There's sadness, too, as when her younger brother becomes sick and dies, and there's no doctor to help. In fact, the tone is reminiscent of Chaplin's movie The Gold Rush, with its mixture of farce and pathos. Many readers will recognize their own dislocations in Lucy's reluctant adventure. In a vividly written afterword, Cushman places Lucy's personal narrative in its historical context.
Kirkus Reviews
With a story that is less a period piece than a timeless and richly comic coming-of-age story, Cushman remains on a roll.

5. CONNECTIONS
* Have students research actual gold mining towns of California.
* Have students research to find women who went westward in pursuit of gold or a new life.
* Use this book to open discussion on Slavery and actual people like Bernard Freeman’s character who lived during this period of time.
* Talk about how the United States annexed California from Mexico, who had taken it from the Spanish. This discussion could eventually lead to the question of, “Who was here first?”
* Research the Maidu Indian people and how there downfall was caused by the Gold Rush.
*Titles to pair with this:
Schroeder, Lisa Golden. CALIFORNIA GOLD RUSH COOKING. ISBN 0736806032
Schanzer, Rosalyn. GOLD FEVER! TALES FROM THE CALIFORNIA GOLD RUSH. ISBN 0792273036
Raabe, Emily. The Gold Rush: California or Bust! ISBN 0823964949
Gregory, Kristiana. Seeds of Hope: The Gold Rush Diary of Susanna Fairchild, California Territory, 1849. ISBN 0590511572

CLEOPATRA

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Stanley, Diane & Vennma, Peter. 1994. CLEOPATRA. Ill by Diane Stanley. New York, NY: Morrow Junior Books. ISBN 0688104134

2. PLOT SUMMARY
Diane Stanley’s Cleopatra is a narrative biography that readers will be quickly drawn into. The story like format and intricate illustrations will even keep the attention of reluctant readers. Stanley has written this book in a non-traditional view of Cleopatra. In addition to highlighting her beauty, Stanley also highlights her intelligence. Stanley writes of the 18 year old queen of Egypt and her failed marriage to her brother Ptolemy XIII, which led to a battle that would drive Cleopatra out of Egypt by the age 20. Stanley focuses on the courtship between Cleopatra and Julius Caesar, and how she cleverly won him over. Cleopatra and Julius Caesar’s relationship was short-lived, eventually ending in Caesar’s death. With the death of Julius, Cleopatra would marry yet once again this time to Mark Antony. Stanley describes this, “Cleopatra captivated Antony, just as she had Julius Caesar. This was to be the second- and last love of her life.” Although Antony was already married, he soon divorced and lived his life with Cleopatra and their three children. Antony eventually gave Cleopatra and her three children large parts of Rome, incensing his former wife’s brother, Octavian. These events would eventually lead to the battle of Actium, where Anotny would abandon his ship and men to Octavian, and retreat to Cleopatra’s fleet. With the Accidental death of her husband Anotny, Cleopatra knew that she would be Octavian’s next target. According to Plutarch, before Octavian could disgrace her in death, Cleopatra took her own life with poison at age 39.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
In this title, Stanley has provided a depiction of Cleopatra that is contradictory to her ancient enemies. Stanley provides a note to readers on ancient sources, citing “Everything we know about Cleopatra was written by her enemies. It is not surprising, then, that she was portrayed as a conniving, immoral woman.” Stanley also makes the point that much of the information acquired on Cleopatra’s infamous life was written by Greek historian, Plutarch. Stanley states, “Plutarch lived a 100 years after Cleopatra, and much of what he writes may have been mere gossip or legend, and many of his sources were influenced by the propaganda put fourth by the conquering Octavian and his supporters.” These points are crucial for readers to understand, because it displays how a historical event can have conflicting accounts.

Stanley also provides readers with other tools: preface, ancient maps, epilogue, and a pronunciation guide. The preface will prove to be most useful to readers by explaining the time frame of Cleopatra’s life such as: “Many people believe that Cleopatra was one of the ancient queens of Egypt. But, in fact, she did not live in the days of Pharaohs.” Readers may even be surprised to find out that Cleopatra was Macedonian Greek and not Egyptian.

It is important to make note of how Stanley tries to depict the human side of Cleopatra. Unlike many who viewed her as frivolous with her, “Mountains of baggage, her many servants, and her lavish ways.” Stanley accomplishes this in her writing with Plutarch's account of a fishing trip Cleopatra and Antony took. The story is as follows: “Antony was catching nothing, so he secretly ordered a servant to swim under the boat and attach fish to his line. The queen soon discovered his game, and played a trick of her own.” An account like this is readers will connect with. We may not all conquer foreign lands, but we are all guilty of having fun.

The artwork was done in gouache and is reminiscent of roman painting. The pages are covered in detail, from the intricate mosaic patterns to the architecture in the background. The use of rich colors will draw the reader’s eye into the page. The text is 13-pt Korinna, and it is segregated on its own space with the use of blocked mosaics and boarders. The text in this biography plays an important role because the look of it makes readers feel like they are reading a story rather than an informational book, an element that will make this title easy and enjoyable.

4. REVIEW EXCERPTS
Publishers Weekly
Here they make a seemingly effortless leap into ancient times, masterfully relating Cleopatra's life story through words and pictures. A succinct preface places the tale in historical context, noting that much of what is known about Cleopatra is based on legend or gossip--and that most accounts of her life were penned by her enemies. Stanley includes occasional quotes from the writings of Plutarch as she ably distills complex political machinations as well as the particulars of Cleopatra's often enigmatic private life, including her banishment from Alexandria and her fateful love for first Julius Caesar and then Mark Antony.
School Library Journal
In this lively, well-crafted biography, Stanley and Vennema brush the cobwebs from the popularly held portrait of Cleopatra to reveal a vital, warm, and politically adroit ruler. Lucid writing combines with carefully selected anecdotes, often attributed to the Greek historian Plutarch, to create an engaging narrative.
Booklist
The artwork includes full-page paintings of dramatic scenes as well as impressive painted mosaics that make up the jacket art, title page, and the background for the text. The story concerns Cleopatra's life from the age of 18, when she became the queen of Egypt (51 B.C.), through her liaisons with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, and her struggle to bring back Egypt's former glory, to her death at the age of 39. One of the most impressive qualities of this beautiful book is its recognition of the problems of researching and writing history. Not only does a note introduce Plutarch as the main source, but it also discusses why Plutarch's account may not be entirely reliable.
Kirkus Reviews
In striving for accuracy, however, the authors sacrifice the romance of the story. Stanley's drawings, on the other hand, are exquisitely wrought with vivid color and fine mosaic detail. Stanley and Vennema's latest illustrated biography is a beautifully decorated, dull account of one of the most powerful women rulers of all time.


5. CONNECTIONS
*Have student research other accounts of Cleopatra and have them compare and contrast those accounts with this book.
*CRAFT- Have students take a good look at the cover of this title and explain to the technique of mosaics. With cut paper or tile let students create their own work mimicking this technique.

WORTH

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
LaFaye, A. 2004. WORTH. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. ISBN141554780.

2. PLOT SUMMARY
LaFaye has written a timely novel about a boy Nathanial Peale and his life after a tragic accident on the family farm. All Nathaniel has ever known his life with Ma working as a tinker and Pa working the Nebraska land, but all that changes when a quick storm comes and in the rush to get the crops in, Nathaniel’s leg gets injured by a spooked horse, forever changing his life. With Nathaniel unable to work Pa has no choice but to take in an orphan, John Worth, to help work the land. No one in the family is happy about this situation. Ma will not let John sleep or eat inside, and Nathaniel despises John for taking his spot next to Pa. Nathaniel struggles with his relationship with his father, because it will never be the same. With Nathaniel in school and John at home, both of the boys feel out of place, but they eventually learn to respect each others situation, especially when Nathaniel learns that John has lost his family to a fire. After a few unfortunate fights, John finally gets to eat at the table, and the boys eventually begin reading Greek myths together. In the end the boys really bond when they catch Horace Danver fence cutting, and save the town from a range war. Ultimately, Nathaniel realizes that having John, having a brother, would not be too bad.


3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Early on in the novel, LaFaye’s descriptive writing remains faithful to what life was like during this time. For example, Nathaniel describes his school: “The place was like root cellar dirt walls, air choked up with must, and bugs. Bugs crawled all over the place.” After reading these excerpt readers will be grateful for all that today’s schools offer them. LaFaye’s vocabulary terms like “cattle thief” and “fence cutter” will likely prompt readers into finding out more about range wars and how and why they occurred. LaFaye’s writing and language choices help historical period come to life.

Readers will personally connect with this story because of the turmoil that the two boys are dealing with. Jon Worth’s situation will make readers sympathetic right away when they hear how he is treated by the Peale family. Making him sit away from the rest of the family during church and sleep outside, and with Nathaniel reminding himself, “He might live at our place and work with pa, but like ma said, he was a farmhand not a son. Not my brother. Just a boy who did my work.” After passages like this it maybe hard for readers to connect with Nathaniel and his selfish feelings, but they will slowly feel compassion towards him, as he longs for the past relationship with his father and to do the things that he took for granted. LaFaye makes Nathaniel’s anger apparent in the chapter six when he ponders, “Why’d God have to break me up inside? Why’d he have to kill John’s parents? If he’d just left well enough, we’d each have our pa back. We’d be happy. Part of a family, not sitting here all alone in a mess of people.” The real turning point in the story occurs after a fight between the boys. Ma initially blames John only to find out that it was her son who had instigated the confrontation. After Ma and Nathaniel apologize, it is then that the walls broken down between them all as John looks at ma and reminisces about his own mother saying, “I miss her till it chokes me.” As readers progress through the novel they will get to know the two young characters and realize how ironic their circumstances are, Nathaniel in school and John working the farm, and both of them wishing to be in the others shoes.

LaFaye gives readers a writing that is filled with emotion and hope, in a plot that reminds readers that sometimes life gives us situations that we are unprepared for, but are not impossible to overcome. LaFaye concludes the story with John, no longer a nuisance to Nathaniel, but a brother, “A Brother to swap stories with, who’d learn about history from me and teach me how to do my sums. Come winter, when work around the farm grows as thin as bare trees, Pa might even let him go to school with me.”(pg144.)


4. REVIEW EXCERPTS
Publishers Weekly - 08-28-2006
LaFaye takes an unusual perspective on the Orphan Train, focusing on the adoptive family, in what PW called a "spare, lyrical novel."
School Library Journal
LaFaye’s gives an unsparing look at the grueling hardships of day-to-day farm life during the late 19th-century and the ongoing battle between farmers and ranchers for control of the land. A compelling and historically accurate story beautifully rendered.
Booklist
Nathaniel's angry first-person narrative is brutally honest, and, at first, he is bitterly resentful of John, an orphan who lost his family in a New York City tenement fire: "Just 'cause he lost his father didn't mean he had a right to mine." Through Nathaniel’s narrative comes a sense of the grueling daily work, the family struggle to try to hold on to the land and avoid failure. The short, spare novel doesn't need the heavy heroic parallels; it tells its own story of darkness and courage. A great choice for American history classes.
Children's Literature
LaFaye's splendid prose evokes the searing physical pain of Nathaniel’s leg injury and John's lonely grief over his family's death in a tenement fire. The novel incorporates important themes of 19th century rural America in believable and moving ways: the range wars pitting rancher against farmer; the community's ambivalence about the need for schooling; the uncertainties of lives in which family members die suddenly and bankrupt families abandon their homesteads; and the plight of foreign immigrants seeking tolerance.
Kirkus Reviews
It's a lively story of two boys set against a backdrop of the Orphan Trains, range wars, lynchings, drownings, and sheep killings. Something for everyone.




5. CONNECTIONS
* Have students read more about orphan trains and range wars.
* Divide the class into pairs and have each individual in a pair represent Nathaniel and have the other represent John, let them continue the story to write about their next adventure together. Other options would be:
Let students reenact an excerpt from the story.
Let them journal about how they would feel in the given situation.
* Use this book as a bridge discussion to the compassion, and talk about feelings and why we feel the way we do, and how we can overcome feelings of jealousy and despair, like Nathaniel and John eventually did.