 First edition | |
| Author | Richard Peck |
|---|---|
| Illustrator | Yang Hee |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Subject | Coming of age |
| Genre | Children's historical fiction |
| Published | September 1, 1998 Dial Press |
| Media type | Print (hardback & paperback) |
| Pages | 148 pp |
| ISBN | 978-0-803-72290-3 |
| OCLC | 38249685 |
| LC Class | PZ7.P338 Ll 1998 |
| Followed by | A Year Down Yonder |
A Long Way from Chicago is a "novel in stories" (or short story cycle) by Richard Peck, published September 1, 1998 by Dial Press.
YouTube Encyclopedic
-
1/3Views:13 1428 072880
-
"A Long Way from Chicago" | 60second Book Review
-
Book Trailer - "A long Way from Chicago"
-
A Long Way From Chicago-Book Trailer
Transcription
If you've never read anything by Richard Peck, prepare for surprise and delight. His unique blend of tall tales, historical fiction, and small-town humor are the formula for some of the best stories I've ever read. I'll introduce you to one of them for this week's Pick. Richard Peck's book A Long Way from Chicago is supposedly written for children. But Grandma Dowdel, the larger-than-life character at the center of this book of short stories, is one you'll appreciate at any age. Grandma Dowdel is the hardest-working most big-hearted character you'll ever meet in a work of fiction. She's also ornery, devious, and a terror with a gun. A Long Way from Chicago chronicles the seven summers that Joey and his sister, Mary Alice, spend with Grandma in her sleepy little Illinois town. But things aren't exactly what they appear. In fact, there's nothing sleepy about the town with Grandma Dowdel around. Under her watchful eye, Joey and Mary Alice encounter a corpse, face down a gang of bullies, outsmart a foreclosure, and learn how to be good neighbors. And each summer they return home traumatized—and the better for their visit. You won't be traumatized by A Long Way from Chicago, but you'll definitely be the better for reading it. Besides extremely fine storytelling, what this book really has to offer is a whole lot of heart.
Plot
"Shotgun Cheatham's" Last Night Above Ground - 1929" (originally printed in Twelve Shots: Stories About Guns, 1997). The first summer the children go to their grandmother's house, a reporter comes looking for info on the infamous man who has just died, Shotgun Cheatham. Grandma holds an open house for Shotgun and lies to the reporter by saying he was a war hero. Grandma's enemy, Effie Wilcox, comes too but then the coffin begins to move. Grandma shoots the coffin with her shotgun, while Ms. Wilcox and the reporter run out, but it turns out that it was the cat that lives in the cobb house who moved the curtain draped over the coffin.
"The Mouse in the Milk" - 1930." The next summer, the Cowgill boys are tormenting the town by blowing up Grandma's mailbox or Effie Wilcox's privy. Grandma tells one of the boys she won't be home for her daily milk delivery, knowing the boys would try to steal something from her. That night she turns the lights off and waits for them to come and steal; she catches them and has Joey get their parents. Grandma tells Mr. Cowgill that if his boys won't stop she'll tell everyone that she found a mouse in her milk, running his business to the ground.
"A One-Woman Crime Wave" - 1931". Grandma uses illegal fish traps to get catfish from the lake while using the sheriff's boat she stole to feed to drifters and sees the sheriff's deputies while fishing but they seem too intoxicated to understand the situation.
"The Day of Judgment" - 1932". Grandma's gooseberry pie goes up against Rupert Pennypacker's in a pie baking contest at the fair for her town's honor and a flight in a biplane. Grandma switches the nameplates on the pies at the last minute. Rupert Pennypacker wins the contest with Grandma's pie, but Grandma still finds a way to get Joey a ride in an airplane.
"The Phantom Brakeman" - 1933". While Mary Alice is recently idolizing a tap dancer and film actress Shirley Temple, mismatched families of local lovers converge on Grandma's house and she uses an old ghost story to aid them. At night time Vandalia Eubanks and Junior Stubbs run away together with the help of "The Phantom Brakeman" (Joey) and Grandma.
"Things with Wings" - 1934". While Joey is having a love affair with a Hudson Terraplane 8 (a new car model), Grandma is finding a way to force banker Mr. Weidenbach to return Mrs. Effie Wilcox to her foreclosed home with rumors of Abe Lincoln.
"Centennial Summer" - 1935". There's a centennial celebration that is celebrated every century in town and Grandma has a showdown with Mrs. Weidenbach about whose family has the most talent and the county's oldest living veteran.
"The Troop Train" - 1942". Joey joins the army air corps because he loves airplanes. He sends a telegram to Grandma telling her that he was passing through her town. When the train comes by, Joey sees Grandma's house lit up and Grandma herself waving to each and every car passing by, hoping that he would see her, too. Joey waves back and goes off to fight in World War II.
Reception
It was awarded the Newbery Honor in 1999. Peck's sequel to this book, A Year Down Yonder, won the Newbery Medal for children's literature in 2001. Matt Berman from Common Sense Media rated A Long Way from Chicago five stars.[1] Kirkus Reviews described the book as a "wry tale ranging from humorous to poignant".[2] In 2012 it was ranked number 67 on a list of the top 100 children's novels published by School Library Journal.[3]
References
- ^ Berman, Matt (25 April 2005). "A Long Way from Chicago: a Novel in Stories". Common Sense Media. Archived from the original on 2012-11-14. Retrieved 2024-01-27.
- ^ "A Long Way from Chicago". Kirkus Reviews. 1998-09-01. Retrieved 2024-01-27.
- ^ Bird, Elizabeth (2012-07-07). "Top 100 Chapter Book Poll Results". A Fuse #8 Production. Blog. School Library Journal (blog.schoollibraryjournal.com). Archived from the original on 2012-07-13. Retrieved 2021-12-08.
This page was last edited on 29 February 2024, at 01:46