Ash Moore Moore itibaren Sunpura, Uttar Pradesh 244501, India
1943 Newbery Medal Winner
I recommended this book for my book club...based on a few reviews. I don’t often read this type of fiction so thought the challenge would be good for me. Alan Brennert writes about the life of Rachel Kalama after she is sent to Kalaupapa, a leper colony situated on the island of Moloka'i. Brennert’s book is based on historical accounts of Kalaupapa and he blends in many traditional Hawaiian customs and stories. I started reading with a lot of interest, finding myself getting caught up in the life of Rachel. After she spent several years in Kalaupapa, about half way through the book, I found myself growing tired of the story and just wanting more to happen than what was happening. Brennert is a good writer, but for me not a great one. I often found his writing to be a bit less complex than I wanted. I was looking for those aha moments that come when I read...something written in a profound way that make me wonder and question. I didn’t get a lot of that in this book. After a long lull where I just couldn’t read fast enough to finish this book and be done with it, it seemed to pick up for me...as Rachel grew older, as she experienced loss and had to come to terms with the direction her life had taken when she was a young girl. All in all...an okay read for me...and a good push for myself to read something out of my normal circle of book choices.