Adam and Eve and Pinch-me [Hardcover]

Julie Johnston (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1996

15 year-old Sara Moone has lived in many fos ter homes, having been abandoned by her parents at birth. Sh e protects herself from emotional attachments and her only c onfidant is her computer, through which we learn of her wish to turn 16. '

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A hard veneer encases 15-year-old Sara. Through a series of hardships and tragedies, Sara, given up at birth by her unwed mother, has traveled from one foster home to another. She eagerly awaits her next birthday, when she can quit school and be on her own. For now, however, Sara must adjust to yet another "placement." Arriving at the Huddlestons' farm, she meets a good-natured couple and their other charges--adorable Josh, age four, and the delinquent Nick, whose misdeeds nearly destroy these individuals' attempts to become a loving family. Johnston, the Canadian author of the award-winning Hero of Lesser Causes , has an uncanny ear for her characters' voices. If the plot is not altogether credible--especially a subplot about Sara's birth mother's search for her--the players are brilliantly etched, and a hint of humor lightens the somber mood. ("I think I ate only enough to keep body and soul on friendly terms," says Sara). Although neither as well-modulated nor as disciplined as Hero , the novel is moving and memorable. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Grade 6-10-Sara Moone, 15, has found a perfect way to disconnect herself from anyone or anything that threatens to penetrate her prickly armor-she stores her feelings in a computer. Her latest foster home is with the Huddlestons on their Ontario farm. Ma is a nonstop talker and her husband is laconic. Sara soon treats her four-year-old foster brother, Josh, to the cruel pinching game referred to in the title. But slowly her icy defenses thaw, and she begins to let her new family, her social worker, and a local young man into her world. She must deal simultaneously with her other foster brother, Nick, who is eager to be rid of her, and with the arrival of a woman who claims to be her birth mother. When Nick sets a fire in the barn, Sara's buried memory of a fire is triggered, and something painful inside her is released. Her first-person narrative, with its informal language and strong sense of immediacy, has high YA appeal. The themes of the boundaries of parent-child relationships, loss, and the fragile situations of children who must adapt to abandonment are sensitively explored. Each of the supporting characters emerges distinctly, and the woman who says she's Sara's mother is especially compelling. Reminiscent in power and theme of Betsy Byars's The Pinballs (HarperCollins, 1977), but for an older audience, this novel speaks volumes about the complexity of relationships and human affection.
Carolyn Noah, Central Mass. Regional Library System, Worcester, MA
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Orchard Books (August 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 186039177X
• ISBN-13: 978-1860391774
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Book!, April 16, 2000

By 

Elizabeth Yarwood "comet9443" (Shenandoah Valley, VA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Adam and Eve and Pinch Me (Paperback)

This book was a great read! I especially enjoyed it because I'm interested in adopting in the future, and this gave me an insight into the foster care system, albeit in Canada. The writing was great, although it's definitely a young adult book and not an adult book! The plot line would be a bit too easy for adults, but I don't think this would be a problem with younger readers (high school would be fine with it).

All in all, I really enjoyed this! I hope to read more of this author's books!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hits the bulls eye of the heart, November 23, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Adam and Eve and Pinch Me (Paperback)

Being both foster and adoptive parents, this is real stuff with real personalities and feelings portrayed. Wished I had read it in one sitting to get the full effect of the emotions.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Grrrrreat and I haven't even finished it!!, November 4, 2000

By 

poppy (Wah Wah land) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Adam and Eve and Pinch Me (Paperback)

The book is great for me. I only started reading this afternoon and I already love it! It's about this great Sara Moone a very interesting character whom many people will be able to relate to. Once you start this book...you won't be able to put it down. Go get it!