Autumn Winifred Oliver Does Things Different [Hardcover]

Kristin O'Donnell Tubb (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 14, 2008 | Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up

AUTUMN WINIFRED OLIVER prides herself on doing things her way. But she meets her match when she, her mama, and her pin-curled older sis, Katie, move in with her cantankerous Gramps. The Oliver gals were supposed to join Pop in Knoxville for some big-city living, but Gramps’s recent sick spell convinced Mama to stay put in Cades Cove, a place of swishy meadows and shady hollers that lies on the crest of the Great Smoky Mountains.

And it’s not like there’s nothing going on in the Cove. Folks are all aflutter about turning their land into a national park, and Autumn’s not sure what to think. Loggers like Pop need jobs, but if things keep going at the current rate, the forests will soon be chopped to bits. And Gramps seems to think there’s some serious tourist money to be made. Looks like something different is definitely in order. . . .

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 4–7—Eleven-year-old Autumn wants nothing more than to leave Cades Cove for the greater excitement of Knoxville, but she doesn't want to see it destroyed in the making of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Government workers have assured her enthusiastic grandfather that their town will be outside the boundaries, and will prosper from the tourist trade. But Autumn learns from the CCC workers that this is not true and she watches them tear down her childhood home. She has to get Gramps to change his mind. Setting her story in eastern Tennessee in 1934, Tubb ably conveys the beauty of the park area as well as less-attractive aspects of its history. Besides being a "sneak and a schemer" in Autumn's eyes, Gramps is a lively storyteller, and bits of Appalachian folklore are smoothly woven into the narrative. He is really the focus of the novel, the character who changes and whose efforts preserve at least a portion of the family's world. In spite of her folksy first-person voice, Autumn doesn't really come alive to lift the story beyond its historical and geographical interest.—Kathleen Isaacs, Towson University, MD
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From Booklist

In1934, spunky 11-year-old Autumn Winifred Oliver lives in picaresque Cades Cove, deep in the Great Smoky Mountains. Her crusty Grandpa is involved in a federal plan to convert the surrounding land into a national park, which would allow the locals to cash in on the anticipated tourism. But after Autumn realizes that the government is actually plotting to level Cades Cove, she tries everything in her power to stop the destruction. She writes a letter to Mr. John D. Rockefeller, requesting that he withdraw his funding, and she even turns her flatulent bloodhound loose on a group of park builders. While the eventual compromise is not entirely pleasing to either side, Autumn is satisfied that she did her best to keep her precious holler “as durn near perfect as possible.” Tubb’s inventive heroine comes across as a female version of familiar characters, such as Gary Paulsen’s Harris or Robert Newton Peck’s Soup. This homespun tale, full of folksy humor and based on historical fact, will appeal to young fans of Deborah Wiles’ and Ruth White’s books. Grades 4-6. --Jennifer Hubert

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers (October 14, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385735693
• ISBN-13: 978-0385735698
• Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 0.9 x 7.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,706,197 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I am basically a big dork who would still be going to school if they'd let me. (But they won't, cause that'd just be weird.) So instead I write historical fiction! All of the research, none of the tests - I've got the best job in the world, doncha think?

SELLING HOPE was given a starred review by Booklist, who said it was "a bouncy tale populated by a terrific cast of characters!" And AUTUMN WINIFRED OLIVER DOES THINGS DIFFERENT has been nominated for the Volunteer State Book Award (2011-2012 list) and was chosen to represent the State of Tennessee in the Pavilion of States at the 2009 National Book Festival. I'm delighted to have AUTUMN serve as Tennessee's ambassador!

I love hearing from readers! Please contact me through my website: www.kristintubb.com. You're also invited to swing by my blog: www.kristintubb.blogspot.com.

Do things different!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable read, relaxing pace, July 2, 2009

By 

M. Knapp "Maggie Knapp" (Fort Worth, TX) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Autumn Winifred Oliver Does Things Different (Hardcover)

Autumn Winifred Oliver lives "in a small speck of a town" in the Smoky Mountains, back when church bells tolled to tell you someone died, rather than an IM pinging on a Blackberry. This book is a lot of fun if you are a fan of Richard Peck, Sterling North, Deborah Wiles and Francis O'Roark Dowell. Autumn is a spunky, spirited youngster with a strong will and a loving family, doing her chores, making friends, learning to roller skate and generally growing up in a quieter and less hectic time.

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fun Story with Laugh out Loud Humor, April 29, 2010

By 

Rae Ann Parker - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Autumn Winifred Oliver Does Things Different (Paperback)

Autumn Winifred Oliver uses any means necessary (including a stick of dynamite stolen from the U.S. government) to try to save her hometown from becoming a national park. Kristin O'Donnell Tubb's debut novel entertains with laugh out loud humor while teaching a history lesson about the development of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Fans of Richard Peck's novels should enjoy this book.

5.0 out of 5 stars Different (in a Great Way)!, March 11, 2010

By 

Jessica E. Young - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Autumn Winifred Oliver Does Things Different (Paperback)

A wonderful and unique read for middle grade girls and boys, fans of Tennessee, US history, or the National Parks, or anyone who likes to "do things different!" Plucky heroine Autumn keeps the reader guessing what her next move will be in as she tries to save her Cades Cove home. Tubb works in tons of Tennessee and US history, but readers will be too entertained to realize how much they're learning. Her authentic characters, hilarious plot twists, and sense of place make for a satisfying read for all ages.