Cezanne Pinto: (ALA Best Book for Young Adults) [Hardcover]

Mary Stolz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 25, 1994 | Age Level: 10 and up

A historical adventure novel depicts the remembrances of ninety-year-old Cezanne Pinto, who escapes from slavery at age twelve, lives through the Civil War, and becomes a teenage cowboy--all the while searching for his long-lost mother.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Rarely does historical fiction achieve the immediacy and power of this exceptional novel. The eponymous narrator recounts how, 80 years earlier, a slave on a Virginia plantation and only 11 or 12 years old (often slaves didn't know their exact age), he escaped with a far-seeing, clandestinely educated slave woman and traveled the Underground Railroad to freedom. The account of the journey, much of it on foot, is enthralling, but marks only the start of Cezanne's travels. Stolz shifts the narrative, briskly paced but keenly atmospheric, to the farm of a wealthy Canadian, to Civil War Washington, D.C., to the Texas range, to Chicago. Liberal references to Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman not only serve a purpose in the plot but revitalize the reader's understanding of such figures' heroism and accomplishments, while equally adroit mentions of Mathew Brady and Jean Baptiste Pointe Du Sable reclaim these famous individuals' places in the African American heritage. Stolz dazzles with the scope of her vision, challenging her audience to reconsider American history through the eyes of those who, until recently, had little hand in writing it. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-9-Stolz invites her readers to suspend disbelief and to read this tale as an actual memoir. She largely succeeds. The day that Cezanne Pinto walked away from slavery in Virginia, he decided he was 12 years old. Now in his old age, he recounts his experiences. His story is a moving panorama of life as a black boy and man in the years before, during, and after the Civil War. Cezanne escapes, makes his way by foot and by Underground Railroad to Canada via Philadelphia, returns to Pennsylvania and hitches on with a Northern cavalry unit at the end of the Civil War, travels to Texas and works as a cowboy, and finally goes to Chicago to learn and to teach. The numerous turns of fortune suggest that he is larger than life, but his shortcomings as well as his strengths are revealed. Stolz laces bits of history into the narrative, introducing facts where they fit. The text is conversational, with much of it in dialect. As Cezanne becomes committed to learning and speaking more formal English, his effort is reflected by subtly evolving language. He is revealed as a complex and rich character, filled with sorrow and fortitude. A compelling book that would make an outstanding companion to Virginia Hamilton's Anthony Burns (Knopf, 1988).
Carolyn Noah, Central Mass. Regional Library System, Worcester, MA
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Hardcover: 279 pages
• Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers (January 25, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0679849173
• ISBN-13: 978-0679849179
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,332,095 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mary Stolz has the most beautiful command of language., March 31, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Cezanne Pinto (Paperback)

Cezanne Pinto is a wonderful story about slavery, about human strength,about perseverance,and about finding who you are to your soul. We read it aloud as a family and both my 8 year old and my 14 year old enjoyed the story. As for myself, the story is compelling, but what really moved me is that Mary Stolz has the most beautiful command of language. Some of the passages were so rich and lovely to read that I would read them aloud again and again just to hear their music. It is described as a children's book, but it can hold its own with most of the finest adult literature out there. I wish she would write more ...

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Compelling Book For Readers of All Ages, December 12, 2005

By 

Brad - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cezanne Pinto (Paperback)

The novel Cezanne Pinto: A Memoir was an emotionally stirring novel by Mary Stolz. The book transports the reader to an unimaginable world of racism and hatred. The novel is written in first person as a young, African American boy living in the late 1800's. Mary Stolz does a wonderful job of taking the reader through a journey of this young man's life. The novel does not run short of descriptive language and is creatively written in first person account. In some places the novel is rather slow for the reader but, is very historically accurate. Mary Stolz does a very wonderful job of creating the characters of Cezanne, Tamar, and the many other characters that come throughout the novel. The characters fit the time period perfectly. Descriptions are so excellent that this would be a perfect novel to be made into a movie. Overall, the novel is a must read for anyone interested in learning more about America's past and is a historically accurate page turning book. I would recommend it to almost anyone, including young children and families.

Do the times shape the individual or does the individual shape the times? This was a question I was often faced with while reading. In this case it was somewhat a mixture of both, however the times did seem to shape the main character more. Cezanne was an ordinary black slave, who decides to risk his life and escape to Canada. The character changes so much with the times that he also fights for the Union in the Civil War. The times happening around Cezanne forced him to fight for a change. The times inspired Cezanne to use his God-given gifts and fight for what he believes in.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The History of Cezanne Pinto, February 22, 2001

By 

Evan Smith (Lenexa, KS USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cezanne Pinto (Paperback)

This book was very good! I enjoyed it a lot. There was very much suspense since he could be beaten or killed if he were caught doing something wrong. I would recommend it for people of all ages. I found only one problem with this book. It lacked action at some parts in the book which made those parts seem kind of boring. Otherwise, it was an excellent book!