Amazon.com Review
Oscar-winning actor and producer Marlee Matlin makes her writing debut about a topic she knows very well--the difficulties of growing up deaf. Nine-year-old Megan is thrilled when Cindy moves in down the street, even though the two couldn't be more different. Megan is boisterous; Cindy is shy. Megan loves everything with a passion, especially the color purple; Cindy shrinks from attention. Megan is deaf; Cindy can hear. Together, they forge an unlikely friendship that is tested when the two decide to attend summer camp together. There is another deaf child in their bunk, and suddenly Megan seems to forget the promise she made to Cindy to be "BFF," Best Friends Forever. Cindy struggles with this rejection, even as it forces her to step out from behind Megan's shadow and learn to speak up for herself. Once they are home again, the two reconcile when a hair-pulling argument dissolves into laughter.
The preeminent author of fiction about children with disabilities has always been the beloved Jean Little (Little by Little, Mine for Keeps, etc.). Having said that, Matlin is no Little, but her writing style is competent and clearly describes the realities of Megan's world. And even though Matlin's gently told story doesn't rise much above the "message" of Megan's disability, it's still a message that youngsters need to hear. (Ages 8 to 10) --Jennifer Hubert
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Publishers Weekly
Matlin, the first deaf actor to win an Academy Award, makes her fiction debut with this problematic novel about a friendship between two nine-year-old girls. Megan, who is deaf, is almost opposite in temperament from her new neighbor, the bookish, shy Cindy, but nonetheless decides that Cindy will be her best friend. Much of the book's tension relies on the girls' best-friend status, but the friendship isn't convincingly developed. Nor are the characters-even though the point of view alternates between the girls, Cindy seems sketchy next to Megan, and neither voice seems authentic (e.g., nine-year-old Megan asks herself what kind of toys the new girl will have). Matlin is at her best when delving into Megan's inner world, such as her heightened sense of smell (her father-like the other parents, distractingly referred to by his first name-claims her deafness sharpens her other senses) or her anger at not being able to use the phone, but generally these moments are fleeting and the conflicts they evoke too neatly resolved. Unfortunately, the pages are riddled with errors in grammar and syntax ("Like any other home, dinnertime was a chance to share events of day"; a paragraph written in the past tense briefly switches to present tense and back; etc.), further undermining the storytelling. Ages 8-12.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
