Fall Secrets (Seasons) [Paperback]

Candy Dawson Boyd (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up | Series: Seasons

The first volume of a new series follows the adventures of four girls at their first year at a performing arts junior high school, during which Jessie, a spirited young African-American girl, explores racial differences and hides a painful secret.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-7-As Jessie Williams enters the Oakland Performing Arts Middle School, she must deal with pressure to perform academically, her jealousy toward her older sister, Cass, and the difficulties of working in a small group at school. The girls who make up the "Fours" all have hidden problems that affect their group dynamics, but they manage to work cohesively on class projects, including performing at a local home for senior citizens. Always in the background are the devastating effects of the Oakland/Berkeley fire that both traumatized and mobilized the whole community. Bolstered by her loving family and a boy at school who makes her feel special, Jessie is able to confront her own insecurities. Despite workmanlike writing, stilted dialogue, and some heavy-handed messages, there are some interesting things happening here. The characters are well drawn and, while readers may question the girls' need for secrecy about their problems, they will recognize the pressures of adolescence and exult in Jessie's determination to forge a new relationship with Cass, who's been having her own problems, and her growing pride in her African American heritage.
Marie Orlando, Suffolk Cooperative Library System, Bellport,
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 5-7. Jessie Williams has a lot on her mind. She's started at a middle school focused on the performing arts, where she can persue her dream of becoming an actress, but it's hard to do drama and keep her grades up. Making friends at a new school can be dicey, too, and Jessie is also worried about her grandmother's Parkinson's disease, her father's wobbly business, and her sister's problems with her boyfriend. Jessie also occasionally flashes back to the Oakland fires, a year earlier, that almost destroyed her home. Clearly, this book has way too much going on, and it lacks some badly needed humor to leaven it. There's a stiffness here that not only cripples the plot, but also affects the characters. But Jessie's major worry is one rarely touched on, and its the main thing that makes the book interesting. Jessie is dark-skinned like her mother, but her sister, Cass, is light-skinned and has straight hair. And despite Jess' talents, she is jealous and thinks she's not as good as Cass. There is continuous dialogue throughout about color, what it means, and what people let it mean, particularly within the African American community. The attractive cover will pull readers in; the honest discussion will strike a responsive chord. Ilene Cooper

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Puffin (September 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140365834
• ISBN-13: 978-0140365832
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,755,093 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Booklist has no clue of urban and real life (Want the real), July 5, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Fall Secrets (Seasons) (Paperback)

To me(my opinion because I'm entitled to it) This book was very good and the fact that it has many things going in it is because that's how a real urban girl thinks. Boyd was coming from inside Jessie head and the world and how she sees it. Including her attractions and crushes to boys. In my opinon this book was a good CLEAN version of real urban life. Like it or not I really don't care.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Intresting and compelling Book!, June 22, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Fall Secrets (Seasons) (Paperback)

This is a very good book. I bought it when I was in the sixth grade but put off reading it until now the summer before I start 9th grade. I think this book will help a lot of people with similar problems deal with them. It is a must read!!!!!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Review of Fall Secrets, November 8, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Fall Secrets (Seasons) (Paperback)

i thought that the book was really good. the author made it seem that she was talking about someone she knew, maybe herself as a child, or even someone that she knows. the reason that i gave it a 4 was because the pacing could have been slower, it just went by so fast. as soon as i started to read the book i couldn't put it down. i got so into the book that i felt like i was one of the characters in the book. i know that this is more realistic than unrealistic because everything that was going on a lot could relate to or had gone through something like that. i would recommend this book to anyone who is a teenager.