Going through the Gate [Mass Market Paperback]

Janet Anderson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 20, 2000 | Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up

A spellbinding fantasy by an exciting new talent! In the last one-room schoolhouse in the county, a strange graduation ceremony takes place each year. No one in town will say what happens, but it changes the students forever. With a hint of menace, this mesmerizing novel unfolds. The five sixth-graders in Miss Clough's schoolhouse are about to graduate, or "go through the gate",as the townspeople say. But none of the children knows what this means. They would not dare to question Miss Clough, though. She has been the teacher for more than fifty years. She is so much a part of the town and its people that they say she can see inside your head and guide your thoughts. But why does she make them study animals so intensely? And why does everyone, except the sixth-graders, stay inside on graduation day? But most of all, what happened at the school twenty-five years ago that everyone is afraid will happen again? Becky and the other sixth-graders are about to find out, and to discover parts of themselves that they couldn't have imagined the day before. This extraordinary first novel combines all the energy of suspense with the emotional power of a coming-of-age story. Janet S. Anderson explores the inner lives of five very different children with equal authority, while weaving a spell of magic and danger around them with her exquisite descriptions of a beautiful and threatening animal world. This is an unforgettable debut.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A sixth-grade graduation from a one-room schoolhouse is both a mystical rite and the subject of local legend. PW called this "emotionally resonant first novel a moving fantasy that brilliantly evokes the fear and exhilaration of growing up." Ages 10-14. (Mar.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-7. Anderson weaves a powerful tale with an economy of words and a richness of characters and emotions. In a small town, a very special teacher has a unique ceremony for her graduating sixth graders. The long-standing tradition of "going through the gate" and what happens when you do is not discussed by the community except in cryptic and hushed tones. While the experience is shrouded in mystery, the five children in Miss Clough's class prepare for the unknown as best they can, fearing what they know about themselves as much as what they don't know about the ceremony. Readers will quickly identify and empathize with each child, recognizing themselves and their friends. The carefully crafted plot progresses through the children's thoughts and emotional responses to situations as they happen. No word is wasted and each sentence significantly sets and sustains the mood. The climax is omnipotent, drawing all the threads together in a satisfactory but thought-provoking finish. As a read-aloud with time for discussion, a solitary read, a coming-of-age story, or a mystery, Going Through the Gate is a solid choice that is sure to engage and delight readers.?Molly S. Kinney, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Puffin (March 20, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 014130698X
• ISBN-13: 978-0141306988
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,120,159 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Linking the Real and Natural Worlds, January 12, 2004

By 

Plume45 "kitka12345" (Westchester, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Going through the Gate (Mass Market Paperback)

Miss Clough, the aged, frumpy teacher in the county's last one-room school house, has an extraordinary reputation in this rural town. Everyone who has graduated from her 6th grade for over 25 years has experienced something bizarre yet wonderful--never to be discussed afterwards--in a private ceremony behind the school. Down a path and through a special, locked gate, to enter her private region of fantasy. What is this secret ritual--long anticipated but mentioned in tones of hushed awe by the privileged natives?

Becky and her 4 classmates have waited for their initiation into the adult secrets all year, and now, it's Their turn. The great day has come! For their Zoological instruction each pupil has chosen a different animal to study: chickadee, frog, cardinal, swallow, and trout--but only with Miss Clough's permission. In addition they have been training their internal clocks to "go off" on pre-set demand. Bossy Penny is Becky's best friend, but the boys seem to shun each other. Tim, a newcomer to town, is very suspicious of all the secrets whispered about Graduation, and resentful that he had to sacrifice his cat. Mary Margaret is the overburdened sister with too many siblings to nurture. Denied her own childhood, she has little joy in her life and wallows in guilt and is obsessed by sin. The class wavers in loyalty to their admired teacher--is she a witch or just plain crazy? This story hooks the reader instantly, so that we too are desperate to go through the gate along with the class, in order to discover a new world. How will the kids be changed; or is it all a great, two-generational hoax? Delightful Fantasy which will keep you glued to the pages!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An Unpredictable Adventure, July 17, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Going through the Gate (Mass Market Paperback)

This book was one of the shortest we've ever read. Although it lacked the quantity of a masterpiece, it kept our interest because it was unpredictable. The author describes the characters pretty well. The last scene is about graduation experience of five kids who almost worship their teacher. She leads them on an adventure that they will never forget. We especially liked the way the characters' mental states were explained as they go through the change into another reality. The last scene was stunningly brilliant. If you read the book, you'll see our reasoning.

Newton Boys Reading Circle

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Forget Hogwarts! I want to go the Miss Clough's school!, January 31, 2003

By 

Lois June Wickstrom - See all my reviews

This review is from: Going Through the Gate (Hardcover)

Albus Dumbledore has nothing on Miss Clough. Down a path behind her one-room school house stands a copper gate. And behind that gate lies the experience of a lifetime -- the experience shared by everyone in town on the day they graduate 6th grade -- the experience that shapes you for the rest of your life. There are no muggles here. Everyone who graduates 6th grade can go through that gate and be changed forever. It doesn't matter if you are new to town, or if your family has been there for generations. The author builds up suspense and then delivers. This is practical magic. I loved it!