Customer Reviews

Hellie Jondoe

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Hellie has a head for survival and a strong sense of justice and loyalty. Forced to steal at an early age in order to survive, she becomes wily and head-strong. Not really knowing the difference between love and simple bonding, she learns a lesson of attachment when she ends up in the west. The book explores a lot of history from around the turn of the 20th century--of polio, a deadly flu, and the differences between east coast and west. This book has messages on several levels and is an excellent book for teens and tweens.

In 1918, Hellie Jondoe was a child of the streets, as anonymous as the alias she used. She and her brother, Harry, were orphans who lived by their wits. But Harry realizing his sister who had so far passed for a boy, will not be able to do so much longer and knowing girls do not fare well on the streets, signs her up for the orphan trains. Those trains traveled west with homeless, destitute children, stopping in towns along the way and offering the children to whoever would take them. Not wanting to be adopted, Hellie puts on her tough act and scares away any potential parents. Finally she is indentured, along with a girl with a scarred face, a club footed baby thrown in with the deal, to an old woman who owns a ranch near Pendleton. OR. In this new environment, Hellie's rough edges begin to smooth out and she learns to view the world and her life in a broader light. The flu epidemic and a reunion with Harry, who has been on the streets too long to ever be saved from a life of crime and self-destruction, also helps her begin to learn how to give and receive from others. A book primarily for young people, I'm way past that and I enjoyed it very much.
Eunice Boeve author of Maggie Rose and Sass

As a writer myself, I'm in awe of the way Randi Platt keeps coming up with such great characters. She's a master storyteller. The book tackles a serious issue in the middle of a laugh-out-loud story. Brilliant!

Helena Smith alias Hellie Jondoe has lived most of her life on the streets with her brother and their gang of Street Arabs. She likes her life just fine the way it is, but she's growing up and soon she won't be able to pretend to be a boy and for girls on the streets, there's only one option which Hellie is absolutely not interested in. Hellie's brother Harry has the solution to the problem - the Orphan Train. Hellie refuses to go west to be adopted by strangers but Harry thinks they can hop off the train anywhere they want and start over. Harry becomes involved in a struggle with another gang member and Hellie is forced to make her way on her own. Her street sense and tough talking ways make life on the closely chaperoned Orphan Train but she is befriended by the lady photographer/journalist Amanda Collins and makes her first friend in the disfigured girl Lizzie. At the end of the ride Hellie, Lizzie and baby Joey with the club foot are taken to live with a wealthy woman on a large ranch. It's there that Hellie finally meets her match in the tough Scholastica Gorence! An unexpected visitor and a tragedy force Hellie to figure out where she belongs.

Hellie is who she us and is unapologetic, which makes her an interesting character. She's also quite funny. Hellie speaks in street slang but the author makes it easy to understand from the context. I had a lot of sympathy for Lizzie but wish her story had been told in more detail. I had a pretty good idea of how the story would end but getting there was the fun part. This book is so well written and can be enjoyed by teens and adults alike. This is a great self-discovery story without being corny or moralistic. My biggest complaint was the alternate narrative but it became clear why that story was necessary by the end. I also thought the ending was rushed and I'm hoping for a sequel!

Set in 1918, Hellie Jondoe tells the story of a headstrong young orphan trapped in a series of events beyond her control. Hellie and her brother are orphaned at a young age, and forced to live on rough and tumble city streets. Hellie learns early on that you can't trust anyone, perhaps not even your family. After their gang turns on Hellie and her brother, Hellie is put on an orphan train heading west. During her journey, Hellie is saddled with two orphans who come to rely on her for protection. Upon arrival in Oregon, Hellie and her companions discover they've been indentured for three years, giving Hellie authority figures and a home for the first time in her life. Despite a rough start on the ranch, she comes to realize that she's also gained an extended family.

I loved reading Hellie's story. Randall Platt brings the period and region alive through her imagery and dialogue. It's so easy to identify with the characters and celebrate their growth during the story. Best of all, I love finding wholesome, engaging stories about young women who embrace the value of their own truths.

by Becca Taylor
for Story Circle Book Reviews
reviewing books by, for, and about women

Being hardened by one's environment doesn't make it impossible to lighten up. "Hellie Jondoe" tells the story of an east coast orphan girl who after a rough early child hood goes to Oregon to live under a western ranch woman. Not only does she have to answer to authority for the first time, but she seems to have to care for others. A charming story of a early twentieth century orphan, "Hellie Jondoe" is a very entertaining and riveting story that should not be ignored.