From Publishers Weekly
This somewhat stilted novel centers on seven-year-old Roberta, an African-American girl who goes to stay with her paternal grandparents in rural North Carolina after her pregnant mother is put on bed rest during the summer of 1946. Resentful of her soon-to-arrive sibling and of the fact that she must leave home, Roberta nevertheless refuses to confide her feelings to anyone, even when prodded by her grandmother. The child's ambivalence surfaces whenever she plays at the home of a neighboring family with a newborn, who begins to wail when Roberta tries to hold him ("I don't like babies.... Because babies don't like me," she announces). Unlike McGill's Molly Bannaky, this novel offers little feeling for the time or setting, though children expecting a new sibling will likely identify with Roberta's volatile emotions. Unfortunately, some extraneous dialogue and uneven pacing make the tale difficult to follow at times, and muddy its message (e.g., when Grampa attempts to explain family circles to Roberta: "The family circle can have a whole lot of circles.One day you gonna become a part of a circle different from the one you in right now. That way, the circle go round and round for years and years. Folks in the family circle love each other like your daddy and mama love you"). Final artwork not seen by PW. Ages 7-10.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Grades 2-4--When Roberta's pregnant mother must stay in bed for a month, the seven-year-old is sent to stay with Gramma Louise and Grampa Dave in North Carolina. It's the summer of 1946, and the pace of the narrative is as gentle as the pace of the rural life that McGill lovingly describes. Roberta is a city girl who loves her roller skates, which are pretty useless on dirt roads. Instead, she develops an appreciation for singing games, farm chores, recitations, barbecue, and cutting out paper dolls. Meanwhile, her secret wish (that the baby inside her mother will go to sleep and not wake up) and corresponding guilt are resolved in a thoroughly natural way, by interactions with friends and relatives (in particular, an older girl who actually enjoys being a big sister). Throughout, the strength of African-American family traditions forms an important undercurrent. A rhythmic voice and a clear eye characterize McGill's writing. The emotions, even the darker ones, are handled with a light yet never dismissive touch. And readers new to chapter books will welcome Evans's drawings, which are skillfully done with a stylized sense of simplicity. All in all, an appealing read with a very human heroine.
Lauralyn Persson, Wilmette Public Library, ILCopyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
