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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Refreshing Read for Today's Youth, November 25, 2008
This review is from: The Jumping-Off Place (Paperback)
"The Jumping Off Place" is set in the early 1900's. It is reminiscent of the "Little House" books. I was actually surprised to learn that it was written before the "Little House" series. This book is a re-release by the South Dakota Historical Society of a book originally published in 1929. It was given the "Newberry Honor" title in 1930. In "The Jumping Off Place", four orphaned children set off to fulfill their late uncle's dream of homesteading in the Dakotas. They had planned to have their uncle with them. However, an untimely stroke and his resulting death left them setting off on their own to "prove up" his claim. This story is about their determination to make it through 14 months despite hardships common to homesteading, unexpected trials such as a contest on their claim by neighbors intent on causing trouble, and the Dakota weather. I found "The Jumping Off Place" to be a very refreshing book. It was a very pleasant read absent of much of the language and innuendo you find today-even in youth or young adult books. There was so much detail that it was very easy to picture oneself there with them; as if you were a fly on the wall. The reader gets to see the children grow into young adults as they deal with the death of their uncle while going through their homesteading venture. My 9yr old daughter picked up this book to read after I had finished. She said it was very hard to get into the book. She also said the "old-fashioned" language was a bit hard to understand. According to her, the book was easier to read and "less boring" after she got past the first couple of chapters. (It should be noted here that she loves the "Little House" series and is always reading everything she can get her hands on; especially historical fiction.) The younger reader may find it hard to follow if they don't already understand the premise behind homesteading. A short history lesson might make it an easier read for the younger set. A parent should also be available while the younger set is reading the book to answer any questions they may have regarding the story line or some of the language used. It's not bad, it's just not typical of today. The biographical information on the author at the back help the reader to better understand the times from which the author came. The short glossary provided at the end serves to help the younger reader better understand some of the language of the time. However, I think it would have been MUCH more helpful to list this at the front of the book as some younger children won't notice it listed on the Table of Contents. My daughter would have found the book easier to read much sooner had she noticed the word list before she started. She found it very helpful once I pointed it out to her. I would recommend "The Jumping Off Place" to older children and adults who enjoy historical fiction. I would recommend it to younger children only with an adult present to point out the word list and be ready with any questions they may have.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Enjoyable Adventure for All Ages, November 17, 2008
This review is from: The Jumping-Off Place (Paperback)
"The Jumping-Off Place" is an enjoyable adventure of two brothers and two sisters who travel from Wisconsin to homestead in South Dakota. Written in 1929, it relates both the ups and downs of prairie life just after the turn of the century. The four children, who have just lost their beloved Uncle Jim, a guardian who cared for them after their parents died, take up his dream of "proving up" on a claim. The author sets the scene following Uncle Jim's death, and immediately they are off to the Jumping-Off Place. Her writing lovingly describes the prairie grass, "big sky", and sunsets of the country. It also makes you feel the isolation, the incessant wind, and the extreme temperatures. Readers familiar with the Laura Ingalls Wilders' books, which occur decades earlier in time, or Ralph Moody's autobiographical tales of ranching in Colorado during nearly the same time period as "The Jumping-Off Place" will find this story feels quite different. Rather than detailed descriptions of gardening or other activities, the author gets right to the Linville siblings' adventures. Becky and Dick are quickly faced with the travails of homesteading, and of neighbors who are openly trying to run them off their claim. Their quick maturing as homesteaders is nicely contrasted with the younger children, Joan and Phil, who are still very much children and experience the new life in a different way. The Welps are their enemy, and one feels the antagonism throughout the story. Every time the Linvilles leave their claim, there's an expectation of damage or ill will. At the same time, each trip away allows them to interact with the other homesteaders, many of whom are friendly or who put their own disappointments in perspective. The Linvilles have a number of adults within easy reach who ensure that they don't experience too much adversity. Rreaders of all types will find something to enjoy in the strong boy and girl characters, and the adventures and relationships of the story. Joan provides some comic relief throughout, with her occasional poems and observations that remind the reader that the brothers and sisters are still children. The story's language is uncomplicated but still quite rich. Young readers will gain new vocabulary, but it will not slow down their ability to enjoy the story. There is one occurrence of a racial epithet which parents might want to anticipate, but it is more a reflection of the time in which the book was written, than of any importance to the story. The Afterword by Jean L. S. Patrick has some interesting historical context, and curious readers will appreciate the short glossary. The original illustrations are included, and are helpful visuals for many of the important events in the story.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
A Timeless Classic, June 30, 2009
This review is from: The Jumping-Off Place (Paperback)
Reason for Reading: I'm reading all the Newbery Awards and Honors. I also very much love children's historical fiction about the early days of settling our land. Comments: Four children Becky (17), Dick (15), Phil (10) and Joan (8) live with their Uncle Joe in a nice little town in Wisconsin. Joe, a sea-going man, settled down with the children when they were orphaned but his heart always missed something. That is until the day he went to check out the land available in South Dakota and fell in love with the prairies which reminded him so much of the sea. He didn't win the lottery for land but he later came back and squatted some land that was unclaimed, registered it and set to work on it. When he came back for the children, he became deathly ill and spent a month in bed. He spent every moment talking to the children and writing down or dictating to them everything they would need to know on how to homestead the land themselves and one week before they were to leave Uncle Joe died. With determination and great love for Uncle Joe's will to be done the 4 children go to South Dakota and become homesteaders on their own. Becky turns into a woman and Dick into a man as they fight the elements, the land, the loneliness and the meanest folks you ever did see who've squatted on their land while Uncle Joe was dying. They also discover the glory of the land, the joys of making a home for oneself, the realities of life and death, and the bonds created between neighbours all living through the same circumstances. This is a wonderful story and while a work of fiction it draws heavily upon the author's own experiences as a homesteader in South Dakota. As the afterward mentions one can quickly compare this to Laura Ingalls Wilder, as there is a similarity in the two experiences of homesteading in South Dakota, Ms McNeely's book was published 3 years prior to Ms Wilder's and The Jumping-Off Place takes place nearly thirty years later than the Little House days in De Smet, South Dakota. A timeless classic that fortunately has been brought back to print. This is a book for the ages. A tale of hardships, pure joy from the results of hard work itself, humour, determination, growing up. The book is full of life lessons (though not didactic or preachy at all); the children just learn from living life and from not giving up for Uncle Joe's sake and downright pluckiness not to be beaten after they've put so much hard work into things. One note: the "n" word is used once, not in reference to a person but used nevertheless by a minor character in a state of dejection. From my point of view, the word was used in context within the historical period of the book and considering the year this book was written I can say wholeheartedly that there was nothing that *I* found objectionable in the book at all. The afterward doesn't mention this instance but it does contain a lot of information on the historical context of the book, Ms McNeely's life and tragic death. It was a welcome addition to the book. Unfortunately Marian Hurd McNeely died such an untimely death that she only wrote 3 children's novels and one posthumously published volume of short stories. Some people these days seem to have a problem with Laura Ingalls Wilder's books, if that is you, then this would make a great substitution if you don't mind moving forward to 1900. Highly recommended to anyone interested in the time period or the subject matter. Hopefully this book stays in print without any editing!
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