A Long Way From Chicago (Puffin Modern Classics) [Paperback]

Richard Peck (Author)

Book Description

Release date: April 12, 2004 | Age Range: 8 and up | Series: Puffin Modern Classics

Join Joey and his sister Mary Alice as they spend nine unforgettable summers with the worst influence imaginable-their grandmother!

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Peck (Strays Like Us) first created the inimitable central figure of this novel in a previously published short story. Although the narrator, Joey, and his younger sister, Mary Alice, live in the Windy city during the reign of Al Capone and Bugs Moran, most of their adventures occur "a long way from Chicago," during their annual down-state visits with Grandma Dowdel. A woman as "old as the hills," "tough as an old boot," and larger than life ("We could hardly see her town because of Grandma. She was so big, and the town was so small"), Grandma continually astounds her citified grandchildren by stretching the boundaries of truth. In eight hilarious episodes spanning the years 1929-1942, she plots outlandish schemes to even the score with various colorful members of her community, including a teenaged vandal, a drunken sheriff and a well-to-do banker. Readers will be eager to join the trio of Grandma, Joey and Mary Alice on such escapades as preparing an impressive funeral for Shotgun Cheatham, catching fish from a stolen boat and arranging the elopement of Vandalia Eubanks and Junior Stubbs. Like Grandma Dowdel's prize-winning gooseberry pie, this satire on small-town etiquette is fresh, warm and anything but ordinary. Ages 9-12.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-8-A rollicking celebration of an eccentric grandmother and childhood memories. Set in the 1930s, the book follows Joe and Mary Alice Dowdel as they make their annual August trek to visit their grandmother who lives in a sleepy Illinois town somewhere between Chicago and St. Louis. A woman with plenty of moxie, she keeps to herself, a difficult task in this small community. However, Grandma Dowdel uses her wit and ability to tell whoppers to get the best of manipulative people or those who put on airs. She takes matters into her own hands to intimidate a father who won't control his unruly sons, and forces the bank to rescind a foreclosure on an elderly woman's house. Whether it's scaring a pretentious newspaper man back to the city or stealing the sheriff's boat and sailing right past him as he drunkenly dances with his buddies at the Rod & Gun Club, she never ceases to amaze her grandchildren with her gall and cunning behavior. Each chapter resembles a concise short story. Peck's conversational style has a true storyteller's wit, humor, and rhythm. Joe, the narrator, is an adult looking back on his childhood memories; in the prologue, readers are reminded that while these tales may seem unbelievable, "all memories are true." Perfect for reading aloud, A Long Way from Chicago is a great choice for family sharing.
Shawn Brommer, Southern Tier Library System, Painted Post, NY
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 148 pages
• Publisher: Puffin (April 12, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0142401102
• ISBN-13: 978-0142401101
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 5.5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (239 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #21,170 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #36 in Books > Children's Books > Social Situations > Family Life > Multigenerational
  • #87 in Books > Children's Books > Literature & Fiction > Historical Fiction > United States

More About the Author

Richard Peck has written over twenty novels, and in the process has become one of America's most highly respected writers for young adults. A versatile writer, he is beloved by middle graders as well as young adults for his mysteries and coming-of-age novels. He now lives in New York City. In addition to writing, he spends a great deal of time traveling around the country attending speaking engagements at conferences, schools and libraries...Mr. Peck has won a number of major awards for the body of his work, including the Margaret A. Edwards Award from School Library Journal, the National Council of Teachers of English/ALAN Award, and the 1991 Medallion from the University of Southern Mississippi. Virtually every publication and association in the field of children s literature has recommended his books, including Mystery Writers of America which twice gave him their Edgar Allan Poe Award. Dial Books for Young Readers is honored to welcome Richard Peck to its list with Lost in Cyberspace and its sequel The Great Interactive Dream Machine...

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

97 of 101 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars I had a good cry at the end (and I'm a boy!) May 31, 2000

By MFS

Format:Hardcover

A Long Way from Chicago is a touching and very funny book. The narrator, Joey Dowdel, shares the experiences of visiting his thrifty, hardworking, no-nonsense grandmother. Each chapter tells the adventures his sister and he have with his grandmother during each of seven week-long summer vacations. Long Way takes place during the Great Depression (1929-1935), so I learned some history while enjoying a great story. The coolest part of the book is when Grandma gets Joey a ride in an old biplane; the funniest is when the sheriff and his deputies drunkenly sing about Paddy Murphy while they're wearing only their underwear at the Rod and Gun Club. My favorite character was Grandma Dowdel because of her use of words and the way she loved people without saying it. I didn't pick out this book -- my mom chose it as one of our read-alouds -- but, like everything she picks out, this was really terrific. We shared a good cry at the end because we realized that Grandma is a lot "softer" than her tough words and actions showed. Happy reading!

28 of 31 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Took Me Home January 26, 2002

By Timothy Haugh TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

I have to admit a certain attachment to this book. As a boy who grew up on one of those stops down the train line from Chicago, I felt a real connection to the story told in this book. Of course, unlike Joey, I didn't just spend the summers in the small Illinois town downstate. I lived my life there and didn't take the train upto Chicago until I was 17 and headed for college. Still, Peck has certainly caught the flavor of small town Illinois.

The bulk of this book takes place over the summers from 1929 to 1935. And yet, it's amazing how much of those attitudes depicted in this novel still survive. My grandmother grew up during the Depression and much of the quirkiness and toughness balanced by family feeling shown in the character of Grandma Dowdel I remember in my own grandmother. That's what makes Grandma Dowdel such a wonderful and realistic character.

And yet, there is also a glimpse of history here. Many things from the 1930's--some good and some bad--are gone now and it's fun to travel back in time through the pages of this book. I don't know if kids today are effected much by stories of the past. The flashiness of twenty-first century culture is stiff competition to a story no matter how well-told but I certainly enjoyed this book. The best "childrens' books" can be read and enjoyed by adults but I hope there are some younger readers out there who give this book a try. It will take you to a place that is sadly disappearing from the American landscape.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Long Way From Chicago May 29, 2002

A Kid's Review

Format:Paperback

A Long Way From Chicago is about two children, Joey and Mary Alice Dowdel, who spend every summer with their grandmother. Each chapter is another year explaining many of the adventures that take place. Joey, Mary Alice, and Grandma have many adventures, some of which include, the legend of the Phantom Brakeman, feeding all of the homeless, entering Grandma's famous blackberry pies in the town fair, flying planes with a famous pilot, and much more.
My favorite character is Grandma. She is a loving grandmother who has many little quirks about her. She is funny, yet she can be very serious at the same time. Another thing about Grandma is that she is very wide and tall. I think it is very fun to read about her because she is a very funny and strict person. I think that my grandmother seems very much like Grandma Dowdel. The only difference is that my grandmother is not nearly as big as Grandma Dowdel, but they both have the same personality. One of the things that I can relate to is when Joey receives a ride from the amazing pilot. I can relate to his excitement of flying because Joey loves planes and has always wanted to fly in one. I think it is cool to be in a plane, it is neat to be so high up and you look down and see everything really small.
I like this book because it has so many adventures all completely different. The book never really seems like it is going to end. My favorite part in the book is when Joey, Mary Alice, and Grandma all go to the town fair and have a big and very funny adventure. The adventure involves entering Grandma's her famous blackberry pie in the baking contest. Grandma thinks that the person next to her will win so she switches the two pies and it ends up that her pie wins! I think that I don't have a least favorite part because it is all so exciting and I loved every bit of it. I wouldn't change one part of the book because it isall so good.
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who feels like reading a very thrilling adventure story. Someone who enjoys reading books set in the late 1800's with tons of humor would love to read this. I think that Richard Peck did a great job in writing A Long Way From Chicago. I hope whomever reads this will like it just as much as I do.