Miracles on Maple Hill (Odyssey Classics (Odyssey Classics)) [Paperback]

Virginia Sorensen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 15, 1990 | Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up | Series: Odyssey Classics (Odyssey Classics)

Marly and her family share many adventures when they move from the city to a farmhouse on Maple Hill.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-5–Virginia Sorensen's 1957 Newbery Award winner (Harcourt, 1956) is skillfully dramatized by a cast of experienced narrators. This is a loving family saga about Marley, brother Joe, their parents, and their friends. When Marley's father returns home from World War II a broken man physically and spiritually, her mother decides that the family needs to leave the city for an extended visit to Grandma's house in the country. Listeners are drawn into the tale of a year in the life of this family as the father slowly regains his strength and confidence. The year is filled with small miracles from the first spring blossoms to the healing of their beloved neighbor, Mr. Chris. Narrated by Cynthia Bishop and dramatized by the Full Cast Family, each character is brought to life and given a unique personality and voice. Their expert narration brings this inspiring American classic to life. So many children today have parents who are part of the war effort overseas that this somewhat old-fashioned, half-century old story is still relevant for youngsters today.–Wendy Woodfill, Hennepin County Library, Minnetonka, MN
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

Review

"Warm and real . . . packed with incident, country magic, family lore, and people to remember."--The New York Times Book Review

"Vivid descriptions . . . and excellent characterization mark each page of the book."--Chicago Tribune

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Sandpiper (March 15, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0152545611
• ISBN-13: 978-0152545611
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 4.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,635,327 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Miracles on Maple Hill, January 21, 2007

By 

Anna M. Ligtenberg "AnnaLovesBooks" (Chicago) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Miracles On Maple Hill (Paperback)

ISBN 0590431455 - This Newbery Award Winner managed to pull off one of the most difficult things in kids' books - possibly in any genre. It is almost completely timeless. Ignoring the copyright date, there is almost nothing in it that sets it in a particular timeframe. Because the setting is nature and a back-to-the-land ideal, the story could be set after almost any war - and because we're in a war right now, it could easily be set in the present. Sorensen mentions "the war" without ever mentioning Hitler, Germany or WWII. The only "give away" is when Joe refers to 4 dollars as a lot of money - but even that, since Joe's a kid, doesn't do any harm to the timelessness of Miracles.

Marly's father is back from the war. A former POW, Dale is suffering from mood swings and depression and seems to be tired all the time. Lee, Marly's mother, worries a lot. She also talks a lot about Maple Hill, where she spent her summers as a child. They still own a house there and, as the story begins, the family is on the way there. Lee has been in touch with the neighbors, the Chris family, who have opened the house and done what they could to make it welcoming. The plan is for Dale to remain behind while Lee shuttles the kids, Marly and her brother Joe, back and forth, visiting Maple Hill on weekends. They will spend the whole summer there, as well. Hopefully this will help Dale, who isn't very social, to recover from the horrors of the war.

The house is run down and overrun with mice when they arrive and the family sets about restoring order. Mr. Chris and his wife, Chrissie, are good neighbors and good friends - as much to the kids as to the parents. They've arrived during sugaring season and right away get to see how maple sap becomes syrup, with Mr. Chris teaching them. Mr. Chris teaches Joe and Marly much about the beauty of the country around them. Marly has, from the start, hoped for miracles here, mostly of the sort that will heal her family, and Mr. Chris reinforces that hope by promising her a miracle a week. He shows her the beauty of each season, in the little things. The kids also meet Harry, something of a recluse, who smells like the goats he keeps, and they learn a lot from him as well.

Eventually, the family decides to stay at Maple Hill together, with the book ending a year later, during sugaring season. This time, however, rather than being the somewhat lost newcomers, relying on others to teach them about everything new to them here, they find themselves in a position to repay some of what they've been given by their new friends. Harry is injured and alone, with no place to stay and, worst of all, Mr. Chris is in the hospital with heart problems just as the greatest sugaring year in the history of Pennsylvania begins. His entire crop is at risk just when he and his family are faced with medical bills. Marly, Joe, Lee and Dale have to help him! It's a lot of work - has the family healed enough to work together and get the job done? Can they really do this, for the neighbors who have been so kind to them?

A wonderful story of healing, caring and helping each other and so much beautifully described detail about the plants and animals they encounter! Dale's speech near the end, about men in the POW camp who were either willing to help each other or who were only worried about themselves, neatly tied together his experience in the war with their year on Maple Hill and showed how far he had come. I recommend this book for just about everyone - adults can appreciate it as much as, it not more than, kids.

- AnnaLovesBooks

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Falling for this enchanting and heart warming book!, August 10, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Germany) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Miracles on Maple Hill (Turtleback)

Found this book on a flew - market in New york and lapped it up on my flight back to Germany. I simply couldn't stop. Each child, boy or girl,( and I, 53 years old and still remembering my own wonderful childhood very good) who still have got a feeling for nature and living outdoors, will find her own feelings and similar adventures in the story of Marly and her brother. A very good gift for my niece learning English since three years.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Wonderful Book, February 16, 2001

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Miracles on Maple Hill (Odyssey Classics (Odyssey Classics)) (Paperback)

Miracles on Maple Hill is great for kids because it's about kids. Marly is a girl who is experiencing the Miracles on Maple Hill. Every season there's a different miracle, weather it's gathering sap from the maple trees,or watching the flowers bloom. Meeting many different friends, Marly and her brother Joe go on many adventures on Maple Hill. I think that it is a great book for kids to read because it is somthing to look forward to.