Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: The Diary of Bess Brennan, The Perkins School for the Blind, 1932 (Dear America Series) [Hardcover]

Barry Denenberg (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up

Blinded after a terrible accident, Bess must learn to overcome her disability with the help of new friends and skills at the Perkins School for the Blind, in the wake of America's Great Depression.

After Bess Brennan is blinded in a sledding accident, she must face a frightening, much-altered world. Confronted with a new set of obstacles, Bess manages to overcome her disability with the help of her new friends at the Perkins School for the Blind in Watertown, Massachusetts, where she also learns how to read braille. Her twin sister, Elin, assists her with recording daily events in her diary and contributes entries of her own. Set against the backdrop of the Great Depression, Bess's story will inspire all readers to be strong in the face of hardship.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-7-After Bess loses her eyesight in a sledding accident, she enters the Perkins School for the Blind. At first she fights against learning, especially braille, but gradually she adjusts to the school and her condition. Readers learn a great deal about how people compensate for vision loss, such as arranging food on a plate by the hours of the clock and placing their finger over a cup when pouring a liquid so that the fluid does not overflow. The information is well presented, as are Bess's feelings when people talk about her as if she were not there. However, the voice of the narrator is not always that of a 12-year-old, even in the 1930s. "My sorrow is unfathomable" is not a typical expression. It is also hard to believe that Bess would be able to remember the detail she includes in her diary, which she dictates to her sister when she returns home on the weekends. The book briefly alludes to the economic problems of the day and other news items, such as the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby. Qualms aside, Bess's story should hold the interest of readers.
Margaret C. Howell, West Springfield Elementary School, VA
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 4-8. Denenberg presents another entry in the Dear America series, this one set during the Depression. After being injured in a sledding accident, 12-year-old Bess Brennan loses her sight and is sent to the Perkins School for the Blind in Massachusetts. During her weekend visits home, her twin sister helps her record her experiences in a diary; at school roommates help her familiarize herself with the Perkins campus and begin the slow process of learning Braille. A bit of melodrama comes from a subplot about a timid roommate and a cruel housemother. The myth that a blind person's remaining senses become more acute is not directly stated, though Bess does learn to pay more attention to clues she hears and smells. Readers may wish for more insight into the sisters' feelings about Bess' blindness, and the history is rather light here; it's the detail about the education of the visually impaired in times gone by that will keep readers involved. As with other books in the series, photos and a historical note are appended. Catherine Andronik
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Hardcover: 139 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Inc.; 1ST edition (September 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0439194466
• ISBN-13: 978-0439194464
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #354,562 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderfully unique new book from the Dear America series., August 25, 2002

By 

Rebecca Herman (USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: The Diary of Bess Brennan, The Perkins School for the Blind, 1932 (Dear America Series) (Hardcover)

After she is blinded in a sledding accident, twelve-year-old Bess Brennan's life changes forever. Bess would like to hide in her room forever, but her family forces her to face the world, a world that will never be the same for Bess, ever again. For years, Bess has kept a diary, faithfully writing daily entries. Now, Bess's twin sister Elin must write for her instead. Bess's family decides to send her to the Perkins School for the Blind, where she can learn to live in the world without her sight. This was a really fascinating and unique book in the Dear America series. From reading it, I learned what life might be like for a blind girl in 1932, a girl who had sight for the first twelve years of her life, but suddenly and tragically lost it. I highly recommend this book to fans of the series.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Everyone has a chance to live again, August 29, 2002

By 

Lay - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: The Diary of Bess Brennan, The Perkins School for the Blind, 1932 (Dear America Series) (Hardcover)

This is about 12 year old Bess Brennan. She wasn't blind when she was born but had a sledding accident. Bess hasn't missed a diary entry every since she was seven. Since she can't really do it any more, her sister offered to record her entries for her, her sister even writes a few herself too, but she's not as good at keeping it as Bess was. Did I mention that Bess had a TWIN sister named Elin? Before this happened they used to stand in front of the hall mirror and say"

Mirror, Mirror, On the Wall,
Who is Fairest of Them All?

Bess would say " You Are " and Elin would answer " I Am ".

Bess didn't want to go to the Perkins School, but ended up going anyway. Perkins School for the Blind is were Helen Keler studied for a while... I think she might have been the 6 yr old Bess was talking about. At this school, Bess becomes best friends with Amanda (who has a tiny bit of sight) and Eva, which is good because they share a room. On the weekends she gets to go home because it's not that far... Bess also get's so frustrated with Braile, she thinks that she'll never learn it. During this book, she gains a second chance to be independant. No matter what happens, there is always hope, even if you may not see it at first.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book, September 15, 2002

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: The Diary of Bess Brennan, The Perkins School for the Blind, 1932 (Dear America Series) (Hardcover)

I was into this book that I finished this book in less than 1 week. I could picture everything as I read on. If you are looking for a great intersting book, Mirror, Mirror on the Wall is the one for you.