Next Spring an Oriole (A Stepping Stone Book) [Hardcover]

Gloria Whelan (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: K and up

"Historical fiction at an easy level is hard to find, and this pioneer story, narrated by 10-year-old Libby Mitchell on her journey from Virginia to Michigan in 1837, is smoothly written and appealing. The wagon trail is not easy, and Whelan is careful to include a taste of the hardships. She's also careful in her presentation of the Potawatomi Indians, who figure in the story when the Mitchells nurse one of their own children back to health. The story, though brief, is well developed."--Bulletin, Center for Children's Books.  


From the Trade Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

"Historical fiction at an easy level is hard to find, and this pioneer story, narrated by 10-year-old Libby Mitchell on her journey from Virginia to Michigan in 1837, is smoothly written and appealing. The wagon trail is not easy, and Whelan is careful to include a taste of the hardships. She's also careful in her presentation of the Potawatomi Indians, who figure in the story when the Mitchells nurse one of their own children back to health. The story, though brief, is well developed."--Bulletin, Center for Children's Books.  


From the Trade Paperback edition.

About the Author

Gloria and her husband Joseph moved from Detroit to the woods of northern Michigan several years ago.  Many of Gloria's books take place during the summer -- because she does a lot of her writing during the northern Michigan blizzards!  Gloria has been telling stories for as long as she can remember.  Before she could read or write, she used to dictate stories to her baby-sitter, who would type them out.  Being an only child, many of Gloria's stories were about having a brother or sister.  Gloria would like to have written Little Women, because Jo March was one of her role models growing up!  Gloria once had a set of five wtching guinea pigs, all named after Detroit Tiger baseball players!  


From the Trade Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 64 pages
• Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers (May 11, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0394991257
• ISBN-13: 978-0394991252
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.7 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,957,144 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Next Spring an Oriole, March 6, 2006

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Next Spring An Oriole (Stepping Stone, paper) (Paperback)

This book is about a family traveling a two-month hard journey going two miles per hour in a canvas covered wagon from Virginia to Michigan. This took place in 1837, April 3. The family brought a skillet and a musket. The main character is a ten year old girl named Libby experiencing an adventure. This book puzzles me because the title is 'Next Spring an Oriole' and the book is about a journey. But when I thought about it I realized the two times the oriole was mentioned was the beginning and the end. i also realized that at the beginning most of the family was sad and at the end they were happy. Maybe 'Next Spring an Oriole' is like saying next spring there will be happiness. The author is very specific by saying an oriole.
This is a very interesting book and I really enjoyed it. The book also has very interesting pictures. They are sort of like a smudged pencil. I think the pictures captured a lot. I really liked the characters Taw cum ego qua. I loved how the writer compared Taw cum ego qua to a quick bird. She was a very interesting character. I think Taw cum ego qua was a very creative character. Libby and her family met a Native American family and Libby met a girl her age whose name is Taw cum ego qua.
The story was great. I loved it. This book was special because not a lot of people would think to write this kind of story. I loved how descriptive this writer was. I also loved how the author explains the process of building a cabin. I pictured everything perfectly and felt like I was in the story. I can imagine how hard it must have been for Libby and her family. It was probably very hard.
i would definitely recommend this book to you because of how the writer explains everything. This book is definitely worth reading.
Serena, Second Grade, 05-06

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Review: Next Spring an Oriole, March 17, 2005

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Next Spring An Oriole (Stepping Stone, paper) (Paperback)

Next Spring an Oriole was a pretty good book. I liked some of the characters like Libby, Mr. Labelle or Taw Cum e go qua. I like when books are realistic. This book was pretty realistic. I thought that their journey was cool, all the way from Virgina to Michigan. I thought the book would be interesting but it turned out to be just OK. I liked when they had lice and had their hair cut off. I thought Taw cum e go qua's necklace was pretty. Libby and her family are very kind. They helped Taw cum e go qua when she had the measles. I liked the book!
-By Flora, Second Grade

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Review: "Next Spring an Oriole", March 17, 2005

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Next Spring An Oriole (Stepping Stone, paper) (Paperback)

This book is about a girl who meets another girl. She travels from Virginia to Michigan in a wagon. She gets lice and she got lice from some little children. I thought the book was not very good because the book wasn't interesting. They could have made it very interesting. I liked how the writer gave full detail on how they made it through the mud and the slush. In the beginning I thought the book would be interesting because the cover and the blurb looked interesting but when I actually read the book it wasn't very good. So I gave it one star.
-By Kyra, Second Grade