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The Place at the Edge of the Earth

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The Place at the Edge of the Earth by Bebe Faas Rice

Scrupulously researched, this book is a fascinating dramatized account of a young Lakota boy who is forced, along with other Indian children, to attend a boarding school in the late 1800s for the purpose of assimilation into white society. The story follows Jonah Flying Cloud on his frightening trip to the school in Pennsylvania where his hair is cut (a sign of mourning with his people), his Indian clothes taken from him, and he's made to wear scratchy long underwear, thick woolen uniforms, and shoes that hurt his feet. His days are scheduled by bells and bugles, and he's marched to meals and classes where he's taught to speak the white man's language. He's even taken to church and told he'll burn in a fiery pit forever if he doesn't accept the white man's god. Jonah Flying Cloud dies, brokenhearted, at the school and is trapped between the place of his earthly life and "the land above the clouds, where the eagles fly."

Jonah Flying Cloud's first-person narrative unfolds in alternating chapters with present-day Jenny Muldoon's story. Jenny moves with her mother and new stepfather to military quarters at Fort Sayers, which once housed the Indian school. When she finds out that her new home was once the school infirmary, the stage is set for her to meet the spirit of Jonah Flying Cloud who needs her help to be released from his dark half-world so that he can join his family and tribe members in the afterworld.

Both stories keep the reader moving quickly through the pages. In an interesting subplot, Jenny helps a friend, the son of the commanding general at Fort Sayers, stand up to his father and get help for his alcoholic mother. At the end, Jenny is finally able to figure out how to help her Indian friend. The novel ends with a final, poignant scene between Jenny and Jonah Flying Cloud.

This book a must for anyone interested in learning about the Indian schools. Its compelling story is sure to capture the interest and imagination of readers of all ages. Highly recommended!

This is a beautifully written and important book. It will give all readers, young and
old, a better knowledge, understanding, appreciation and sympathy for the Indian
children about whom the author writes with such deep feeling. Rice has managed to
balance the stories of the two main characters--the young Indian boy, Jonah Flying
Cloud, who died over a hundred years ago and the modern day young girl, Jenny
Muldoon--with exceptional skill as the two young people "meet" in a time warp and

gradually become sensitive of one another's feelings.
This is a well-told, smoothly flowing tale, a real page turner. Rice has a knack for
perfectly capturing the way young people talk, how they respond to one another and to
adults. Once again, balance comes into play in the way the author weaves flashes of
humor into the central, serious story line.
Though I hated to have the book end, my spirit soared at the conclusion, which
deserves to be read and reread several times. It's truly beautiful.
The Author's Note, where Rice speaks of writing this book "from the heart"
should not be missed. I wouldn't be surprised if The Place At The Edge Of The Earth
garners several awards, both for its writing craft and the importance of its subject.

This book was great i wouldn't have read it if it werent for my 6th grade teacher. When i first got the book i thought it was an other horrible book i had to read for school. When i first started to read it it didnt interest me at all but i had to read it so n e way so i did the book got a lot better. All my classmates agree it was a great book.

i probably never would have found out about this book, but that's my picture on the cover so i guess it was fate. this is possibly the best book i've ever read. i really enjoyed it. the way its written with two people's perspectives really makes for an exciting story. its quite informative of the lives of the indians, but in a sense, has also a modern twist to it in jenny's telling of the story. if you haven't read it, you definitely should because it's simply wonderful.

THE PLACE AT THE EDGE OF THE EARTH masterfully combines mystery, time travel, Indian history, and suspense. Bebe Faas Rice skillfully weaves the factual information about the Indian schools into her well-plotted story.

This is a book to be treasured by children (of all ages) and their
parents. Like all great books, it is a "keeper", one to read and
reread and share with family and friends.

I don't often read books I simply can't put down, but THE PLACE AT THE EDGE OF THE EARTH is certainly one. I was even bending over the kitchen counter the other night, reading it while dinner was boiling down to nothing on the stove!

Besides being beautifully written, as one would expect from the author if you've read any of her other books, this book has everything. It's suspenseful (oh yes!), but is also a wonderful story of developing friendships and family relationships. It's a terrific ghost story, a mystery, and even a detective story added for good measure. All perfectly and believably combined. But most of all, the author weaves a fascinating factually-based story of something that happened once to American Indian children. Heartbreaking, and rings absolutely true.

I promise you, if you read this book, you'll never look at an eagle feather in the same way again. Or for that matter, be able to put the book down once you've started it!

The Place at the Edge of the Earth by Bebe Faas Rice is a moving story of Lakota Indian children who were forced to attend one of the many government boarding schools "for their own good" to tame and civilize these "filthy savages" and make them imitation white people. But as the story unfolds, and we meet Jenny Muldoon in the present and Jonah Flying Cloud in 1879, Rice's narrative so clearly portrays the Lakota Indians as rich in their culture, sensitive to each other and strong in family ties. The mystery surrounding solving the murder and the covered-up lynching--and Jenny's gutsy determination that someone take responsibility--keep the book moving at a fast pace. The facts taken by Ms. Rice from government documents, interviews, tapes, and visits to Indian schools (described at the end of the book) are interwoven into the story so smoothly that children will absorb the history like osmosis. This gripping story experienced through Jonah Flying Cloud stayed with me, whereas facts from history books fade quickly. I came away from this book with a new understanding and compassion, and I believe young readers will also. This will be a much discussed book in classrooms, not just for its information on the Lakota Indians, but for how we currently treat--and mistreat--all people who are different than we are and, therefore, scare us. An excellent addition to school curriculum or simply for a rousing good mystery.

The United States Government in the last two centuries took Indian children from their reservation homes and families -- often forcefully -- and sent them to boarding schools set up to acclimate them to life in the white man's world. This story blends a contemporary setting with flashbacks to this historical time as the ghost of an Indian boy who died there manifests itself to a girl who presently lives in quarters where the school once was. This chapter of history unfolds in sensitive and powerful writing as these two young people from different worlds together confront and resolve the trauma of their lives. This impeccably researched novel is for young adults, but tells a story that should be read by all ages.

This is truly a remarkable book: touching and shocking and thought-provoking and yes -- one where having a kleenex or two handy is a very good idea. Although it is a fantasy -- a ghost story, actually -- it is based on hard historical fact taken from documented materials including archival tapes made by older Indians recounting their own personal experiences in the government schools of the late 1800s such as the fictional one in this story. They told their own stories of how they suffered through the inhuman treatment of Indian children designed to rob them of their belief systems, cultural identity, self-respect, and for many -- sadly -- their own lives. Young people will easily relate to the two main characters, seemingly disparate: the ghost of a young Indian boy forced into attendance at the school so long ago, and a contemporary teenaged girl. Both are at odds with themselves and consequently those around them. They are loners, and like most loners, they are lonely.They are intensely human and likable and the reader is drawn to them from the start. Mrs. Rice writes exceedingly well, and this story moves so swiftly and compellingly that it is with regret that one reaches the end of the story and closes this moving book. This book should be available in all middle schools, and could be used as the basis for discussion in a history unit.