Rain Is Not My Indian Name [Hardcover]

Cynthia Leitich Smith (Author), Lori Earley (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 19, 2001 | Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up

The next day was my fourteenth birthday, and I'd never kissed a boy -- domestic style or French. Right then, I decided to get myself a teen life.

Cassidy Rain Berghoff didn't know that the very night she decided to get a life would be the night that Galen would lose his.

It's been six months since her best friend died, and up until now Rain has succeeded in shutting herself off from the world. But when controversy arises around her aunt Georgia's Indian Camp in their mostly white midwestern community, Rain decides to face the outside world again -- at least through the lens of her canera.

Hired by her town newspaper to photograph the campers, Rain soon finds that she has to decide how involved She wants to become in Indian Camp. Does she want to keep a professional distance from the intertribal community she belongs to? And just how willing is she to connect with the campers after her great loss?

In a voice that resonates with insight and humor, Cynthia Leitich Smith tells of heartbreak, recovery, and reclaiming one's place in the world.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Multiple plot lines and nonlinear storytelling may make it difficult to enter Smith's (Jingle Dancer) complex novel, but the warmth and texture of the writing eventually serve as ample reward for readers. The sensitive yet witty narrator, 14-year-old Cassidy Rain Berghoff, grows up in a small Kansas town as one of the few people with some Native American heritage. That experience alone might challenge Rain, but Smith creates a welter of conflicts. Rain's mother is dead (she was struck by lightning), and as the novel opens, her best friend is killed in a car accident just after he and Rain realize their friendship has grown into romance. Six months later, her older brother urges her to go to her great-aunt's Indian Camp. At first she shrugs it off, but later volunteers to photograph the camp for the town paper and begins to share her Aunt Georgia's commitment to it. When public funding for the camp becomes a contested issue in the city council, Rain decides to enroll. Some of Smith's devices such as opening each chapter with a snippet from Rain's journal add depth and clarify Rain's relationships for readers, although other elements (the detailing of song lyrics playing in the background, for instance) seem stilted. Even so, readers will feel the affection of Rain's loose-knit family and admire the way that they, like the author with the audience, allow Rain to draw her own conclusions about who she is and what her heritage means to her. Ages 10-14.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-9-Rain and Galen have been friends forever, but for Rain's 14th birthday, the thrill of finding that her burgeoning romantic feelings are being reciprocated puts the evening into a special-memory category. The next morning, she learns that Galen was killed in an accident on the way home. Plunged into despair, Rain refuses to attend the funeral and cuts herself off from her friends. Skipping to six months later, the main portion of the story takes place as she thinks about Galen's upcoming birthday and summer plans are complicated by the girl's Aunt Georgia's Indian Camp and political efforts to cut its funding. Rain participates in nothing and her family members, loving though they are, seem preoccupied with their own needs and concerns. Gradually, Rain's love of photography resurfaces and lands her an assignment with the local newspaper. She becomes involved in examining her own heritage, the stereotypical reactions to it, and her own small-town limitations. There is a surprising amount of humor in this tender novel. It is one of the best portrayals around of kids whose heritage is mixed but still very important in their lives. As feelings about the public funding of Indian Camp heat up, the emotions and values of the characters remain crystal clear and completely in focus. It's Rain's story and she cannot be reduced to simple labels. A wonderful novel of a present-day teen and her "patchwork tribe."-Carol A. Edwards, Sonoma County Library, Santa Rosa, CA
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1st edition (June 19, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688173977
• ISBN-13: 978-0688173975
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.7 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #794,958 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Spanning powwows to laptops, November 14, 2001

By 

Becca Todd (Berkeley, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rain Is Not My Indian Name (Hardcover)

Rain may not be her Indian name, but the easy reality of powwow references (where the birthday necklace comes from), a soon-to-be-born niece Aiyana (named after Rain's Cherokee great-great-grandmother) and a special Indian summer camp places at least one foot of this wonderful novel firmly in contemporary Indian country.

Not solely there, however. Another foot is just as firmly set in teenage country, from musings about the significance of a kiss to the whirring of laptops.

Then of course there is the mostly white, midwestern town setting of Hannesburg, Rain's home with her brother and grandfather. It is into this home that she retreats after her best friend tragically dies in an accident, and from which she eventually garners enough strength to reemerge and engage with with her community and the world.

It is refreshing to have issues acknowledged without being preachy or offering excuses. Alcohol, teenage pregnancy and ethnic identity are all part of the known fabric of life. These issues are not dwelt upon, but neither are they ignored. Curious to see how this all looks? Then explore a powerful integration of imagination and technology at the author's website created specifically to support and extend one's enjoyment of this book.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Believable Rain, April 15, 2002

By 

"adriab" (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rain Is Not My Indian Name (Hardcover)

I read this book almost a year ago, but it still lingers with me. I think the main reason is Cassidy Rain Berghoff, the fourteen-year-old title character. After losing her best friend, Galen, in a tragic way, Cassidy shuts out the world. Months pass before she grows to realize that she has to get in touch with the world again, even if it's through a job. I was really impressed by Cassidy's bravery and strength. The author did a great job making this character REAL. By the end of the book, I felt like I knew Cassidy. The author made me care about her - about what would happen to her.

The book doesn't make it easy for Cassidy to work things out. For example, while working as a photographer in an Indian camp run by her Aunt Georgia, Cassidy finds herself torn between getting involved in an emotional issue and staying professional and objective. Kids are faced with hard decisions all the time, so I found it very easy to relate to Cassidy and what she goes through.

I recommend RAIN IS NOT MY INDIAN NAME to anyone who loves a good story and good characters. This book has both!

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Unique Book with Lots of Appeal!, July 23, 2001

By 

Debbie Reese (Illinois) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rain Is Not My Indian Name (Hardcover)

I've been spending time this summer with this book. There is a great deal I can say, but I'll try to be brief.

The author has done something I've not seen before. She has created a webpage that serves as a companion to the book. At the page, you can visit Rain's room (Rain is the 14-year-old protagonist in the book) and learn more about her and her interests. For example, there is a "Bookshelf" with a list of five or so books a 14-year-old girl might be interested in, and a "Links" section that contains links to other sites that Rain might visit (she's a sci-fi fan and photographer, so there are links to sci-fi and photography sites). Smith does the same for each of the characters in the book, but she also does a chapter-by-chapter section that is equally rich. Also on the site is all that behind-the-scenes info some readers like, such as how the story was developed, why a certain element was included, etc. Readers who are also avid web surfers will enjoy reading the book and visiting the site.

The URL for the companion site is: <http://www.cynthialeitichsmith.com/rainthenovel2.html>.

The book itself is a wonderfully written story about a girl whose heritage is "Muscogee Creek-Cherokee and Scots-Irish on Mom's side, Irish-German-Ojibway on Dad's" (from page 20). Each chapter opens with an entry from Rain's journal. In the story, readers learn that Rain's mother recently died, and a few months later, her best friend dies when he is hit by a car. While coping with loss is a significant theme, there are others as well. Rain is one of only a handful of Native Americans in her small mid-western town. Her connections to her Native heritage are evident in several ways. She talks about stereotypes at Thanksgiving, and the use of Native American imagery as mascots for sports teams. But Smith's style of presenting these issues is such that Rain isn't preachy or righteous when she talks about these issues.

I said I'd be brief, and this is already going long, so I'll end with a strong recommendation for the book. It will appeal to readers who want books about contemporary Native Americans and readers who are techies, but it is also a beautifully written story about a teen thinking about being kissed for the first time and working through tensions in her relationships with her friends.