Keep Smiling Through (Turtleback School & Library Binding Edition) [Library Binding]

Ann Rinaldi (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2005 | Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up

FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. A ten-year-old girl living in middle-class America during World War II learns the painful lesson that doing what's right is not always an easy thing to do.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Rinaldi (The Fifth of March; A Break with Charity) takes a break from early American historical fiction to explore the period of her own childhood, WWII. Expertly evoking the patriotic fervor on the home front as it permeates everything from scrap drives to popular songs, the author introduces 10-year-old Kay Hennings, the narrator, as preoccupied with justice and fighting the good fight as any of her radio heroines. Kay's family is steeped in misery of fairy-tale proportions: her stepmother takes almost sadistic pleasure in depriving Kay and her four older siblings of every semblance of comfort, and her miserly father shows more concern for his coffers than for his children. What would be melodrama in lesser hands generates tension here?how will Kay bear it, much less "keep smiling through"? Rinaldi rewards Kay with an adventure worthy of her favorite radio show, then submits her to a test of honor and loyalty. Kay passes?and learns the awful, adult lesson that "you can do the right thing and sometimes it all goes bad for you anyway." Kay's vulnerability spills across the entire novel, bathing it in poignancy and enveloping the reader in its old-fashioned, bittersweet truths. Ages 8-12.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-8?Despite a lack of focus in plot and theme, this novel succeeds in providing a detailed picture of the World War II homefront in New Jersey in 1943. Ten-year-old Kay is an appealing heroine caught in an unloving home situation. Her stepmother, "Amazing Grace," exercises incredible abilities in the humiliation and cruelty departments, and her best friend is taken over by the golden girls at school when her brother dies in combat. The war is very distant and it hardly seems a crime when father won't let the older sisters buy bonds. Far worse is that he makes them quit school to work, and takes their pay checks and demands control of their lives in ways that girls of the '90s will find hard to accept. When Kay's grandfather, a German immigrant, is arrested and only Kay knows the identity of the traitor, personal bravery in support of the country becomes real. The death of her stepmother's baby that arrives prematurely and Kay's feeling of responsibility seem extraordinarily melodramatic, and are undercut by the sacrifice of her only doll for scrap rubber. It's the little details of rationing, the radio soap operas, and the ever-desirable "Mary Janes" instead of Buster Brown oxfords that make this story work.?Carol A. Edwards, Minneapolis Public Library
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Library Binding: 188 pages
• Publisher: Turtleback (March 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1417660503
• ISBN-13: 978-1417660506
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)

More About the Author

ANN RINALDI is an award-winning author best known for bringing history vividly to life. A self-made writer and newspaper columnist for twenty-one years, Ms. Rinaldi attributes her interest in history to her son, who enlisted her to take part in historical reenactments up and down the East Coast. She lives with her husband in central New Jersey.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent! GREAT!, November 25, 2000

By 

Shiri (Englewood, NJ USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Keep Smiling Through (Paperback)

This is a super super book. It is about a girl,Kay, whose mother has died and lives with her siblings, father and step mother, Amazing Grace, who is the "mean one" throughout this book. Kay, growing up in middle America, loves the radio and has heroes. The date was 1940. But when she found out an extreemly important secret that will help her country, she has to make a critical choice. Kay experiences many hardships throughout the chapters, but this book is a real page turner. It warms your heart to see how much poor little Kay wants and needs love and doesnt get much. It is one of my favorite books and I would DEFINETLY reccomend it to children from grades 5-7. I think girls would enjoy it more than boys, but maybe boys will like it too.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Life on the homefront during WWII from a child's POV, February 29, 2008

By 

Joanna Mechlinski (CT, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Keep Smiling Through (Paperback)

At ten, Kay is well versed in suffering and hardship. The youngest of five children - none of whom get along well with either their father or stepmother - Kay is used to trying to disappear within her grim home. It's not such a bad tactic at school, either, where Kay is a country girl among townies, and her one friend has begun ignoring her.

To make matters worse, the family's housekeeper Queenie has just left, and their stepmother - dubbed Amazing Grace by the children who both fear and dislike her - is expecting a baby. To help, Kay's grandparents have come to stay, further crowding the household.

One day, Kay's German grandfather is arrested. Only she knows the truth about what happened that day -- will she tell the truth and risk turning her family upside down?

Readers will appreciate the many details Rinaldi scatters throughout Kay's life - her longing for Mary Janes, popular 1940s radio programs and the various avenues of support for the war effort - which give a vivid taste of life in America during World War II.

7 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Keep Smiling Through is an excellent book., June 16, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: Keep Smiling Through (Paperback)

This book clearly states what life was like during Worl War 2. The book makes you feel as though you were in it. The author describes each character with great detail and makes it seem as though you had known them all your life. Kay the main character in the book is faced with many hardships throughout the book. She experiences loss pain and embarresment caused by World War2.She hears her hereos on the radio and always wishes to be like them, One day she has a chance but will Kay be willing to help her country even if it means anger in her own family