The Sorta Sisters [Hardcover]

Adrian Fogelin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2007 | Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up

Anna Casey likes living in Florida with Miss Johnette, her foster mother. Best of all Miss Johnette wants to adopt Anna. Still, it is hard grow into a new life and a new school, when you ve been rootless nearly all of your life.

By chance, Anna starts up a correspondence with Mica, who lives on a sailboat with The Captain, her beloved but often absent father. But beneath the surface of Mica s exotic, footloose lifestyle is a similar sense of longing to belong to some place and someone.

Then Mica gets good news: her father plans to anchor the boat in Florida Keys for a year. Now she can go to school just like other kids. But her long-distance friendship with Anna gets off track when Mica makes a school friend. And just when Anna is feeling shut out by Mica, she suddenly has to share Miss Johnette s attention with Mr. Webster, a new suitor. When the Captain s parenting style is finally deemed unfit, it may be that Anna and Miss Johnette are the only ones who can help Mica.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

With insight and compassion, Fogelin explores the complexities and rewards of friendship and family. Twelve-year-old foster child Anna, a quiet loner, hopes she’s finally found a home in Tallahassee with biology teacher Miss Johnette. Outspoken 11-year-old Mica lives on a sailboat in the Keys with her increasingly absent father, a marine biologist. The girls, both nature lovers, become pen pals and “sorta sisters,” as they exchange letters, shells, milkweed seeds, and support on issues such as how to fit in at school and Mica’s father’s alcoholism. Ultimately, through their shared joys and difficulties, both girls find new strength and understanding. The lively, third-person narrative alternates between each girl’s perspective, and the frequently inserted letters bring intimacy and depth to the characters. Lovely sepia drawings by the author depict wildlife and the packages that the girls send to each other throughout the novel. A heartfelt story that shows the many factors that create family, friends, and home. Grades 5-8. --Shelle Rosenfeld

Review

"Fogelin offers a readable combination of narrative and letters that are infused with details about science, as the girls send seed pods, shells and other specimens to each other. Readers will appreciate the pen-pal friendship and the hopeful ending." --Kirkus Reviews
"Fogelin does a beautiful job of examining the complex, often painful, aspects of friendship and family." --The Oklahoman
"Another wonderful children's book..." --Tallahassee Democrat
"With insight and compassion, Fogelin explores the complexities and rewards of friendship and family...A heartfelt story that shows the many factors that create family, friends, and home." --Booklist
"This...book in Fogelin's 'neighborhood' series can stand alone, and the ending makes it clear that this enjoyable saga will continue." --School Library Journal

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Peachtree Publishers; 1St Edition edition (October 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1561454249
• ISBN-13: 978-1561454242
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #989,212 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Adrian Fogelin is the daughter of fiction writer, Maria Bontempi Fogelin, and grew up in a house littered with manuscripts. A slow early reader Fogelin took in stories as her mother read aloud, and in the lively exchange of family tales, giving her writing the freshness of the spoken word.

She is the author of seven novels for middle-grade and young adult readers, including the hugely popular "Crossing Jordan," and has won numerous awards including two Florida Book Award gold medals.

Although she might not pass the "Are you really a grownup?" test, Fogelin definitely gets kids, from the way they talk to the things they yearn for. She is a frequent visitor to schools and libraries all over the counry where she shares her love of writing and story.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Seven books and still going strong!, September 26, 2007

By 

L. Goff "Linda the Librarian" (Astatula, FL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Sorta Sisters (Hardcover)

Just 10 minutes ago I finished reading The Sorta Sisters by Adrian Fogelin and it now sits in front of me alongside my copies of her other 6 books. Yes, I know these are fiction books, but my heart feels like it's just spent time with old friends from the neighborhood. Shoot, I wish I could send a letter off to Anna or Mica right now. If they were real people instead of excellently developed fictional characters, I would ask them to be happy and to please check back in with me again before too long. Gosh, I'm going to miss the heck out of them and the other neighborhood kids. For those of you who loved sweet foster child Anna from Anna Casey's Place in the World and for those of you who got a kick out of spunky Mica from My Brother's Hero, be assured that Adrian Fogelin is going to take you along for another un-put-downable read. Anna and Mica's letters to each other remind me of the days when I used to send "snail mail" to friends and the thrill I'd get when I saw one of their letters sitting in my mailbox. However, I don't think my friends and I shared such interesting life experiences in our letters. Be sure to admire the book's lovely drawings; each is hand drawn by the author herself.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must-Read for Kids, November 25, 2007

By 

Persis Granger "Perky" (Trenton, FL, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Sorta Sisters (Hardcover)

Adrian Fogelin's The Sorta Sisters should be a real eye-opener for kid's whose lives are fairly stable and uncomplicated. In Anna Casey they'll meet a girl who's grown up in the foster system, and who can't quite dare to believe that her adoption will ever really be final. Her "sorta sister" Mica is the home-schooled daughter of an alcoholic living on a boat, trying to be the responsible one in the household. The two girls become penpals and learn that they share much more than a love of science. Many youthful readers, unfortunately, will be able to see that they, too, share some of the concerns of Anna and Mica. This story is just one more example of Adrian Fogelin's fine sensitivity to kids, the difficulties many face, and the heroic way they meet the challenges life throws in their paths. What a fine book, with delightful illustrations!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Hobo Philosopher, January 1, 2009

By 

Richard E. Noble (Florida Panhandle) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Sorta Sisters (Hardcover)

My wife picked out this book because of the design of the book. The print on the cover was unusual and different. The inside turned out to be of equal interest. The text print was brown. There were a number of cute drawings. The font on the chapter headings was like the cover. Even the page numbering was exceptional.
The book and the story are both just plain good. I would guess that this is a children's book but I'm no child. I found plenty to associate with in this story. Mica's father interested me. Both Anna and Mica were "real." All the characters were real. The book moved very quickly. The thoughts and emotions were flashing from page to page.
I would say that the book had a happy ending but it didn't really end; it just stopped at a favorable point. I was left feeling warm but still concerned about the future of the characters. Adrian Fogelin is a very good writer. I have no doubt that she will continue.

Richard Edward Noble - The Hobo Philosopher - Author of:

"A Little Something: Poetry and Prose"