Way Down Deep [Hardcover]

Ruth White (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up

Although Ruby seemed to just appear out of thin air on the steps of the courthouse on the first day of summer in 1944, no one in Way Down Deep, West Virginia, ever worried too much about where the toddler came from. They figured that if Ruby’s people were dumb enough to lose something as valuable as a child, then that was their problem. So even though Ruby can’t help but wonder where she came from, she has led a joyful and carefree life in Way Down Deep, loved and watched over by Miss Arbutus – proprietor of The Roost, the local boardinghouse – the residents of The Roost, and the rest of the town. But when Ruby is twelve, a new family moves to Way Down Deep, and they inadvertently provide enough clues about Ruby’s past that she is able to find her own people. Ruby travels from Way Down Deep to the top of Yonder Mountain to learn who she really is – only to find that she is bound to Way Down Deep by something even stronger than family ties: love.
 
With a touch of fairy-tale magic and a lot of heart, Ruth White explores just what it is that makes a place truly home.

 

Way Down Deep is a 2008 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 4–7—In the summer of 1944, a red-headed, curly-haired toddler mysteriously appeared on the courthouse steps in Way Down Deep, WV. No trace of how she got there or to whom she belonged was ever found. For 10 years Ruby June has lived a happy, comfortable life, well loved and cared for by Miss Arbutus Ward, owner of the local boardinghouse. The arrival of a new family in town sets in motion the unraveling of Ruby's past and the mystery of her appearance. In the process, readers are introduced to a colorful cast of characters who not only add to the rich Appalachian tone of the novel, but also lace it together with sweet humor, timeless truths, and expert foreshadowing. At first thought to be the senile ramblings of Mr. Bird Reeder, a former resident of Yonder Mountain, VA, bits of information lead Ruby to discover that she might be the child thought to have been carried off by a panther years earlier. She learns of her parents' death when she was a baby, that she has family living on top of the mountain, and of her mystical connections to Miss Ward. Captivating and thoughtful on many levels, White's novel offers humor, mystery, and a feel-good ending that a multitude of readers will find satisfying "way down deep."—D. Maria LaRocco, Cuyahoga Public Library, Strongsville, OH
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

*Starred Review* On the first day of summer in 1944, a red-haired toddler appears on the courtroom steps in Way Down Deep, West Virginia. Nobody knows who she is or how she got there. But Miss Arbus, the owner of the boardinghouse, swoops down and brings her home, and the rest of the town takes her to its collective bosom. Then, when Ruby turns 12, a desperate man tries to rob the bank. Way Down Deep takes in the poor soul and his family as well, not knowing that the newcomers are the key to Ruby's past. White, the author of Belle Prater's Boy (1996), Newbery Honor Book, returns to Appalachia for a story as tender as a breeze and as sharp as a tack. In leisurely fashion, she introduces a cavalcade of idiosyncratic characters who go in and out of Ruby's life--among them, Mrs. Rife, a 90-year-old who throws rocks at the kids, and Reese, who serenades Ruby with lines such as, "Now if you were a horsefly, and I'm an old grey mare, / I'd stand and let you bite me and never move a hair." White dabbles in magic realism here (the explanation of how Ruby came to town will vex some and delight others), but at the heart of the story are profound questions that readers will enjoy puzzling out: Who makes up a family? And what do you owe them? Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR); First Edition edition (March 20, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0374382514
• ISBN-13: 978-0374382513
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,027,353 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Way Down Deep, April 18, 2007

By 

Kirsten G. Cutler (Santa Rosa, California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Way Down Deep (Hardcover)

Way Down Deep is a small town that is cradled between hills in the Appalachian Mountains. This special town "did not do things by the book". In 1944 on the first day of summer, a small redheaded girl is found abandoned in front of Way Down Deep's courthouse "she was in her petticoat, just sitting there on that bench where the old-timers like to hang out and swap lies" A toddler she can only respond that "woo-bee" is her name so the town adopts Ruby informally, " if Ruby's people were dumb enough to lose something as valuable as a child, then finders keepers, losers weepers". The sheriff whose "heart was way too soft and his mind too fuzzy for sheriffing" looks the other way rather than try to locate any relatives when Miss Arbutus who runs the rambling three-story boardinghouse called The Roost volunteers to raise the little girl until "her people" are found. Ruby, now eleven, thrives on the love extended to her by the townspeople. The setting is well established: A charming little map shows: Busy Street and Ward Street where there are businesses like Bevins's BarberShop, Pure Gas Station whose owner also runs the Boxcart Grill and the medical office of Mr. and Mrs. Doctor, one is a dentist, the other is a doctor.
The cast of delightful characters include: a man who arrives with a goat which he offers Miss Arbutus in exchange for lodging and food; this goat loves to stand on a Studebaker to view his new town, Ruby's classmate Reese who loves to sing but sings off-key "In his own mind he was the second coming of Hank Williams, but to everybody else he was as off-key as a hillbilly slung up drunk on moonshine", Mrs. Thornton Elkins a "cultured lady" whose husband died in their first year of marriage so she moves into the Roost to recuperate for a few weeks, then a few months, then a few years; when she runs out of money, donations of food items and bolts of dress material are left for her so she could wear "simple but stylish dresses". One day an inept bank robber who is easily confounded, scared of real guns and so carries a plastic gun, cries when he tries and fails to hold up the town bank successfully. When it turns out he arrived in town on a bus and plans to leave on a bus, the townspeople are too polite to suggest to him a getaway on a bus was not the best idea. Nevertheless, the townspeople "adopt" his family since he is down on his luck. When Ruby is eleven years old, an uncle shows up to reclaim her; the interior motive proves to be that she is required to take care of a constantly angry and bitter grandmother. Ruby ingeniously starts telling her stories about the nurturing town where she grew up. Later when Ruby insists on returning to Way Down Deep, the grandmother wants to move there too where she might finally have some friends. This is a charming and uplifting story of a community that treasures its children (the adults put on a Kid's Day to celebrate all of them) and offers help to those in need. Yes, the residents are nosey and news travels fast, yet who would not want to live in this unique town where the residents are respectful of each other's idiosyncrasies and extend their love and care to residents and strangers alike. This is a powerful story of redemption and acceptance that is humorous and filled with interesting characters.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Way Down Deep in Their Hearts, March 5, 2008

By 

K. Valdez (The Hague, Netherlands) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Way Down Deep (Hardcover)

My daughters, ages 8 and 6, listened intently as I read 'Way Down Deep'. We truly enjoyed this book. We found it difficult to stop reading each night as they would ask for 'one more page'. The characters are colorful and vivid and charming. We laughed out loud when the townspeople turn the attempted bank robbery into an 'opportunity' and adopt the bank robber and his family. We breathed a sigh when Ruby made her decision about where her home is... who her family is. We will certainly re-read this book in the future.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fine story of bonds and community connections evolves., July 10, 2007

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Way Down Deep (Hardcover)

Ruth White's WAY DOWN DEEP tells of a toddler found abandoned in a small town. Miss Arbutus takes her in and she leads a good life - but when Ruby is twelve a new family arrives in town with news of her past - and to learn more she must travel far from her newfound home. Is it worth it? A fine story of bonds and community connections evolves.