6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Winter Room, November 22, 2004
A Kid's Review
The Winter Room is a very descriptive book about a family's life on the farm. Gary Paulsen does an excellent job describing the sights and smells of the farm. He describes everything so well it seems that you have been living with the family your whole life. I loved reading the story to find out about what life on a farm would be like.The characters are well developed and it tells about how family was more important than friends in those days more so than it is today. I would recommend this story for anyone interested in reading a fun family story about life on a farm with a truly magical ending.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not one of his very best, but a great read nonetheless, August 15, 2002
Growing up in the 30's was a tough time for many people. It's never easy dealing with acres of crops, milking cows every day, or slipping and sliding in manure, but growing up on a farm had its good points, such as hearing an old family member tell a memorable story every night. Such is the case of the narrator, a boy who recalls what it was like every season of the year, especially that of the winter, when the whole family would gather in the 'winter room' to sit and knit, eat dinner, tell stories, or listen to stories while staring at the glowing fire burning in the distance.
As with all of his books, Gary Paulsen writes in a way as to paint pictures in your mind so that you can actually 'see' what is being said as you read it. At the same time, the story remains interesting from start to finish, without having a single part that's boring in any way, shape or form, but the best parts of the book in my opinion are the short stories that Uncle David tells.
Included is a sort of foreword by Gary Paulsen before the actual book begins. Then he tells what the boy thinks about and what is typically done in each season of the year on the 1930's farm, and finally, Uncle David tells a few fascinating stories, with one certain TRUE story being told each and every night.
The Winter Room is a fairly short book (103 pages), but like I said, it's interesting and sort of compelling from start to finish. It's a great book, but it is not one of Gary Paulsen's ABSOLUTE best books, in my opinion. After reading many of his other books such as The Island, Hatchet, The River, and Dogsong, I wasn't disappointed with The Winter Room, but it doesn't stand out as being one of his very best, even though it is a Newbery Honor Book.
If you're like me and you're a big Gary Paulsen fan, I definitely recommend adding The Winter Room to your collection. I also recommend it to anybody who wants to read a short and well-written book, but just keep in mind that the author has many other books that are even better than The Winter Room.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Winter Room a review by David, December 30, 2003
A Kid's Review
Have you ever thought that your life was great and it couldn't get any better? But then something horrible happened, and your life couldn't get any worse? Then something amazing happened, and your life was better than before? Well, if it hasn't, you should read the book The Winter Room by Gary Paulsen. It's about a boy named Eldon, (the protagonist) and his brother Wayne who live on a farm. Their Uncle David, who was very old, always told stories every night, and one story changed everybody's life.
One of my favorite events from the book was when Wayne and Eldon fought because they didn't know whether there was a place between days when it wasn't the day before and it wasn't tomorrow yet. Eldon's like, yes there are times in places so you could tell one day from the next, but Wayne thought he knew there wasn't. When they were done fighting, Wayne had a swollen ear from where Eldon hit him with a board, and Eldon had a bloody nose, and they still didn't know. Do you know the right answer?
Another one of my favorite events is when Uncle David tells the story of Crazy Alan. Crazy Alan was a man that played jokes on other men in the camp. The jokes he played didn't hurt anybody and weren't bad. The other men liked the jokes so much they wanted Crazy Alan to do more. When he did one joke he was on the verge of getting fired. The foreman was in the outhouse and Crazy Alan cut a huge Norway pine down. He dropped it right in front of the door to and from the outhouse. Crazy Alan maneuvered this trick so well, that he actually did get fired.
This book is like an adventure, mystery kind of story, and it's great for all kids and people of all ages. You must read The Winter Room by Gary Paulsen to figure out what happens in the end.
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