|
home
about the author
books
reviews and awards
teacher information
more info
contact debra |
|
Grasslands
Kirkus Reviews – starred
review:
ïð“Seely’s
evocative writing has a flair for the vivid simile and seamlessly weaves a
wealth of information about the prairie into this story of a boy who must
overcome his ‘halfway feeling’ between the two lives he has known. The
characters ring true, and the author does not shy away from the seamier
sides of cowboy life, including the brothel in the dark alley behind the
saloon. . . . An excellent coming-of-age story and a must for collections on
prairies, cowboy life, and westward expansion after the Civil War.”
School Library Journal -- starred review:
ïð“With
just enough whining, sibling jealousy, and confused emotions, the
first-person narrative has the genuine voice of a 13-year-old boy. Mixing
humor with hardship gives the story a balance that pulls readers on to the
next chapter, knowing that Thomas will choose to stay with his father rather
than return to Virginia. In using her great-grandfather as inspiration plus
an excellent list of primary and secondary sources, the author has created a
fine historical novel that will satisfy those curious about the 1880s, as
well as those looking for adventure.”
Booklist:
ïð“Seely's
gentle prose invites readers to languish through the chapters. Like the
landscape she describes, the story is quiet, broad, and sweeping, and her
weatherworn characters embrace their lives and struggles with much fortitude
and no sentimentality. Her grasp of a male point of view is firm, and her
depiction of even the harshest of characters is underscored by compassionate
understanding of the tenacity demanded by the barren land.”
Awards
Grasslands was a finalist for
the 2002 Western Writers of America Spur Award. It made Bank Street’s List
of Best Children’s Books for 2003 and won the Society of Midland Authors
award for juvenile fiction.
The Last of the Roundup Boys
Kirkus Reviews:
ïð“It's
a familliar story: pretty, rich farmer's daughter falling for the hired
hand. Evie Parsons wants to run her father's farm some day, which is
unlikely; women don't run farms in Kansas in 1886. Seventeen-year-old
Tom Hunter, son of a poor farmer, is hired to work the Parsons' cattle
ranch. Seely's clear writing, lively dialogue, and fully realized
historical context give vigor to what might have been a tired tale.
Women's rights, the legacy of slavery, tension between cattlemen, railroad
men, and farmers, and class differences are the backdrop to the iffy romance
between Tom and Evie. Though the cover will have readers thinking this
is simply a romance, it is a story with substance, and readers will want to
go back and read its companion, Grasslands (2002), which tells Tom's
story prior to coming out to Kansas.” |
|
Here is a blade's-eye view of
the kind of grass that grows wild on the Kansas prairie. There are many
different kinds, with evocative names -- bluestem, Indian grass, grama
grass, buffalo grass, sand reedgrass, saltgrass. Not your everyday lawn!
|
