Unstoppable Octobia May

Narrator Bahni Turpin perfectly captures 10-year-old Octobia May, who's sent to live with her Aunt Shuma in her boardinghouse after she suffers a heart ailment at birth. Turpin portrays each of the personable boarders, skillfully re-creating men and women--Jewish, black, and white--as independent and distinct individuals. Feisty Octobia has a freedom seldom enjoyed by other "colored" girls in Eisenhower's America. She's convinced Mr. Davenport, one of the boarders, is a vampire. When she and her friend Jonah try to prove it, they have a thrilling adventure and learn that things aren't always what they seem. Officer O'Malley is Turpin's standout character--his accent and personality are pure Irish-American cop! In addition to enjoying an exciting mystery, young listeners will learn about 1950s America. S.G.B. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine

January 1, 2015

Gr 3-6-Young Octobia May and her best friend, Jonah, set out to uncover a complex, multilayered mystery in their small Southern town. More than anything in the world, Octobia wants to uncover secrets. She constantly questions the state of things, coming to her own conclusions and, more often than not, gets into trouble because of it. However, as Octobia discovers, some mysteries are so big, no one really has any idea what to do with them. Set in 1953, this story tackles some tough topics, including McCarthyism and patriotism, Jim Crow and segregation, feminism and adolescence, murder, and even vampires. Flake weaves together friendship, history, and truth-a mix of Harriet the Spy and The Watsons Go to Birmingham-in a tale that will challenge listeners to question what freedom really is. Bahni Turpin narrates with just the right tone to capture Octobia's liveliness and insightful musings.-Jennifer Mann, Ann Arbor, MI

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