Hunger

January 1, 2018

Gr 4-6-A sad, weighty tale about young people experiencing hunger firsthand and the sorrow that accompanies loss. Lorraine, 12, is the child of a tenant farmer in County Galway, Ireland, in 1846, at the height of the Potato Famine. The family and their neighbors face extreme poverty and struggle to survive the season. Lorraine befriends Susanna, the daughter of the wealthy landowner, who secretly helps Lorraine and her friends by giving them food. The rocky yet poignant friendship between Lorraine and Susanna keeps readers engaged and fosters a sense of hope. The faith of the adults and children is tested, and parents must decide what to do to save their families: stay in Ireland or move to another part of the world where conditions are better. The Irish people of the time are portrayed as stoic, strong, and proud, but also as victims of the wealthy, ruling British class. The ending may leave some readers wondering about the characters' choices and perhaps disagree with them, which could foster lively discussions. This book fills a unique niche among historical fiction titles due to the subject matter and setting. The extensive back matter supports the authenticity of the story and provides opportunities for further study. VERDICT Give this book to fans of Kimberly Brubaker Bradley's The War That Saved My Life. A good addition to libraries where historical fiction is popular.-Selene Athas, Glenelg Country School, Ellicott City, MD

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 15, 2017
A family struggles to survive the Irish Potato Famine in 1846.Following the onset of the blight that caused massive crop failure the previous summer, 12-year-old Lorraine hopes that her family's efforts on their small tenant farm in County Galway will put enough food on the table to get through winter. Their freshly planted spuds rot practically overnight, though, and Lorraine, her little brother, Paddy, and their Ma and Da join neighbors in a fight to stay alive. Napoli shows her considerable talent for drawing readers into her protagonist's world through Lorraine's frank, first-person account of her circumstances. The narrative, like Lorraine, is grounded in the natural world. While foraging meager greens for the family's supper, Lorraine encounters a girl on the grounds of the English landlord's manor. Miss Susanna is the pampered landlord's daughter who tells Lorraine that "you Irish are irresponsible, having children you can't take care of" and that they are to blame for their own starvation, even as she shares some of her doll's picnic. Miss Susanna serves as stand-in for the English attitude toward the Irish. Her imperious attitude--giving orders to Lorraine and ignoring the obvious poverty of the tenant farmers--is set against Lorraine's story, giving young readers a lens through which to understand the history of oppression. The author makes it clear in endnotes that it's worth noting the similarities to the plight of modern-day refugees. Although the publisher aims this book at teens, Lorraine's age suggests a middle-grade audience, and there's nothing about the content or the sophistication of storytelling that skews the age up.A worthy introduction to an important slice of history. (map, glossary, bibliography, timeline) (Historical fiction. 9-13)

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