Summary
A Year Down Yonder is the story of a 15-year-old girl, named Mary Alice who lives in Chicago after the Depression. Her parents decide that she should go live with her grandmother in a small town because they don't have enough money to support the three of them, so Mary Alice takes the train to go stay with her Grandma Dowdel for a year. Grandma Dowdel turns out to have a different parenting style. She immediately takes Mary Alice to school to enroll her, showing that Grandma is going to be tough. It turns out that Grandma is not only tough, but fair, which doesn't always mean the same as equal. For example, when Grandma sells soup to raise money, she shakes down those that have extra money to spare, but makes those you can't really afford to pay keep their money. She then gives all the money to an elderly woman with a son who had been injured in war. Through various other experiences that help her understand her Grandmother and the town better, Mary Alice begins to feel like a part of the small town and is sorry to leave after the year is over.
Theme Focus: Parenthood
This book could be used in conjunction with the theme of parenthood to present a different view of what it means to be a parent. In some families, the children may be raised by a grandmother or an Aunt instead of their mother, so this is a nice book to bring in a different view of parenthood or another view of what it means to be a family. This book could also be used to discuss different styles of parenting because the grandmother is so unconventional. Some of the things the grandmother does in the book can be a little controversial, but at the same time humorous. For this reason, adolescents will probably be interested in discussions about the morality of some of the things the grandmother does in the name of parenting, such as how she takes care of the bully bothering Mary Alice.
Literary Quality
This book has many of the characteristics of good Young Adult books. First, it is told from the viewpoint of an adolescent, Mary Alice, which is an essential quality to a good YA book. Second, the books plot is secretive, surprising, and moves quickly. In the book, the grandmother is kind of a secret to the reader, and some of the events that occur in the book thanks to her are surprising while at the same time funny. Another essential quality of a good YA book is that it takes the reader beyond their own experience, which this book does well. It not only presents a different historical view, but also a view of what it was like to live in the country, away from a large city. The book uses correct grammar throughout, but some of the language may be a little too simplistic for older YA readers. Finally, the themes present in the book could lead to some good discussion about morality or parenting style, but these themes aren't all that challenging to students, and leave little room for emotional or intellectual growth on the students' part.
Potential Popularity and Student Interest
Although this book has a female main character, I think this book would appeal to both boys and girls because of the events that take place. The humor brought into the book is a major contributor to this wide appeal and is one of the positive aspects of the book. This book would also be more interesting to younger readers because it presents simplistic views of the events in a humoristic manner. The mood of the book stays light and it lends itself to literal interpretations well, so students 10-14 would probably be most attracted to this book. Finally, this book would probably be interesting to students who come from families in which a different family member other than their parents do raise them. Even students who are raised by their parents may find the look at an alternate way to be raised as interesting, so the book seems to offer wide appeal.
Consideration for the Reader
The given Lexile Level for this book is 610. With this book, there seems to be very few potential challenges to student comprehension. The most obvious would be that the students won't understand some of the things the grandmother does as part of being in the country. Being from a city, students may not be able to relate to the activities in which the grandmother and granddaughter take part. Another potential challenge tied to this is the use of some of the vocabulary. Some of the terms used may be difficult for the students to understand because they are related to country living. To overcome both these challenges, some of the activities or events may have to be explained to students and modeled in some way so that they understand what is going on and get the vocabulary. Another potential challenge for the reader could be understanding things that went with that specific time period, just after the depression. They may have difficulty understanding why Mary Alice needed to be sent away or why there are outhouses, so a brief introduction to what the depression was might help students in their comprehension as well.
Potential Uses for the Classroom
In the classroom, this book could be used to teach a few things. First, of course, there are the themes of family, parenthood, country living, and the morality of the grandmother's activities. Second, this book could be useful to teach students about the elements of fiction such as plot, character, setting, etc. For example, having students look at how the country compares to the city which they know would be a good way to teach them about the difference that setting can make in a book. Finally, the book could be used in relation to change. Mary Alice had to move and change to begin to feel like she fit with her environment. In a class room where the students may have just had to move to a new school or for students who may have moved from their home, this book would be a good way for students to examine the adjustments Mary Alice made and reflect on the adjustments they too needed to make.
Potential Censor Targets
I think that there would be very few censor targets for this book. The most obvious censor target would be the practical jokes or ways the grandmother gets even because she does cause some physical harm. Another censor target could be that the grandmother "borrows" some of the produce her neighbors have to bake her pies. Some censors may take issue with the grandmother as a thief. The last potential censor target could be the appearance of a woman at Grandmother's house "wearing nothing but a snake." What her nudity suggests to censors could be a possibility for an attack on the book.