Reviews

The Summer My Father Was Ten by Andrea Shine, Pat Brisson

audgepodgeroma's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

jaij7's review against another edition

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4.0

My fifth graders were in tuned while I read this to them.

kristenremenar's review against another edition

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4.0

A boy thoughtlessly destroys his neighbor's garden, but when he sees how he's devastated the old neighbor, he returns the next spring to help him plant a new garden. It's nice to see a story where the main character decides for himself to make things right, rather than having punishment imposed from outside. This is a good way, too, for kids to see that the choices they make as a kid can affect them for the rest of their lives - the story is told by a girl who plants a garden every year with her dad, because he remembers what he learned the summer he was ten.

sducharme's review against another edition

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4.0

Personal narrative. A girl hears her father tell the same story every year - the story of a mistake he made as a child. When he was ten, he did something to his neighbor's garden. Something he was ashamed of but not sure how to fix.

This is a powerful story of a lesson learned, of multi-generational and multi-cultural understanding, told through flashbacks. Much to discuss here for upper elementary students about point of view and plotting.

Full page watercolor illustrations with embedded text.

azajacks's review against another edition

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4.0

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