Author: Skyler Schrempp
Genre: historical fiction
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Rating:
Summary (provided by publisher):When the skies dried up, Gloria thought it was temporary. When the dust storms rolled in, she thought they would pass. But now the bank man’s come to take the family farm, and Pa’s decided to up and move to California in search of work. They’ll pick fruit, he says, until they can save up enough money to buy land of their own again.
There are only three rules at the Santa Ana Holdsten Peach Orchard:
No stealing product.
No drunkenness or gambling.
And absolutely no organizing.
Well, Gloria Mae Willard isn’t about to organize any peaches, no ma’am. She’s got more on her mind than that. Like the secret, all-boys baseball team she’s desperate to play for, if only they’d give her a chance. Or the way that wages keep going down. The way their company lodgings are dirty and smelly, and everyone seems intent on leaving her out of everything.
But Gloria has never been the type to wait around for permission. If the boys won’t let her play, she’ll find a way to make them. If the people around her are keeping secrets, then she’ll keep a few of her own. And if the boss men at the Santa Ana Holdsten Peach Orchard say she can’t organize peaches, then by golly she’ll organize a whole ball game.
My opinion: This book provides a solid, compelling plot that does not shy away from harsh realities. Gloria's life is drastically changing. She's seen her family's way of life completely destroyed and her childhood has come to a premature end. We take a child already on the verge of realizing the complexities of life that come with adolescence and add in the cruelties of the Dust Bowl, of the death of a baby and a family thrown into abject poverty. She has the simple understanding of "fair" and "right" and is inclined to fight injustice every time she perceives it. She's learning why adults sometimes put up with indignity for the sake of a larger good. At the same time, she has a child's hopeful outlook and belief in the power of a baseball game. Not only does this book give the young reader a snapshot of the reality of life for people displaced by the Dust Bowl, it also encourages consideration of relative morality and the things worth fighting for.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
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