The ballad of Jessie Pearl / Shannon Hitchcock.
Record details
- ISBN: 9781608981410
- ISBN: 160898141X
- ISBN: 9781608981427
- ISBN: 1608981428
- Physical Description: 131 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm
- Publisher: South Hampton, N.H. : Namelos, ©2012.
Content descriptions
Summary, etc.: | "It's 1922, and Jessie has big plans for her future, but that's before tuberculosis strikes. Though she has no talent for cooking, cleaning, or nursing, Jessie puts her dreams on hold to help her family. She falls in love for the first time ever, and suddenly what she wants is not so simple anymore"--Page 4 of cover. |
Search for related items by subject
Subject: | Farm life > North Carolina > Fiction. Tuberculosis > Fiction. North Carolina > Fiction. Farm life. > North Carolina > Fiction. Tuberculosis > Fiction. North Carolina > Fiction. |
Genre: | Historical fiction. Historical fiction. |
Available copies
- 1 of 1 copy available at Bibliomation. (Show)
- 1 of 1 copy available at Kent Library Association - Kent.
Holds
- 0 current holds with 1 total copy.
Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Status | Due Date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kent Library Association - Kent | J HIT (Text) | 33410147729539 | Juvenile Fiction | Available | - |
BookList Review
The Ballad of Jessie Pearl
Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Jessie's family no sooner has to deal with the loss of her mother when her older sister, Carrie, begins to battle tuberculosis just after the birth of her son. This is North Carolina in the early 1920s, and Jessie must leave school to help care for her hardworking farm family. When baby Ky is left motherless, Jessie wonders if she will ever have an opportunity to venture beyond home and pursue her dreams of higher education and becoming a teacher. Hitchcock's seemingly gentle tale ultimately reveals a powerful tension between Jessie's love for her baby nephew and her deceased sister, and that of the equally strong pull for independence. Jessie makes her decision carefully and with much soul searching. First love, the risk and thrill of the unknown, a beautiful family that shores her up when she feels weak all these forces tumble about in a believable manner as Jessie figures out her future one day at a time. You can almost hear the gentle fiddle tune playing in the background as she does so.--O'Malley, Anne Copyright 2010 Booklist
The Horn Book Review
The Ballad of Jessie Pearl
The Horn Book
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Jessie Pearl is tangled up in emotions--her sister's tuberculosis death leaves Jessie with an infant nephew to raise, and, after giving her her first kiss, J.T. left for city work. At the heart of this not-so-fresh 1922 North Carolinaset story is Jessie's relatable quandary: should she stay to help her family or pursue her own dreams? The print is unfortunately tiny. (c) Copyright 2013. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
The Ballad of Jessie Pearl
Kirkus Reviews
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Jessie, 15 and living on a rural North Carolina tobacco farm in the early 1920s, dreams of graduating from high school and then attending teachers' college. All of that becomes very unlikely after one of her elder sisters falls ill with tuberculosis, forcing Jessie to leave school to nurse her dying sibling and later to become surrogate mother to her sister's infant son. Jessie loves her nephew, but she's torn between staying on the farm and cultivating her growing relationship with J.T., a neighbor three years her senior who would happily marry her when she gets a little older, or satisfying a deep-seated urge to make more of her life, if she gets the opportunity. Told in a believable first-person, present-tense voice that emphasizes the immediacy of Jessie's problems and her sometimes raw emotions, Hitchcock's debut also neatly captures a full flavor of the setting and period. The aspects of many characters are also effectively revealed, mostly through authentic-sounding dialogue. A satisfying tale for readers who don't require a fully happy ending. (Historical fiction. 11-18)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Publishers Weekly Review
The Ballad of Jessie Pearl
Publishers Weekly
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Hitchcock's debut novel introduces 14-year-old Jessie Pearl, who endures more than her fair share of hardships, beginning with the death of her mother. Opening in 1922, the story follows the daily activities on the family's North Carolina tobacco farm. The youngest of three sisters, Jessie hopes to attend a teachers' college and escape the monotony of becoming a wife and running a household. But when her sister Carrie contracts tuberculosis, Jessie puts her life and future plans on the line. Carrie's dying wish is for Jessie to care for her newborn son, Ky, and while Jessie loves the infant (and falls in love with a neighbor boy), she agonizes over which path to choose-follow her dreams or stay and support the family. Hitchcock's story is gently and lovingly written, with elements drawn from her own family history. Its detailed honesty about the particular struggles of the period, especially for strong women (Maude, a no-nonsense midwife, is particularly memorable), is significant. The book spans several years, and the question of what Jessie will choose should keep readers invested. Ages 10-up. (Feb.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
School Library Journal Review
The Ballad of Jessie Pearl
School Library Journal
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Gr 5 Up-Despite advances like Model Ts and tuberculosis sanatoriums, rural life in the early 20th century is difficult. Fourteen-year-old Jessie Pearl Hennings has promised her late mother that she will finish school and go on to teacher's college, but the death of her sister, raising her nephew, helping on the family farm, and romance with a local boy are roadblocks that could keep her from her dream. This fast-paced historical novel is filled with enough factual detail, recognizable emotions, and personal drama to keep readers turning pages, eager to learn the final verse in the ballad of Jessie's life. An author's note about the story's origins in actual events could inspire students to seek out family stories of their own.-Natasha Forrester, Multnomah County Library, OR (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.