Bound To Stay Bound

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School Library Journal - 05/01/2012 Gr 4–7—Set in Florida in 1949, this coming-of-age story is Southern Gothic for the middle-grade crowd. Bones's idyllic life in the swamps with her parents is uprooted when an out of towner is found murdered and her father is the prime suspect. The 10-year-old's narration imbues the book with a folksy, down-home flavor reminiscent of Phyllis Reynolds Naylor's Shiloh (Atheneum, 1991). However, the overuse of the Southern vernacular occasionally grates, especially with regard to the dialogue. Although the narrative is built around a murder, at the heart of the book is the protagonist's maturation process; like an age-appropriate To Kill a Mockingbird, it's Bones's interactions with well-developed, often-eccentric characters that shape this story. There's the reclusive but good-hearted Miss Eunice (a Boo Radley-esque character who Bones initially suspects is a witch due to her father's wild stories); Mr. Speed, a young man left physically and emotionally battered after the war, and Bones's unpredictable but loving half Native American father. Issues of race and gender are explored in a cursory way as well, but there's plenty of fun mixed in to keep the mood from getting too heavy, such as the child's adventures in the swamp with her best friend, Little Man. Though the story's resolution is somewhat predictable, many readers will find it wholly satisfying.—Mahnaz Dar, formerly at Convent of the Sacred Heart, New York City - Copyright 2012 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

Booklist - 05/15/2012 Precious Bones is a 10-year-old girl who lives with her mama and part–Miccosukee Indian father, Nolay, on the edge of a Florida swamp in 1949. At the end of the summer, their small community is shocked by the murders of two men: a Yankee real-estate agent and a neighbor who was as mean as he was despised. When Nolay becomes the prime suspect for both crimes, Bones prays for a miracle. Although there are some elements of southern gothic, the book is a leisurely paced period piece, with as much detail given to the merchandise available at the Last Chance grocery store as to the legend of local bogeyman Soap Sally. Bones, a sweetly naive but feisty protagonist, is surrounded by a cast of unusual and well-developed characters. Social issues, such as the discrimination of the local African American community, bigotry against Nolay, child and spousal abuse, and the specter of tourism and land development, are all addressed though certainly not resolved. An intriguing debut, written lovingly to a way of life now lost. - Copyright 2012 Booklist.

Bulletin for the Center... - 07/01/2012 In 1949, on the outskirts of a lush Florida swamp, ten-year-old Bones finds plenty to occupy her time. For pets, she’s got three dogs, a pig, a goat, and a raccoon. For friends, she’s got Little Man, who’s a year older than her, and Mr. Speed, a young man who has suffered some brain damage in the war but is still a wealth of knowledge about the wildlife in Florida. Most important, though, she has her sensible mama, Lori, and her storytelling, fun-loving father, Nolay. Nolay is “mighty proud to be a cracker” and to be part Miccosukee Indian, and he doesn’t take kindly to a pair of real estate men from New York who come sniffing around for cheap property to buy. When one of the men goes missing and another is found dead, Nolay is arrested, and Bones is desperate to find out what really happened. Against the backdrop of the murder mysteries is a detailed portrait of a bygone lifestyle, where girls and boys learn to use a gun when they’re six and spend their days outdoors, fishing, frog gigging, and visiting their neighbors, including a visit to Nolay’s family’s Miccosukee village. Bones is a sure-footed tour guide through this untamed landscape, wide-eyed but never twee, competent but aware of her own limitations. Her summer is one of somewhat reluctant growth, as she begins to sort out her father’s fanciful tales of swamp lore from the more prosaic truth and faces the loss of a dear friend while coming to terms with real adult evil. Her father in turn faces his own need to develop a more mature outlook as he realizes the impact his words and behavior have on his maturing daughter. The last line of each chapter telegraphs plot twists, introducing some suspense in a tale that will already hold high interest for nature-loving readers longing for their own wild playgrounds. KC - Copyright 2012 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois.

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