Bound To Stay Bound

View MARC Record
 

Full Text Reviews:

School Library Journal - 12/01/2011 Gr 5–9—Inspired by the author's own troubled childhood, these novellas portray an unflinching look at children who have endured neglectful and abusive homes and are surviving on their own. The atmospheric first tale, "Man of the Iron Heads," is narrated by Jake, a boy of about 11, who hides from the local gang until he finds the courage to outsmart its violent leader. "Jo-Jo the Dog-Faced Girl" presents a lonely girl with three adopted dogs who finds acceptance in befriending a girl with leukemia. Finally, "Erik's Rules" celebrates the power of art and is told by Jamie, the younger of two homeless brothers, whose unstable existence changes after a chance encounter with a friendly volunteer at the animal shelter. By incorporating the solace found in dogs, art, libraries, and new friends into these tales of heartache and redemption, Paulsen provides his readers with hope of a better life.—Susan W. Hunter, Riverside Middle School, Springfield, VT - Copyright 2011 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

Bulletin for the Center... - 01/01/2012 This trio of novellas (inspired, Paulsen says, by readers who share with him the experience of a “troubled childhood”) explores the way art and dogs can help children “believe that there could be more to . . . life.” In “Man of the Iron Heads,” Jake, adrift in his public housing building, peers into the windows of the upscale apartments next door (a product of urban renewal) and catches the attention of a young sculptor. Bill, who has never seriously considered the plight of his immediate neighbors, not only offers Jake food and some cash for modeling, but gives the boy aspiration for a better life. “Jo-Jo and the Dog-Faced Girl” concerns an abused girl who, through the three pet dogs she secretly keeps from her parents, meets her first real friend, a child with leukemia who finds as much comfort in the dogs as Jo-Jo does. Finally, “Erik’s Rules” melds the themes of art and dogs in the story of two homeless brothers trying to make a life for themselves under the radar of social services. Narrator Jamie, the younger boy, is befriended by an animal-shelter volunteer who enlists Jamie’s skills as an artist to advertise pets for adoption, and ultimately puts both brothers on the path to a stable home life. Readers are free to supply their own optimistic conclusions to the first two open-ended tales, but it is equally probable that those characters may enjoy only respite rather than permanent relief from their predicaments. The final story, though, closes the volume on a more decisively positive note, and although serendipity plays a vital role in rebuilding shattered lives, readers will welcome the hopeful outcome. EB - Copyright 2012 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois.

View MARC Record
Loading...



  • Copyright © Bound to Stay Bound Books, Inc. All rights reserved.
  • Privacy Policy