Module 4: Ruby Holler

Book Summary

Dallas and Florida are orphans being raised in the cold and unloving environment of a children’s home. They have been sent for adoption and returned to the orphanage too many times. They have never known kindness, and so when they are sent to an older couple in the beautiful, forested Ruby Holler, they don’t trust the intentions of the couple and plan to run away when they are able. The children and the old couple have many adventures - including the attempted theft of the couple’s buried riches by the orphanage proprietor, foiled by the kids’ true father - and grow to love each other. But when the old couple’s children fly in to visit, they are overheard telling their parents that the kids need to go back to the orphanage. Dallas and Florida start to leave, but change their minds and determine to stay in Ruby Holler. The narrative comes to a close leaving loose ends, which are hopefully explained in a sequel.

APA Reference of Book

Creech, S. (2002). Ruby holler. New York, NY: Harper Collins

Impressions

Told in a country style with some dialog written in dialect, Ruby Holler is a sweet tale for upper middle and middle school kids. The characters are fairly two-dimensional but serve the plot. The proprietors of the children’s home are drawn meanly enough that the reader can fully understand why the orphan girl, Florida, is so angry and why the boy, Dallas, constantly dreams of a better life. The pacing is exciting as the child pair enter new situations and have dangerous adventures. The reader comes to care about the feelings of the children and is gratified to learn that the couple does love and care for the two, as the theme "love conquers all" plays out.

Professional Review

While the plot is predictable, the story weaves in an interesting mix of mystery, adventure, and humor, along with age-old and modern problems. Creech does a fine job of developing the unique personalities and the sibling relationship, and the children's defense mechanisms ('s dreamy escapism and 's aggression) figure prominently in the interplay among the characters. The text is lively and descriptive with an authentic, if somewhat mystical, rural ambiance. This entertaining read from a first-rate author will not disappoint Creech's many fans.

Vandenbroek, R. R. (2002, April). Ruby Holler. [Review of the book Ruby Holler, by S. 

     Creech.] School Library Journal, 48(4), 142. Retrieved from www.slj.com

 

Library Uses

Sharon Creech has written so many excellent titles, a librarian could host an author study with her books. She could treat it like a literature circle, where students read the Creech book of their choice, discuss the elements when they come back to class in the library, and then create some kind of display for the book they read, be it a poster, a book display, or using Web 2.0 technology. The librarian could use this as an opportunity to teach a selected technology where the students could share and collaborate with each other through the school’s website.