 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Feathers
- By Jacqueline Woodson
- Genre: School
Common Sense Media says
Lyrical and plotless -- for patient readers.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that there is nothing to be concerned about here, and lots of ideas to think about.
What's the story?
There is no plot, but here are the elements. In 1971, with war in the background, Franny's brother is deaf, and her mother is pregnant again after several miscarriages. In school, there's a new white student in her all-black class, and her best friend thinks he might be Jesus, while the class bully can't seem to leave him alone.
Is it any good?
There are kids' books written to appeal to kids, and there are kids' books written to appeal to the adults who buy the books for kids. There's almost always at least one of the latter type among the Newbery winners. They tend be cerebral rather than emotional, to involve Big Ideas, such as racism, poverty, and religion, but they are often rather skimpy on actual, you know, story. FEATHERS is one of those.
That's not to say that it isn't good -- it is. It's beautifully written, lyrical, thoughtful, at times even wise. There are undoubtedly some kids, patient and experienced readers who don't need a story to keep them turning the pages, who will enjoy this, maybe even love it. But not many. Mostly it will be loved by the adults who make the purchasing decisions. But for those who assume that a Newbery Honor means it's a good book to recommend to kids, here is, yet again, proof of the falseness of that assumption.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about Dickenson's poem. What is it about? Why did the author use it so pervasively? How does it apply to the lives of these characters? Also, why do you think this book won the Newbery Honor?
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AGE
Good for tweens not for younger
I think the Jacqeline Woodson is a great writer....But her stories can have racism in there...
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AGE
Perfect for teens.
I thought this was a great book. Dealt with acceptance issues.
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AGE
Good for all ages (Especially Young Children)
I think that it was an amazing book and some kids are still a little racial and this book will help the kids see the other way.
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AGE
About Eight
I just read it in My eith grade class. There really isn't a climax or a main thing to look forward to, but it would be a good book for people, say, about eight.
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Kid, 12 years old
November 18, 2010
AGE
Good for Patient Readers.
It's a great book and I think everyone should read it. Not much happens, though. The characters include: The narrator, her deaf brother, a white kid who comes to her all black school, and a bully.
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AGE
LOVE ITT!!!!!
One of my all time favorites!!! Kind of racist though.
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AGE
About Feathers
Feathers is a really good book that I enjoyed a lot . I read it once in 6th grade and I'm just finishing it again while I'm in 8th grade . I'm using it to do a book project on and I shouldn't have picked this one . Don't get me wrong , Feathers is a great book , but it doesn't have a main conflict or climax . There's many conflicts throughout the book , but not one main one that's big a problem through the whole book . So my advice is to never pick this book for a book project , but you should definately read it !
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Kid, 12 years old
March 7, 2012
AGE
Hope & Feathers.
This book is amazing and deep into hope.It sends Positive messages about A young girl who needs to find out A poem statement her teacher and read to her and her class.She wrote it down in her notebook to never forget.When she saw it she asked her mom about the statement.Hope is the thing with feathers.Is what it said.In the end she finds out.Its a Phenomenal book that should be great for any age grup and mad into a movie.
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| Author: | Jacqueline Woodson |
| Book type: | Fiction |
| Genre: | School |
| Publisher: | G.P. Putnam's Sons |
| Publication date: | March 1, 2007 |
| Number of pages: | 118 |
| Hardcover price: | $15.99 |
| Publisher's recommended age(s): | 10 - 14 |
| Read aloud: | 10 |
| Read alone: | 11 |
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