Loved it, as it portrays the amazing resilience of children - that they can overcome dreadful circumstances with just a little love and support, sometimes coming from unexpected places. I'd read it aloud to grade 5s - very thought-and-discussion-provoking. Time and place of story may require some explanation.
I read this when i was in 7th grade and i was dealing with a whole lot of stuff. Reading this really helped me put my life into perspective, and i wanted to be more like Dicey because i'm the oldest and i wanted to be as strong as her and be able to take care of my siblings as well as she did.