Ida B: . . . and Her Plans to Maximize Fun, Avoid Disaster, and (Possibly) Save the World

From School Library Journal
Grade 4-6–As an only child, Ida B has had plenty of time to indulge her creative bent. She makes miniature rafts, to which she attaches notes with questions such as, "What is life like in Canada?" Acres of apple trees are her friends, and she enjoys long conversations with Beulah, Pastel, Henry VIII, and other trees. She lives life to the fullest, firmly believing there is never enough time for fun. When her mother develops cancer, her parents sell part of the orchard and send Ida B to public school rather than homeschooling her. The changes leave her feeling fiercely angry and betrayed. With the help of a wise and caring fourth-grade teacher and the enduring love of Mama and Daddy, the girl slowly begins to heal. Ida B is a true character in every sense of the word. Through a masterful use of voice, Hannigan's first-person narration captures an unforgettable heroine with intelligence, spirit, and a unique imagination. The rural but otherwise undefined setting works well in taking a backseat to the characterization. With just the right amount of tension in the plot, a spot-on grasp of human emotions, and Ida B's delightful turns of phrase, this book begs to be read aloud. Regardless of how tight the budget, don't pass it up.–Faith Brautigam, Gail Borden Public Library, Elgin, IL Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.


From AudioFile
Ida B's childhood is idyllic--she is home-schooled by understanding parents on a family farm, surrounded by natural beauty. But this perfect world is shattered when her mother begins cancer treatment. Some acreage is sold to pay medical costs, and Ida B's beloved trees are cut down for new housing. Worse, she's forced to return to school, the same school that made her miserable during a brief stint in kindergarten. How this sensitive, creative girl comes to terms with the monumental changes in her life makes for a deeply moving story for all ages. Lili Taylor demonstrates a nuanced understanding for all of the characters and tells Ida B's story with perfect pitch, pacing, and love. E.S. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award, 2005 ALA Notable Recording © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine


From Booklist
*Starred Review* Gr. 4-6. Ida B is happy with her life. She talks to the trees in her family's orchard, enjoys being homeschooled, and is trying to be a good steward of the earth. But after her mother gets cancer, part of their land must be sold, and Ida B is forced to start public school, something her parents promised she wouldn't have to do after a bad kindergarten experience. Once her world changes, Ida B changes, too; her sunny disposition turns steely gray. As Ida puts it, she hardens her heart, and the very resilience of her anger is something to behold. First-time novelist Hannigan avoids many of the pitfalls of new writers, bypassing obvious plotting; Ida's mother's cancer, for instance, is a reference point, not a story line. What this really concerns is the fury children can experience, the tenacity with which they can hold on to their anger, and their inability to back away once the emotion no longer serves them. Hannigan gets it down brilliantly. Sometimes Ida's fourth-grade, first-person voice sounds like Junie B. Jones with a linguistic bent gone wild, but it's definitely unique, and Ida's ability to articulate her feelings will warm children, who will understand just what she's talking about. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved


Book Description

What do you do when your life goes from righter than right to a million miles beyond wrong?

Try to scare away the new neighbors with signs and posters that warn things like "Typhoons Known to Occur Here -- Water Rats Abound."

Avoid eye contact and word contact, with Mama and Daddy in particular.

Stay away from the orchard and the brook and the old tree and anything else that reminds you of how good things used to be.

ANNOTATION

In Wisconsin, fourth-grader Ida B spends happy hours being home-schooled and playing in her family's apple orchard, until her mother begins treatment for breast cancer and her parents must sell part of the orchard and send her to public school.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

In Wisconsin, fourth-grader Ida B spends happy hours being home-schooled and playing in her family's apple orchard, until her mother begins treatment for breast cancer and her parents must sell part of the orchard and send her to public school.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

This insightful, seemingly intuitive first novel digs deep inside the soul of 9-year-old narrator Ida B Applewood. Home-schooled since kindergarten, Ida B is perfectly content spending all of her free time alone outdoors, talking to the brook and the trees in the orchard (all of whom she has named). Hannigan characterizes Ida B's relationship with nature as integral to her being; when Ida B's father tells her, "We are the earth's caretakers," she replies, "I think the earth takes care of us, too." Then her mother is diagnosed with cancer, and Ida B's world turns upside down. Her parents must sell part of her beloved orchard to pay the medical bills, and Ida B must enroll in public school. In subtle ways, the author demonstrates how these events shake the heroine to the core. Ida B, feeling betrayed by her parents, powerless to save her trees, and determined to hate Ernest B. Lawson Elementary School, allows her heart to turn into "a sharp, black stone... so hard nobody could break it and so sharp it would hurt anybody who touched it." Through the first-person narration, Hannigan lets readers see Ida B's sense of humor and the compassion beneath her armor. It takes time and the gentle prodding from a sensitive teacher for Ida B's heart to soften enough for her to appreciate the things that are steadfast: her parents' love, friendship and the pleasure she receives from reading aloud. Those who have been forced to make uncomfortable adjustments will identify with the heroine's attitude-taking family hardships as personal attacks-and will understand Ida B's reluctance to let go of the old and make room for the new. Hannigan shows a remarkable understanding of a stubborn child's perspective in her honest, poignant portrayal of loss and rebirth. Ages 9-up. (Sept.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Children's Literature - Elizabeth D. Schafer

Inquisitive Ida B. Applewood loves nature. This imaginative fourth-grader names, listens, and talks to trees and the brook in her family's Wisconsin orchard. Ida B. carefully plans everything. She convinces her parents to home school her. Ida B.'s life, isolated from peers, seems perfect until changes she is unprepared for abruptly alter her world. She angrily reacts when her parents force her to return to school because her mother's cancer overwhelms them. Ida B. refuses to communicate when her parents sell land where her beloved trees live to pay for treatments. Self-absorbed, she is unable to realize her parents' losses and acts out her resentment on classmates. Ida B. posts warning signs and confronts her new neighbors, hoping that plan will save her trees. Her compassionate parents and teacher help Ida B. reconcile her conflicting emotions and formulate future plans for planting a new orchard. Ida B. wisely tells her father that the Earth nurtures humans. This book provides information about recycling, including statistics relevant to the printing of this novel. Ida B. would be thrilled that her story was printed on recycled paper. This novel inspires ecology discussions and projects. Readers will find characters sharing Ida B.'s affinity for protecting trees in Wendelin Van Draanen's, Flipped (2001), and Rob Thomas's, Green Thumb (1999). 2004, Greenwillow/HarperCollins, and Ages 10 up.

School Library Journal

Gr 4-6-As an only child, Ida B has had plenty of time to indulge her creative bent. She makes miniature rafts, to which she attaches notes with questions such as, "What is life like in Canada?" Acres of apple trees are her friends, and she enjoys long conversations with Beulah, Pastel, Henry VIII, and other trees. She lives life to the fullest, firmly believing there is never enough time for fun. When her mother develops cancer, her parents sell part of the orchard and send Ida B to public school rather than homeschooling her. The changes leave her feeling fiercely angry and betrayed. With the help of a wise and caring fourth-grade teacher and the enduring love of Mama and Daddy, the girl slowly begins to heal. Ida B is a true character in every sense of the word. Through a masterful use of voice, Hannigan's first-person narration captures an unforgettable heroine with intelligence, spirit, and a unique imagination. The rural but otherwise undefined setting works well in taking a backseat to the characterization. With just the right amount of tension in the plot, a spot-on grasp of human emotions, and Ida B's delightful turns of phrase, this book begs to be read aloud. Regardless of how tight the budget, don't pass it up.-Faith Brautigam, Gail Borden Public Library, Elgin, IL Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews