BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bauer, Joan. 2005. HOPE WAS HERE. New York, New York: Speak. ISBN 9780142404249
PLOT SUMMARY/CRITICAL ANALYSIS
This novel tells the story of a sixteen year old girl’s journey of hope. At the age of twelve a girl know as Tulip legally changed her name to Hope with the permission of Addie, her aunt and guardian. Hope was abandoned by her mother as a baby leaving her aunt to take care of her. Hope and her aunt move to a small town in Wisconsin. The town is a very small, close knit community. The size of the town helps Hope make friends, involve herself in the community, and find a job. Hope and Addie get jobs at a local diner, Welcome Stairways diner where Hope is a waitress and Addie is a cook. They soon find themselves in the middle of political corruption. The two become involved in the diner owner’s campaign in which he wants to get the mayor out of office.
Business is booming at the diner which makes Hope and the others at the center of the town’s events. The diner is a place where many in the community gather to eat and talk. This book is told in first person through the eyes of the main character. Bauer’s use of flashing from past and present not only draws the reader into the story further, but makes the reader keep on their toes with their thinking. Readers will be able to relate to the struggles and accomplishments of Hope. Many middle and high school students will be able to relate to Hope’s struggles such as abandonment or family issues, and love and loss.
Bauer’s use of symbolism is highlighted throughout the book such as the name Hope. The name goes hand in hand with the desire and hope she portrays. The characters go through many trials and tribulations during the course of the book. Characters are committed to each other and to the community. This commitment helps Hope feel a sense of security that was much needed due to her abandonment.
REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
* BOOKLIST: “It’s Bauer’s humor that supplies, in Addie’s cooking vernacular, the yeast that makes the story rise above the rest, reinforcing the substantive issues of honesty, humanity, and the importance of political activism.”
*SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “When it comes to creating strong, independent, and funny teenaged female characters, Bauer is in a class by herself and the 16-year-old waitress in this book is no exception.”
*PUBLISHERS WEEKLY: “Readers will recognize many of Bauer’s hallmarks here a strong female protagonist on the road to self-discovery, quirky characters, dysfunctional families, a swiftly moving story, moments of bright humor.”
*Newberry Honor Book
*SCHOOL LIBRARY JPURNAL, November 2000
*PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY, September 2000
*HORN BOOK, September 2000
*KIRKUS REVIEWS, September 2000
Exemplary or Favorite Lines
*“You’ve got to love yourself with all your short comings, and you’ve got to love the world no matter how bad it gets.”
*“…motherhood should be like driving a car – you should have to pass a test before you can do it legally.”
*“Staring down hard truth takes guts.”
*“You don’t’ know which way a thing will come at you, but you need to welcome it with your whole heart which ever way it arrives.”
*“You need a negative charge and a positive one to get something moving. We’ve go the negative; we’re going to find the positive if it kills us.”
--- Joan Bauer, HOPE WAS HERE
No comments:
Post a Comment