When I was in college at TTU, we had our big, normal college library but there was also another little library specifically for the education majors that had school, curriculum, children's books, and other teacher resources. For a while they were doing a promotion where they would ask a trivia question from a children's book and if you answered if correctly your name was put in a drawing. One week my name was drawn and my prize was the book Pictures of Hollis Woods. I was happy to win (who doesn't like to win things?) but didn't really have much use for a children's book at the time so I just stuck it with the rest of the kid's book I had and figured I would need them someday when I had my own children. However, when I started this assignment and saw that Pictures of Hollis Woods was a Newbery Honor book and fit the criteria I decided it was about time to read the book I had won.
Pictures of Hollis Woods, written by Patricia Reilly Giff, is a story about a young girl who is in the foster care system. The book alternates between pictures Hollis has drawn or remembers from her past foster family and "the time with Josie" which is the present (Josie is her current foster mom). Hollis loved her previous foster family, the Regans who were planning on adopting her but something happens (it is alluded to through the whole book but we don't find out until the end) that causes Hollis to run away from them. Since she left the Regans she gets places with Josie Cahill, a retired art teacher. Hollis enjoys living with Josie but she realizes quickly that Josie's memory is degrading that that if the foster care people find out they will remove Hollis. Hollis goes to elaborate lengths to run away with Josie so they can stay together but she ends up realizing that Josie is happier back home. She also finds out that what happened with the Regans was just a big misunderstanding and that they still want to adopt her.
I had absolutely no idea what this book was going to be about, I have never heard of it and there wasn't a summary or anything written on the back like many books have. When I started reading I really had no idea what to expect. It quickly became apparent that the story was about a girl in foster care. Some of the review I read after finished the book said that they thought it was confusing how the book alternated between the past and the present, but so many young adult books are written in the same manner that it wasn't at all difficult for me to follow. Also, the book I have made it very obvious with labels and font differences which time period Hollis is talking about.
I thought Hollis was a very well-developed character. She had a very tough attitude but underneath that she was sweet and just wanted to be loved. I liked how she uses her artistic ability to describe her past experiences in picture format, that is a unique element that I haven't seen in a book before. I think if I had read this book as a child that much of the story would have been lost on me since I didn't really know what the foster system was and wouldn't have been able to understand Hollis' experiences. I still can't relate to her but after being a teacher and dealing with several students who are in the foster care system I am more able to understand some of her reasoning and thoughts. It is obvious that Hollis has a hard time believing that someone would want her and thinks that she is to blame for everything; I would imagine that that type of thinking would be common in a foster child. Patricia Reilly Giff does an excellent job of putting us in the mind of a child, Hollis perceives things in ways that as adults we know are inaccurate but that make sense to children.
It was interesting to me that throughout the book Hollis has to take over caring for Josie. Really the only thing that I didn't like about the book is how quickly Josie turned from slightly forgetful to incredibly confused. I couldn't tell exactly how long Hollis lived with Josie but I know it was less than six months. I haven't experienced Alzheimer's or dementia (those are my guesses on what is wrong with Josie - the book never actually says) but I would think it would be more of a gradual process than the book portrays. When Hollis first comes to stay with her it appears that Josie is in early stages, occasionally forgetting things but able to hide that fact from the foster care people. However, by the time Hollis and Josie leave town a few months later, Josie is very childlike and dependent on Hollis. Again, maybe this is realistic but it didn't feel that way to me.
Overall, I thought Pictures of Hollis Woods was a great book. I don't think younger children would be able to read it on their own and appreciate all the nuances, but I think that reading this book would open up lots of great discussion about what foster care is, how children in the system are affected, and Alzheimer's. I many children probably know someone (grandparent, member of their church) who are dealing with memory loss and this book is a great way to help them understand that. I give this book two thumbs up!
No comments:
Post a Comment