Synopses & Reviews
What happened this afternoon is too terrible to write...Please, God, let Will live. And please, God, forgive me.
Cassie's journal opens her dramatic story and that of her older brother Will, as they are both forced to reexamine their lives after a farm accident leaves Will without a leg -- and without hope.
After a winter of healing, Will knows his future must be away from the farm that he loves. He and Cassie go to stay with their older sister and her husband in the nearby town of Wiscasset. There, with the excitement of Maine's new statehood as a backdrop, Will finds that being disabled can be a social handicap as well as physical one. But with hard work he can win respect -- and find exciting possibilities for his future.
Living in town opens Cassie's eyes too. She sees Will considering career options not open to her, and she wonders if she can be fulfilled by keeping a house and a family. Are there other possibilities for a young woman in 1820? As Cassie watches Will make his life decisions, she struggles to find her own place in the world.
From the author of Stopping to Home and Seaward Born comes this remarkable story of hardship, determination, and the joy of finding the right path in life.
Review
"Authentic historical details enrich the already fine writing." -- andlt;iandgt;Kirkus Reviewsandlt;/iandgt;
Review
"Authentic historical details enrich the already fine writing."
-- Kirkus Reviews
Review
"Limned with just the right amount of detail." --
Booklist
Review
"The . . . message of triumph over adversity is . . . uplifting." --
School Library Journal
Review
"The . . . message of triumph over adversity is . . . uplifting."-- School Library Journal
Review
andlt;divandgt; "A treasure waiting to be found." --
Kirkus Reviews
Review
"A treasure waiting to be found." -- andlt;iandgt;Kirkus Reviewsandlt;/iandgt;
Synopsis
"WHAT HAPPENED THIS AFTERNOON IS TOO TERRIBLE TO WRITE. . . . PLEASE, GOD, LET WILL LIVE. AND, PLEASE, GOD, FORGIVE ME." andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt; All Will Ames ever wanted to do was farm. But when he's injured in a farm accident, Will is left without a leg -- and without his future. andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt; There's no place on a farm for a cripple. And so, after a long winter of healing, Will and his sister Cassie, who blames herself for the accident, go to stay in town with their older sister and her husband. There, as Maine becomes a state, Will learns that perhas even without his leg, there's another, brighter future in store for him. And Cassie, too, learns that maybe, in the changing world of 1820, Will isn't the only one with the chance at a different, exciting future. . . .
Reading Group Guide
ABOUT THE BOOK The door to Will's cherished plans has been closed forever. What now lies ahead for him? After an awful accident, fifteen-year-old Will must decide what to do with his life. As he discovers his talent, his sister, Cassie, also learns there are more opportunities a young woman can pursue.
THEMES
Family life; Brothers and sisters; People with disabilities
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Why did Will's father tell him he could never be a farmer?
What skill did Will acquire to help pass time?
What kinds of opportunities were offered to Will in the city?
Who did Will carve at the end of the story?
How is life different in this book, set in the 1820s, than it is today?
How do you think you would cope with such a disappointment as Will has in this book?
How would the story be different if Will's accident occurred in modern times?
What does it mean to "winter well"? How does this expression apply to Cassie and Will's story?
ACTIVITIES
Since Will enjoyed whittling animals, make your favorite animal out of molding clay.
Make Dr. Theobold's wife's favorite flower, a rose.
Serve cider and molasses cakes after reading the description from the book.
Several topics for research are available in the Historical Notes and in the book: Wiscasset, Maine; early medical procedures; Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell; Thanksgiving; New England farming techniques; ship figureheads; apothecaries.
Design/sketch a figurehead you'd like to see on a ship.
This reading group guide is for classroom, library, and reading group use. It may be reproduced in its entirety or excerpted for these purposes.
Prepared by Lori Swiercinsky
© William Allen White Children's Book Award
Please visit http://www.emporia.edu/libsv/wawbookaward/ for more information about the awards and to see curriculum guides for other master list titles.