Title: Small as an Elephant
Author: Jennifer Jacobson
Main Character(s): Jack, a small boy, abandoned by his mother
Plot Summary:
Appeal:
Prizes or Awards: Sequoyah
Reviewer=s Name: Denilyn Jordan
Author: Jennifer Jacobson
Publication Date: 2011
Number of Pages: 275
Part of a Series: No
Subject Heading(s):
Abandoned children -- Juvenile fiction
Mothers and sons -- Juvenile fiction
Self-reliance -- Juvenile fiction
Survival -- Juvenile fiction
Elephants -- Juvenile fiction
Geographical Setting/ Time Period: Arcadia National Park, Maine campsite, now
Plot Summary:
Jack’s
mother has always been unpredictable but when Jack and his mom go on a camping
trip to Acadia National Park in Maine, she abandons him with no way to contact
her and very little money for food. Contacting authorities might get his mom in
trouble and he might be placed in the custody of the state so Jack determines
he must find his way back to his home in Boston with his only companion a small
toy elephant. He loves his mom and she at times is loving and fun but other
times she thinks and talks very fast and she forgets Jack. On the trip to
Acadia Jack wanted to stop and see Lydia, the only elephant in Maine. His mom
wouldn’t stop and Jack holds on to the hope he will yet see Lydia. Finding ways
to survive and keep moving are an intense adventure. The author does an
excellent job of describing Jack’s thought processes, explaining his fears and
his past experiences with his mentally ill mother. The resolution is hopeful
but realistic.
The
book is appropriate for 5th through 8th grades and
addresses in an unflinching way the difficulties of living with a mentally ill
parent. Jack is a very compelling protagonist and the story holds the reader’s
interest.
Brief quote: "Elephants can sense danger. They're able to detect an approaching tsunami or earthquake before it hits. Unfortunately, Jack did not have this talent. the day his life was turned completely upside down, he was caught unaware.Prizes or Awards: Sequoyah
Reviewer=s Name: Denilyn Jordan
Adapted from Saricks, Joyce G. and Nancy Brown. Readers= Advisory Service in the Public Library 2nd.Chicago: ALA, 1997.