Set in a remote part of Alaska, this story in easy-to-read verse blends exciting survival adventure with a contemporary girl's discovery of family roots and secrets. Middle-schooler Willow's dad is Anglo, and her mother is Athabascan. The girl longs to spend more time with her traditional Indian grandparents even though she knows she will miss computers and other things that are a part of her life. When her beloved dog, Roxy, is blinded in an accident (partly Willow's fault), and her parents want to put the dog down, Willow tries to take Roxy to Grandma and Grandpa. The two are caught in a raging blizzard, and Willow is saved by the spirits of her ancestors, who live on in the wild animals around her. Frost, who spent years teaching in Alaska, blends the young teen's viewpoint with a strong sense of place and culture. The casual diamond shape of the poems reflects how precious jewels of wisdom can grow around painful scars. Willow's bond with Roxy is the heart of the tale. Give this to fans of dog stories and to readers who liked Gary Paulsen's Hatchet (1987). Grades 6-9. --Hazel Rochman --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Set in a remote part of Alaska, this story in easy-to-read verse blends exciting survival adventure with a contemporary girl's discovery of family roots and secrets. Middle-schooler Willow's dad is Anglo, and her mother is Athabascan. The girl longs to spend more time with her traditional Indian grandparents even though she knows she will miss computers and other things that are a part of her life. When her beloved dog, Roxy, is blinded in an accident (partly Willow's fault), and her parents want to put the dog down, Willow tries to take Roxy to Grandma and Grandpa. The two are caught in a raging blizzard, and Willow is saved by the spirits of her ancestors, who live on in the wild animals around her. Frost, who spent years teaching in Alaska, blends the young teen's viewpoint with a strong sense of place and culture. The casual diamond shape of the poems reflects how precious jewels of wisdom can grow around painful scars. Willow's bond with Roxy is the heart of the tale. Give this to fans of dog stories and to readers who liked Gary Paulsen's Hatchet (1987). Grades 6-9. --Hazel Rochman --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Helen Frost is the author of several books for young people, including Hidden, Diamond Willow, Salt, Crossing Stones, Room 214: A Year in Poems, and Keesha's House, which was a Michael L. Printz Honor Book.
"Frost invents an ingenious poetic form for her story that is both stable and fluid; like the diamond willow branches that she is imitating, the diamond shapes of her poems vary. . . . Frost has spun metaphoric gold out of an evocative natural landscape, and she knows just how to craft it into an elegant and moving story of a young girl's deepening understanding of the relationships she shares with those around her." --The Bulletin for Center of Children's Books, Starred Review "This complex and elegant novel will resonate with readers who savor powerful drama and multifaceted characters." --School Library Journal "Set in a remote part of Alaska, this story in easy-to-read verse blends exciting survival adventure with a contemporary girl's discovery of family roots and secrets." --Booklist "This delightful novel is a must-read." --VOYA "Frost presents her story in a series of poems in Willow's voice, using a form inspired by the marks on a diamond willow stick." --Kirkus Reviews "Twelve-year-old Willow longs to take the family's beloved sled dogs on her first solo run to her grandparents' cabin. Inspired by gifts created from diamond willow, Helen Frost has composed unique diamond-shaped poems that reveal the touching story of Willow, her immediate family, and her ancestors, whose spirits reside in many of the animals of the Alaskan wilderness she encounters." --Tish Gayle, The Blue Marble Bookstore, Fort Thomas, KY "As it takes us gliding along on a dogsled with Willow into the depths of the snowy Alaskan interior, Diamond Willow illustrates oneness, forgiveness, joyfulness, and how a child can sometimes teach her parents well." --Richie's Picks
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