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Madden, Kerry
4 Reviews
(2)
YA
In this straightforward biography, Madden covers Lee's childhood in Monroeville, Alabama, her college years, her persistent rewriting of To Kill a Mockingbird, and her friendship with Truman Capote; there's also a slightly gossipy chapter on the filming of Mockingbird. Madden's done her homework, providing clear documentation from an impressive group of secondary sources, including many from the past two years. Bib., ind.
Reviewer: Betty Carter
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
March, 2009
(3)
4-6
Reading her mother's childhood diary inspires twelve-year-old Livy Two Weems (Gentle's Holler) to run away to Nashville and audition her music. Her plan fails but does provoke her large and wonderfully imperfect family into much-needed collective action. Madden composes a nuanced sonata of three generations of women, showcasing the affections and rivalries that provide counterpoint to Livy Two's tunes.
Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac
(3)
4-6
As they look forward to their father's homecoming, the Weems children (Gentle's Holler) anticipate the return to their old life. Instead, they find themselves working twice as hard to keep the family together in their Appalachian mountain home. Told through the attentive eyes of Livy Two Weems, Madden's thoughtful story of this determined, devoted family continues.
Reviewer: Juliet S. King
(3)
4-6
With eight siblings, a mother busy with a newborn, and an unemployed musician father, twelve-year-old Livy Two Weems takes on numerous responsibilities (including caring for her blind younger sister, Gentle) but finds time to compose mountain songs and get lost in books. Madden leavens the hardship of poverty in Appalachia with a joie de vivre the family maintains even through tragedy.
Reviewer: Hilary Breed Van Dusen
4 reviews
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