Seedfolks Author: Paul Fleischman | Language: English | ISBN:
B00B72CFNU | Format: PDF
Seedfolks Description
A vacant lot, rat-infested and filled with garbage, looked like no place for a garden. Especially to a neighborhood of strangers where no one seems to care. Until one day, a young girl clears a small space and digs into the hard-packed soil to plant her precious bean seeds. Suddenly, the soil holds promise: To Curtis, who believes he can win back Lateesha's heart with a harvest of tomatoes; to Virgil's dad, who sees a fortune to be made from growing lettuce; and even to Maricela, sixteen and pregnant, wishing she were dead.
Thirteen very different voices and perspectives—old, young, Haitian, Hispanic, tough, haunted, and hopeful—tell one amazing story about a garden that transforms a neighborhood.
Chosen as a state and citywide read in communities across the country, including in Vermont; Racine, WI; Tampa, FL; Newburgh, NY; and Boca Raton, FL.
Supports the Common Core State Standards
- File Size: 461 KB
- Print Length: 92 pages
- Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0060274727
- Publisher: HarperTeen (July 30, 2013)
- Sold by: HarperCollins Publishers
- Language: English
- ASIN: B00B72CFNU
- Text-to-Speech: Enabled
X-Ray:
- Lending: Not Enabled
- Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #83,031 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
- #35
in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Teen & Young Adult > Literature & Fiction > Short Stories
- #35
in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Teen & Young Adult > Literature & Fiction > Short Stories
Paul Fleischman's novel "Seedfolks" is only 69 pages long, but the author packs a lot of emotional power into this story. "Seedfolks" takes place in a troubled urban neighborhood in Cleveland, Ohio. The story begins when a young Vietnamese-American girl starts a small vegetable garden in a plot of land in a neglected, garbage-filled lot. From this small start, a project begins which transforms the neighborhood.
This is a moving story which presents multi-cultural urban life in both its negative and positive aspects. Each chapter is told in the first person by a different member of the community. Thus, by the end of the book we have heard a great diversity of voices: male and female, of many age groups, and of many different ethnic backgrounds.
I was really impressed with this book, and recommend it to both younger readers and adults. For an interesting companion text to "Seedfolks," try "O Pioneers!", the classic novel by Willa Cather.
By Michael J. Mazza
HALL OF FAME
This masterfully cast and rendered audio version of Fleischman's gorgeous vignette-novel features 13 different performers of various ages and ethnicities. The fact that some of the readers are not professional performers gives the voices a ring of authenticity that is often missing from the "act-y" delivery of many audiobook readers (which I often find distancing). You are captivated by the natural, sincere delivery of these performers, who portray characters ranging from a very young Vietnamese girl to a Guatemalan man to an old, feisty Eastern European woman. The performances of the professional actors are so honest and convincing --particularly the Mexican teenager, young African-American man and the cowboy-like school janitor-- that they blend in seamlessly with the other voices. The story unfolds slowly, piece by piece, and by the very first chapter, you'll be hooked-- not only by Fleischman's wonderful writing, but by the musicality and vitality of each character's unique voice. A real treasure and high-quality product for all ages.
By A Customer
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