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Reading Rescue, October 2005: American Girls
By Anne Allen and Mary Anne Fulmer
If it's October, it's American Girls Tea time at Penn
Area Library. "Girls" of all ages gather at the library to have a great
time. The one requirement is to bring your American Girl doll or your
favorite doll. Our teas have been going on since 1999 and get better
each year. The Pleasant Company distributors of the dolls also publish
great books. There is a variety of materials and authors.
 One of the most popular series of books published by the
Pleasant Company is the history mysteries. The very first mystery was
written by Sarah Masters Buckey, and it is called The Smuggler's
Treasure. It is a story that takes place in Louisiana during the War of
1812. Elisabet is the eleven-year-old daughter of a wealthy London-born
captain of a merchant ship. He is taken captive by the British and held
for ransom. Elisabet travels from Boston to New Orleans to live with her
aunt and uncle. The family has fallen on hard times and Elisabet is
forced to work in their bakery. Accustomed to servants, she doesn't want
to work but soon adapts and makes friends with her co-workers. Suddenly,
a shady character comes into the bakery and mentions a treasure map.
Elisabet sees this as a way to get the ransom money for her father. Will
it work? At the end of the story, there is a "Looking Back:1814"
section that describes the American political scene as well as the
cultural and social climate of the French that influences Louisiana.
Katherine Ayres wrote the fourth book in the series. It
is called Voices of Whisper Bend. This story takes place in Pennsylvania
during World War II. Charlotte's brother is in the navy, her mother is
working in a local factory, and her dad along with his tugboat, haul
freight on the Monongahela River. After school she and her classmates
are working on a drive to collect scrap metal, but before they can send
the metal to the mill, it disappears. What happened? Will they get it
back?
Ghost Light on Graveyard Shoal was written by Elizabeth McDavid Jones and is Rhoda's story. Rhoda lives on a small island off
the coast of Virginia. Her father runs the U.S. Lifesaving Station on
the island. One night Rhoda spots mysterious lights on dangerous
Graveyard Shoal. She has to find out who or what is responsible for the
lights. Could it be the ghost of the Mangled Mariner, the gruesome
character in her favorite story or what if it's the wrecker, someone who
lures ships to run aground so that he or she can steal the goods? Rhoda
knows everyone on the island and must be sure before she accuses anyone.
She is determined to solve the mystery.
For each of the dolls, stories have been written to
complement their characters. The books feature each doll as she has a
birthday, goes to school, has changes in her life, saves a day, and
enjoys Christmas. Each doll is from a different historical period. For
example, Felicity is from 1775, Addy from 1860, and Molly from 1942.
Also each doll is featured in books about crafts and a recipe book.
In Addy Learns a Lesson by Connie Porter, Addy and her
mother escape a southern plantation and arrive in Philadelphia where Addy goes to school. While in school, Addy learns the lesson of true
friendship. Valerie Tripp wrote, Changes for Felicity: A Winter Story.
The story takes place in Williamsburg, Virginia during the American
Revolutionary War. Felicity finds there are many changes taking place in
her life and the lives of her family and friends. Kirsten in Happy
Birthday Kirsten: A Springtime Story, written by Janet Shaw, celebrates
her birthday on her family's farm in Minnesota. There are about fifty of
this type of story in the library.
Not all American Girl books feature the dolls and
history. In a series called "Wild at Heart" written by Laurie Halse
Anderson, the stories concern animal rights and volunteer pet helpers.
The Flight for Life book is the first in the series. Maggie who lives
with her veterinarian grandmother is asked to help train some new
volunteers so that she can concentrate more on her studies. Maggie is
resentful but finally agrees. She and the other volunteers are asked to
help with some puppies. They soon begin to wonder if there is a puppy
mill close by in operation. They work together to come up with a
strategy to nab the law breakers. In A Time to Fly, Zoe lives with her
grandmother, a veterinarian, in Ambler, Pennsylvania. Zoe's mother lives
in New York. She is asked to help with parrot that she grows to love and
names ET. Her mother wants her to return to New York to live, but Zoe is
afraid of what will happen to ET. Finally, in Manatee Blues, Brenna
loves manatees. Did you know they are related to elephants? Brenna, Zoe,
and Maggie join together to help save the manatees. The mission they are
on has real financial problems and after being denied a bank loan, they
wonder if the mission will survive along with the manatees.
There is also a series of self-help books just for
girls. Valerie and Lee Schaefer wrote the book, The care and keeping of
you: the body book for girls. The authors talk about changes your body
will go through. Reading about the changes will help when dealing with
these changes that we all must have to grow. They talk of everything
from hair to nutrition. The books are educational, descriptive, and fun!
As you have read, American Girls books are versatile and
just plain fun to read. Please come into the library and select one of
these great books. See you at the Tea. If you have questions, please
contact the library at 724-744-4414 or e-mail at
mfulmer@pennlib.org.
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