Finest Kind

By Wait, Lea

Publishers Summary:
WHAT CAN YOU DO WHEN YOU'RE TWELVE YEARS OLD AND YOUR WORLD IS FALLING APART?It's 1838. Jake's father has lost his job and his savings. Hearing of work in Maine, the family leaves their large home in Boston and heads north, taking with them a few furnishings -- and a deep family secret. In Maine they find only a dirty, isolated farmhouse, and a job for Father that takes him away from home."I'll have to depend on you," Jake's mother tells him. But how can Jake find food? How can he prepare for the dangerous cold of a Maine winter? How can he protect his mother -- and his family's secret?Slowly, Jake learns the ways to survive, catching game and storing food for the long winter months. Nabby McCord, whose family also has a secret, helps him. So does Granny McPherson, who may be a witch. But when it comes to earning the money they need, Jake knows he's on his own. He shows his determination as the winter approaches, but does he have what it takes to bring his family together to face the future -- and their past?Finest Kind is the powerful story of a boy who is forced to become a man and to learn the truth about courage, friendship, and secrets.

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ISBN
978-1-41690-952-1
Publisher
McElderry


REVIEWS

School Library Journal

Reviewed on November 1, 2006

Gr 4-8 Jakes father has lost his job and savings in the economic panic of 1837. The family leaves its comfortable Boston surroundings and takes up residence in a dingy farmhouse in Wiscasset, ME, where the 12-year-old finds himself responsible for the household. With his father working as a lumberman and his mother caring for his younger brother, who has cerebral palsy, Jake carries the additional burden of keeping his siblings existence a secret. He soon learns to trust his instincts and finds help and support fro...Log In or Sign Up to Read More

Horn Book Magazine

Reviewed on November 1, 2006

When Jake's banker father suffers a reversal of fortune in the Panic of 1837, the family must move from its fine Boston home to a rough hovel in Wiscasset, Maine. Complicating the already difficult situation is Jake's disabled little brother Frankie, unable to walk or talk and prone to fits; his existence must be kept secret lest the family be made pariahs. As Jake's father's new job...Log In or Sign Up to Read More

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