A Year Down Yonder

written by Richard Peck

Penguin Group, 2002

Genre: Children's contemporary fiction

Reading Level: ages 12 and up

144 pages

A Year Down Yonder is the story of Mary Alice a young girl from Chicago sent to stay with her quirky grandmother because of the recession of 1937. Mary Alice shows up at the train station with her radio and her cat greeted by her grandmother who proceeds to take her to school, which turns out to be very small and all the grades are somewhat mixed together. Mary Alice soon makes an enemy in Mildred Burdock who tells her that she owe's her a dollar mostly because she is "a rich Chicago girl". Mildred follows Mary Alice home on her horse and up to the porch where she tells her grandmother that Mildred says she owes her a dollar. Grandmother invites her in for some buttermilk after making Mildred take off her boots. As Mildred is eating Grandmother ties Mildred's boots to her horse and sends it running. Mildred realizing what happened runs after it. Grandmother explains that Mildred's family is known for stealing horses. Halloween quickly rolls around and to prevent the neighborhood boys from knocking over her privy grandmother sets a trap and ends up breaking one of the boy's noses and covering his head in her homemade glue. She also goes around stealing what she needs for pies and makes pies for the Halloween party to the embarrassment of Mary Alice. Then comes Armistice day and the turkey shoot at the Abernathy's. Though it is cold Mary Alice and grandmother head over to the excitement where Alice observes and grandmother volunteers to serve the burgoo raising money to help Mrs. Abernathy and her injured son to make it through the year, making more money by cheating some of the richer folk out of the originally charged dime for the soup. Then during Christmastime Mary Alice sees grandma show her true colors; she buys her a new pair of shoes, makes her a pretty headpiece and shows up for the pageant. She also pays for Mary Alice's brother to come visit. The comes Valentines day time and the time for the DAR party which is to be held at grandmother's house where she says is the only place where she'll make the tarts for the DAR party. We are also introduced to Mary Alice as a writer, and she is very witty. At school on Valentines day Mary Alice helps her only somewhat friend, Ina-rae fake the fact that she got valentines from several boys in school, including the new student, Royce making Colleen very jealous. And not surprisingly the DAR meeting is ruined. In the next part of the book Grandmother takes on a new resident, Arnold Green who agrees to pay rent to stay in her extra bedroom. He's a painter and causes quite a stir on the same day that Royce comes over to do homework with Mary ALice and a very naked Maxine with a big snake, and only a big snake covering her, runs down the stairs and out the door. Needless to say Grandmother cautions Arnold that he is no longer to paint naked pictures in her house. Arnold soon forgets Maxine however as Grandmother introduces him to Mary Alice's teacher and they are soon engaged. A tornado hits the small hick town while Mary Alice is at school and she runs home to check on grandma. The end of the school year comes and there is a big party where Mary Alice and Royce come together as a little more than friends. Mary Alice tells her grandmother she doesn't want to go back to Chicago but Grandmother insists that she goes home but they can stay in touch. The book ends several years later with Mary Alice marrying Royce in her grandmother's house.

I would recommend this book to any child.

The controversy i see coming from this book is that parents might worry their kids will start acting like Mary Alice's grandmother.

I really liked this book. It was well written and fast paced, and extremely entertaining and funny. The grandmother's character is right down hilarious and what any kid would want for a grandmother. This is a great book for parents and children alike.

My rating 5 out of 5