Lumber Camp Library - Softcover

Grade 2-5-This spare and moving chapter book will hook readers from the first page. Ruby Sawyer, born in 1912, has lived her whole life in a Vermont lumber camp, where she idolizes her Pa, a logger. Then he is killed in an accident, and Ruby, her Ma, and her 10 siblings must move to a small house near town. In the midst of her loneliness and sorrow, the 10-year-old meets Mrs. Graham, a kindly blind woman who lets Ruby read her books. When the child begins teaching some of the loggers to read, she is on the path to discovering her life's work. While the "lumber camp library" of the book's title is not established until nearly the last page, the narrative builds effectively to that point. This story is gentle enough for beginning readers without glossing over the more difficult details of Ruby's life. The novel is long enough to get readers involved, but moves along quickly enough to hold their interest, and they will be transfixed by the strong and spirited Ruby.
Kristen Oravec, Cuyahoga County Public Library, Strongsville, OH
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