Touching Snow
by M. Sandy Felin
Published: 2007 Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Hardcover: 240 pages ISBN: 1416917950
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Recommended for children 14+ and grades 8-12.
Plot Summary:
This is the intense and touching story of a young immigrant teen from Haiti living in upstate New York. Karina is a smart, brave young girl who faces many hardships both at school and at home. She is often teased at school and she lives with a very abusive step-father. Fairly early on in the story, her step-father is taken away on child abuse charges. Karina begins attending a local community center where she becomes close friends with another girl. Throughout the story, Karina grapples with her sexuality and her immigrant identity. This is a coming-of-age story about the hardships and violence that can run just beneath the surface of suburbia.
Evaluation:
This is a unique story that will stick with the reader for a long time after the book is done. Karina is a very likeable character who has a very difficult life. She is relatable and the book touches on many issues that are often ignored. Child abuse, immigration, racism, and sexuality are just a few of the topics Felin takes on head first in this debut novel. The story is interesting from the very beginning and it never loses it's grip on the reader. This book could be used as a great start to a conversation about how complex people are and how everyone has multiple identities. Karina has many different aspects of identity that make her who she is (as all people do) and this is clearly illustrated throughout the novel.
Content Area:
English
Content Area Standards for English:
CCSS Grade 8 Reading Standard for Literature:
Analyze how particular lines of dialogue or incidents in a story or drama propel the action, reveal aspects of a character, or provoke a discussion.
CA English Language Arts Standard Grade 9/10 Reading Comprehension:
2.3 Generate relevant questions about readings on issues that can be researched.CA English Language Arts Standard Grade 9/10 Literary Response and Analysis:
3.3 Analyze interactions between main and subordinate characters in a literary text (e.g., internal and external conflicts, motivations, relationships, influences) and explain the way those interactions affect the plot.
3.4 Determine characters’ traits by what the characters say about themselves in narration, dialogue, dramatic monologue, and soliloquy.
Links:
National Book Award Finalist Info
Online Book
Review from Blog "Black teens Read"
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