reviews By Sharon Shervington

Not only child’s play — well-told stories work for any age!

Alligator Bayou
– Written by Donna Jo Napoli

It used to be that Italians, Sicilians in particular, weren’t considered white. In Donna Jo Napoli’s most recent Young Adult novel, we learn about a Sicilian family that moved to Louisiana in the late 19th century as vegetable growers and merchants.

The 14-year-old protagonist, Calogero, and his uncles and cousins provide their town, Tallulah, with high-quality produce, but the town is not grateful. The Sicilian family treats blacks with respect, enraging the racist townspeople and putting the family in peril from lynch mobs.

Interesting characters, an interracial love story, and the author’s consistently excellent historical research make this a must read.

Wendy Lamb Books, 280 pages, $16.99

Sweet Thang
– Written by Allison Whittenberg

Set in Philadelphia in the early 1970s, this novel about a black teenager, Charmaine Upshaw (Maine), is most of all a story of family.
When her father’s younger sister dies, Charmaine’s parents take in her orphaned cousin, a spoiled 6-year-old, and it is practically hate at first sight. But young Tracy John ultimately helps teach her a few things about life, and as she comes to love him, she also learns to love herself better.

Delacorte Press, 149 pages, $15.95

Hollywood & Maine
– Written by Allison Whittenberg

In Hollywood & Maine, the sequel to Sweet Thang, Charmaine faces off in a Gossip Girl-style situation that is miles ahead of the usual 21st-century setting. An insightful look at American life in the bicentennial year 1976, the book offers additional nuance and depth by having its heroine face racial issues in addition to the problems of any teen girl. Top-quality cover art is a bonus that ought to make this, along with a scarcity of offerings in this niche, a bona fide collector’s item.