All Jayna has in the world is her brother, Rob, and her turtle, Theresa. When Rob is deployed to serve as a Navy cook during World War II, Jayna has no idea how to live with their landlady, Celine, until he returns. Shocking news and the voice of a ghost send her running to Brooklyn armed only with an old recipe book with an address to a bakery. Maybe there, Jayna will finally have a family.
Kirkus reviews said, “Giff is one of few writers who can entwine an odd lot of characters, set them in Brooklyn during World War II, flavor the story with soup recipes, add a ghost and infuse the plot with a longing for family–and make it all believable” (2012). Giff makes it believable with vivid characters, realistic emotions, and a trick for keeping the reader guessing. The news reports and headlines heard over the radio help cement the story during World War II, discussing what happened in Iwo Jima and other famous battles in quick little tidbits to keep the story focused on Jayna and her struggles. These splinters of history keep the prose firmly cemented in the times, but let the reader explore Jayna’s smaller world in the bakery. The ghost is also sprinkled throughout the story where one isn’t sure if the ghost is real or a figment of a troubled young girl’s mind as she desperately tries to cope with her life and sorrow.
The addition of Jayna’s recipe’s for her soups and their personalized names, such as Family Soup which includes the note “It’s almost like stone soup. The bigger the family, the more ingredients” (140). Or Hope Soup which is made from “chicken, water, oleo (too bad), salt, pepper, thyme, an onion or two noodles” (90) and the final note “Keep whispering ‘Hope”, ‘Believe’, ‘Soon’, ‘Really’ (90). The names and the intimate instructions show the reader the depths of Jayna’s emotional journey and little bit of an insight to the way her mind works. It’s a brilliant little trick to deepen character and to highlight the emotion.
Awards for Gingersnap:
2013 Kirkus Reviews – Starred Review (*)
2015 South Carolina Children’s, Junior, and Young Adult Book Award – Children’s (Nominee)
2015 Volunteer State Book Award – Intermediate (Nominee)
2016 William Allen White Children’s Book Award – Grades 3-5 (Nominee)
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Giff, Patricia Reilly. Gingersnap. New York: Wendy Lamb Books. 2013. Kirkus. “Gingersnap – Book Review”. Website. https://ipage.ingramcontent.com/ipage/servlet/ibg.common.titledetail.pd1000?ttl_id=21223651 Accessed 8 November, 2017. FictionDB. “Patricia Reilly Giff”. Website. https://www.fictiondb.com/author/patricia-reilly-giff~book-awards~59413.htm Accessed Accessed 8 November, 2017. Plugged In. “Gingersnap – Book Review.” Image. http://www.pluggedin.com/book-reviews/gingersnap/ Accessed 8 November, 2017.
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Ramblings of Jhenry 