WOW! Just, wow! I did not expect to think much of this, but as it stands So far Downright Dencey is my very favorite of all the books I’ve read for my Newbery challenge. It is a surprisingly compelling tale of friendship that transcends religious and cultural differences. The setting is Nantucket island in the early 1800s and our protagonist is young Dionis ‘Dencey’ Coffyn. She is an intelligent, but passionate child whose moral conscience often comes into direct opposition to her strict Quaker faith. Little Sam Jetsam is a social outcast being raised by the alcoholic and abusive ‘Injun Jill’. Sam and Dencey’s paths cross and become inexorably intertwined on the day that Dencey throws a rock at Sam in a fit of self righteous anger.
Throughout the novel Dencey and Sam’s relationship is an uneasy and complicated thing. Jetsam behaves just like an ignorant, neglected and affection starved little boy would. He is coarse and selfish and is generally not very easy to love. And Dencey, for her part, is ruled almost entirely by her sense of guilt and moral purpose. And so it’s really very fascinating to watch how these two very different individuals grow to genuinely care for one another. But even this is not without its complications. It should be noted that there are some very ugly and outmoded ideas about race expressed throughout this book, but I feel they fit with the setting and themes of the novel. There is much handwringing about skin tone and bloodlines, but facts are facts and these were legitimate 'concerns' in that era.
I recommend this to anyone looking for high quality children’s historical fiction. I felt truly transported to a different time, place and culture. I’ll be honest, it’s not a culture that’s always easy to understand or relate to, but this is just the kind of challenge that I think makes reading worthwhile! I loved it and feel like I learned so much and I'm so glad to have encountered this book that I never would have read otherwise! I've still got one more year left in this decade, but I do believe this will my most memorable and favorite book of the 1920s!
Throughout the novel Dencey and Sam’s relationship is an uneasy and complicated thing. Jetsam behaves just like an ignorant, neglected and affection starved little boy would. He is coarse and selfish and is generally not very easy to love. And Dencey, for her part, is ruled almost entirely by her sense of guilt and moral purpose. And so it’s really very fascinating to watch how these two very different individuals grow to genuinely care for one another. But even this is not without its complications. It should be noted that there are some very ugly and outmoded ideas about race expressed throughout this book, but I feel they fit with the setting and themes of the novel. There is much handwringing about skin tone and bloodlines, but facts are facts and these were legitimate 'concerns' in that era.
I recommend this to anyone looking for high quality children’s historical fiction. I felt truly transported to a different time, place and culture. I’ll be honest, it’s not a culture that’s always easy to understand or relate to, but this is just the kind of challenge that I think makes reading worthwhile! I loved it and feel like I learned so much and I'm so glad to have encountered this book that I never would have read otherwise! I've still got one more year left in this decade, but I do believe this will my most memorable and favorite book of the 1920s!
**Interesting tidbit - There is a sequel called The Beckoning Road. I do believe I will have to read that one too as this one left off in a very open ended way.
1 comments:
*squee* This one was my favorite from the 1920's, too!
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