Two Books about moms (absent moms)

Two books I read that fit into the “mother” theme are Jakeman by Deborah Ellis and Harry Sue by Sue Stauffacher, Although the latter author was new to me, I have loved Deborah Ellis’s work for a long time. She is the author of the “Breadwinner” trilogy, and her book Bifocal, which she co-authored with Eric Walters, has been nominated for next year’s Snow Willow awards in Saskatchewan. Jakeman is about Jake and his sister, Shoshona, who are off on the bus to visit their mom in prison. It struck me as rather bizarre that these children set out late at night to catch a bus with only one social worker for supervision. Jake imagines himself to be a superhero, Jakeman, who will be all the things he can’t be in real life; brave and daring. He has also decided that there has been a vast misunderstanding about the reason for his mother’s incarceration, so writes regular letters to the governor, asking for her release. Through a wild series of events, the children are left to guide the bus on their own and Jake is actually able to confront the governor in person with his request, only to find that the governor really doesn’t care.

Harry Sue, on the other hand, is a girl in a foster home who has decided that the only way she can find her mom is to become a criminal as well and be sent to jail. Although her intentions are good, her heart is much too compassionate towards the other children in the home, and she is constantly diverted from her plans by having to rescue one of them. I would love to use both of these boks with a class and compare these 2 heroes.

Some other great titles I have read on this theme:

Losing Forever- Gayle Friesen

So B. it: a Novel- Sarah Weeks

Out of Focus- Margret Buffie

Smell of Paint- Sheryl McFarlane

Peacekeepers- Dianne Linden

Raspberry House Blues- Linda Holeman

Escape From Memory – Margaret Peterson Haddix