Module 7--Faith, Hope, and Ivy June by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

Source: http://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2009/08/faith-hope-and-ivy-june-by-phyllis.html

Summary: 

Ivy June and Catherine were selected to be the ambassadors of their schools for an exchange program.  Each girl stayed with the other girl and her family for two weeks.  In many ways, the girls are very different. Catherine is from the city of Lexington and wealthy.  She lives with younger twin siblings, her mother (who is frequently ill) and father.  They also have a maid.  Ivy June lives in the remote country without indoor plumbing and with her grandparents because Ivy June does not fit in her mom and dad's tiny house with all her siblings.  The girls each keep a journal to record the stereotypes they held and differences and commonalities they encounter.    At first, the feel uncomfortable in each other's presence, but begin to trust each other.  In the end, the two girls become close friends that stick by each other when Catherine's mom has heart surgery and Ivy June's grandfather gets trapped in a mine.  They stay in touch even after the student exchange is over.  Ivy June's grandfather retires from mining and Catherine's mother recovers from surgery. 

APA Reference:


Naylor, P.R. (2009). Faith, hope, and Ivy June. New York, NY: Delacorte Press.



My Impressions: 

I thought this was a wholesome, but interesting book.  What a great combination!  The concept of the book sets a good stage to bring up prejudices about other socioeconomic classes.  The writing allows prejudices to be suggested because of the honest narration and diary entries from the two main characters.  I, too, learned quite a bit about Ivy June and her poor lifestyle and connections to cave mining.  I have never met a cave miner and had not thought about all the dangers they face daily and the fear a family might go through on a daily basis when their loved one works in the mine.  Those details were my favorite aspect of the book.  I had not realized until I finished reading the book that Phyllis Reynolds Naylor also wrote the Shiloh series.  I was excited about this connection because it would be a great way to gain more interest for this book during a book talk. 

Professional Reviews: 

In this delightful story we are invited into the lives of two seventh-grade girls from Kentucky.  Ivy June Moslcy and Catherinc Combs have been chosen to take part in a student exchange program.
The girls take turns leaving their homes to live and attend school with the other. Although it seems as if the girls will have nothing in common, they develop a good relationship. Ivy June leaves her Appalachian home to visit Catherine and her close-knit family's large home with indoor plumbing. She blossoms in the new setting. A few weeks later Catherine visits Ivy June and her family and learns to live without phone reception, without running water, and in crowded living conditions. The girls' bond is cemented when Catherine's mother has to undergo heart surgery, and Catherine is unable to be there. Ivy June supports Catherine during this frightening experience. A few days later, when Ivy June's beloved grandfather is trapped in a coal mine, Catherine extends her stay in Thunder Creek to be there during Ivy June's time of need. They discover that the most important things they have in common are the love of family amid the power of love, faith, and hope. Recommended.

Glantz, S. (2009). [Review of the book Faith, hope, and Ivy June, by P. R. Naylor].   Library Media Connection, 28(2), 73. Retrieved from http://www.librarymedia connection.com

Newbery Medalist Naylor's (Shiloh) reflective, resonant novel shapes credible portraits of two Kentucky girls participating in a seventh-grade exchange program. Since her parents' house is too cramped, outspoken Ivy June lives nearby with her bighearted grandparents in a remote mountain hollow, with no indoor bathroom or phone. More reserved Catherine attends private school in Lexington, where she shares a rambling home with her family. In thoughtful, articulate journal entries interspersed with third-person chapters, the girls, who spend two weeks together with each family, share their initial expectations and subsequent impressions ("if Mammaw ever saw the stuff they put on our plates, she'd give it to a dog," Ivy June writes about the cafeteria food). The bond between the girls strengthens when they simultaneously experience traumatic events (Ivy June's coal miner grandfather becomes trapped underground; Catherine's mother undergoes emergency heart surgery). Leaving the hollow, Catherine responds to a comment that she'll have a lot to tell when she arrives home: "To tell it's one thing.… To be here--that's something else." Naylor's deft storytelling effortlessly transports readers to her Kentucky settings--and into two unexpectedly similar lives. Age 9-12.

[Review of the book Faith, hope, and Ivy June, by P. R. Naylor].   (2009).  Publishers Weekly, 256(24), 49-50.  Retrieved from http://www.publishersweekly.com

Library Uses:  


Gain interest in this book by setting up a pen pal exchange program (either through e-mail or through snail mail) with a school different from yours.   Have the students in the pen pal club from both schools read Faith, Hope, and Ivy June then write about the book as well as their own lives.