Cover Image

Call me Hope

by Olson, Gretchen.

Format: Print Book 2007
Availability: Available at 1 Library 1 of 1 copy

Available (1)
Location Collection Call #
Penn Hills Library Juvenile Fiction CHILDREN OLS
Location  Penn Hills Library
 
Collection  Juvenile Fiction
 
Call Number  CHILDREN OLS
 
 

Summary
As 11-year-old Hope struggles to live under the pressures of her verbally abusive mother, she's tempted to run away but instead chooses resilience. She creates a secret safe haven and an innovative point system (giving herself points for every bad thing her mother says to her); finds comfort and inspiration from Anne Frank, The Diary of a Young Girl; and gains a support team. Ultimately, Hope is able to confront her mother about her hurtful words and help her begin to change.
Published Reviews
Booklist Review: "Eleven-year-old Hope leads a seemingly normal life. She is looking forward to sixth grade, and the promise of Outdoor School, an annual camping trip that happens in the spring. She is thrilled when she lands a job at a used clothing store, and manages to attract the attention of a cute boy from her class. But Hope's self-serving mother, Darlene, who frequently flies into rages, calling Hope stupid and hopeless, always manages to overshadow everything good in Hope's life. When Darlene threatens not to sign the permission slips for Outdoor School, Hope decides she can no longer keep silent about what is happening at home. By drawing strength from the example of Anne Frank, whom she is reading about in class, Hope gathers the courage to tell her mother how much the names hurt. The message of this story about the destructive power of verbal abuse is thinly veiled, but Hope is a winsome character whose bravery and determination will resonate with middle-grade readers. --Jennifer Hubert Copyright 2007 Booklist"
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Publisher's Weekly Review: "Anyone who equates child abuse only with physical blows may think in broader terms after reading this moving story of a sixth grader tormented by her mother's hurtful words. Hope, whose father left when she was a baby (because she "cried all the time," according to her mother), has been called stupid so many times she gets a "stinkin' stomachache" every time she hears the word. She can't seem to do anything to please her mother, but luckily there are others-Hope's teacher, her school counselor and classmate Brody, for instance-who believe she does have value. Hope reaches a turning point after making friends with two women who run a used clothing store. Deeply affected by their kindness and inspired by Anne Frank's diary, Hope gradually begins to believe in herself, even when her mother dishes out her cruelest punishment by not allowing Hope to participate in the Outdoor School program. Without giving too pat a solution to Hope's internal and external conflicts, Olson (Joyride) provides signs that her protagonist's future will be considerably brighter than her past. Children who can identify with Hope's predicament will find solace in this book as well as tips for survival, listed by Hope in the final chapter. Ages 8-12. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved"
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Additional Information
Subjects Child abuse -- Juvenile fiction.
Mothers and daughters -- Juvenile fiction.
Moneymaking projects -- Juvenile fiction.
Schools -- Oregon -- Juvenile fiction.
Stress (Physiology) -- Juvenile fiction.
Child abuse -- Fiction.
Mothers and daughters -- Fiction.
Moneymaking projects -- Fiction.
Schools -- Fiction.
Stress (Physiology) -- Fiction.
Oregon -- Juvenile fiction.
Oregon -- Fiction.
Publisher New York :Little, Brown and Co.,2007
Edition 1st ed.
Language English
Description 272 pages ; 21 cm
ISBN 031601236X (hc.)
1428741313 (BWI bdg.)
9780316012362 (hc.)
9781428741317 (BWI bdg.)
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