Bo at Iditarod Creek

Gr 4–7—Would you rather have a funny or sober dentist? Many such perplexing and sometimes humorous questions are asked in this follow up to Bo on Ballard Creek (Macmillan, 2013). Five-year-old Bo and her lovingly assembled family are on the move to a new Alaskan gold-mining town in the 1920s. Pham's illustrations beautifully match the careful and tender timbre of the book. Vivid historical and geographical details in a time of early American expansion cover the Alaskan landscape, including how people traveled (on pole boats). Each of these details are used to explore people's relationships and the ways that they cared for one another (or didn't) in an often trying world. Bo's family, comprised of her two papas—mining partners who took her in—and an adopted brother, give particularly tender windows into family moments and important life lessons. For instance, one of Bo's fathers is black and gets called the n-word by a child who doesn't know better. The treatment of the incident matches the childlike feel of book: the word is regarded as extremely hurtful—without much deeper exploration. The ending is predictable but heartwarming. Hill's author's note is absolutely necessary for greater, deeper content, though it could be expanded. The series is a good historical fiction alternative to the "Little House on the Prairie" books, with updated understandings of race, gender, and family. It also provides many reasons to be grateful for modern dentistry and air travel.—Lisa Nowlain, Darien Library, CT