Set these two books side by side, and with the exception of their trim sizes, it would be difficult to find anything about them that is similar.  But once I sat back and let the full impact of both stories settle in, I realized that they had more in common than one might imagine.  For one, they both feature orphans.

One is the story of an orphaned girl, raised on the bayou by a quirky cast of townsfolk.  The other is the story of a displaced girl raised in the jungle by a cast of orphaned bonobos.  (Okay, I promise, that’s the end of my cleverness).

Both stories have strong narrative voices, told in the first person past tense.  Mo LoBeau, of Tupelo Landing, is the natural sister of so many well-loved middle grade heroes.  One can’t help but read her and conjure up Opal, Frankie and Turtle. She shares their attributes as well:  pluck, smarts, and gumption.  It’s easy to get on her side from the very opening pages, and the reader is literally lifted through the story by the buoyancy of the language.  This book was written in my native tongue, and it made my ears happy to hear it.

Sophie’s voice, in Endangered, is not nearly so dear.  Hers is older, and more melancholy.  But it is just as distinct.  In it, are the echoes of …

» Continue Reading: Round 1, Match 3: Endangered vs Three Times Lucky