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  1 Brotherhood
Author: Westrick, Anne
 
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Class: Fiction
Age: 10-14
Language: English
LC: PZ7.W527
Grade: 5-9
Print Run: 20000
ISBN-13: 9780670014392
LCCN: 2013008272
Imprint: Viking
Pub Date: 09/12/2013
Availability: Out of Print Confirmed
List: $17.99
  Hardcover
Physical Description: 359 pages : illustrations ; 22 cm H 8.55", W 5.75", D 1.19", 1.0625 lbs.
LC Series:
Brodart Sources: Brodart's For Youth Interest: Popular
Brodart's Insight Catalog: Teen
Brodart's TOP Young Adult Titles
Bibliographies: Children's Core Collection, 22nd ed.
Children's Core Collection, 23rd ed.
Children's Core Collection, 24th ed.
Middle and Junior High Core Collection, 12th ed.
Middle and Junior High Core Collection, 13th ed.
Middle and Junior High Core Collection, 14th ed.
Young Adult Fiction Core Collection, 4th ed.
Awards: Best Fiction for Young Adults
Horn Book Guide Titles, Rated 1 - 4
Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People
VOYA's 5Q Picks
Starred Reviews:
TIPS Subjects: Historical Fiction
Family Life
African American & Black
BISAC Subjects: JUVENILE FICTION / Historical / United States / Civil War Period (1850-1877)
JUVENILE FICTION / Family / Siblings
JUVENILE FICTION / Social Themes / Prejudice & Racism
LC Subjects: Family life, Virginia, Fiction
JUVENILE FICTION / Family / Siblings
JUVENILE FICTION / Historical / United States / Civil War Period (1850-1877)
JUVENILE FICTION / Social Issues / Prejudice & Racism
Ku Klux Klan (19th cent.), Fiction
Ku Klux Klan (19th century), Fiction
Prejudices, Fiction
Race relations, Fiction
Reconstruction (U.S. history, 1865-1877), Fiction
Reconstruction (U.S. history, 1865-1877), Juvenile fiction
Richmond (Va.), History, 19th century, Fiction
SEARS Subjects: Family life, Virginia, Fiction
Ku Klux Klan (19th cent.), Fiction
Prejudices, Fiction
Race relations, Fiction
Reconstruction (1865-1876), Fiction
Richmond (Va.), History, 19th century, Fiction
Reading Programs: Accelerated Reader Level: 4.7 , Points: 10.0
Lexile Level: 720
Reading Counts Level: 4.4 , Points: 17.0
 
Annotations
Brodart's TOP Young Adult Titles | 12/01/2013
With the Civil War over, a personal battle begins as 14-year-old Shadrach secretly takes reading lessons from a freed slave and falls in with a group assembled to help Confederate widows and families in grief. Shadrach faces a choice that will define him when he realizes his newfound brotherhood, known today as the Ku Klux Klan, raises questions that could change everything. 368pp.
Journal Reviews
BookPage | 09/25/2013
Ages 10-up. It's been two years since the Civil War ended, but the "Damn Yankees" are "still beating up on Virginia," at least according to 14-year-old Shadrach Weaver. While many children's novels take place during the War Between the States, A.B. Westrick's debut novel, Brotherhood, offers a revealing glimpse of life during the often overlooked Reconstruction era. Set in Richmond, the former capital of the Confederacy, it opens as Shad's older, good-for-nothing brother, Jeremiah, is arrested for the murder of a carpetbagger who moved south to open the city's first "Colored Normal School." The story then traces the events that led to the murder. After following Jeremiah on one of his evening escapades, Shad inadvertently becomes a member of the Ku Klux Klan. At first he relishes the seemingly playful camaraderie of the brotherhood and being part of a group that includes the city's shop owners and sheriff. The illiterate teen, who dreams of apprenticing in his grandfather's tailoring business, begins teaching simple tailoring skills at a school in exchange for reading lessons. But if the Klan finds out this risky arrangement takes place in a Negro school, he and the students could all wind up dead. Brotherhood is no Gone with the Wind as Westrick focuses on small-time farmers and tradesmen and their struggles during this time period. And as Shad grapples with the "familiar tone" of his black teacher and his surprising affinity for his black classmates, the author also doesn't shy away from the truth about race relations during Reconstruction, making this a story for mature readers and ideal for parent and group discussion. The teen ultimately realizes that he's growing up in a city and a nation reinventing itself. Shad's spot-on dialogue and enlightening sentiments will be studied and savored for years to come. BookPage Children’s Corner Web Exclusive Review. BOOKPAGE, c2013.
Booklist | 09/01/2013
Grades 6-8. In 1867, two years after Lee's surrender, a conflict is just beginning within 14-year-old Shad, a poor white boy living in burnt-out Richmond. On the one hand, he longs to learn how to read and grasps at his only chance, secretly taking lessons with freed slave children. On the other, he follows his older brother's lead and joins the Klan. Though he mistrusts his reckless brother, still he longs to become a man. Clearly a clash is inevitable. Westrick's first novel is ambitious in focusing on the losing side's point of view after the Civil War. In order to remain sympathetic, if not heroic, Shad must choose a different path from his fellow Klansmen, whose opinions make painful reading at times. This first novel seems carefully constructed rather than organic. Most characters are portrayed as primarily good or evil, though readers will catch glimpses of the moral ambiguity and social complexity of Reconstruction. The appended author's note focuses mainly on that period in the South and on the rise of the Ku Klux Klan. Phelan, Carolyn. 368p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.
Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books | 12/01/2013
R. Gr. 5-8. Fourteen-year-old Shad Weaver is leading two secret lives: in the late night hours, he's participating in the meetings and "pranks" of the Ku Klux Klan; in the early morning hours, the boy is trading chores for reading lessons in the home of a Richmond Civil War widow, Miss Elizabeth, who also supports the cause of education for colored children. These two worlds collide when the Klan abducts, torments, and murders George Nelson, the white "carpetbagger" Yankee who was to run the new freedmen's school-but not before the victim recognizes and names "the Weaver boy" as one of his murderers. Yes, Shad was present at the murder, but it's his firebrand older brother, Jeremiah, who is arrested for the crime. Shad keeps his mouth shut about his participation, even as he grieves the loss of the man who broke through his learning disability, and he tells the necessary lies to get his brother released from jail. Shad recognizes not only that Klan "pranking" has taken a mortal turn but that most of the Richmond men he knows are members of the brotherhood, watching his every move and planning to burn down Miss Elizabeth's shed and the black schoolchildren in it. Westrick creates in Shad a character of extraordinary complexity-admiring and fearful of his brother, fiercely resentful of the Yankees who've overrun Reconstruction-era Richmond, disdainful of contact with the free blacks he encounters at Miss Elizabeth's home, proud of approaching manhood in the eyes of his elders, and ultimately unwilling to collaborate in harming another human being. This is a view of the post-Civil War South that doesn't often reach middle-grade readers, and Shad's perilous dilemma sheds light on the festering resentments that gave rise to the KKK. EB. 368p. THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE UNIV. OF ILLINOIS, c2013.
Horn Book Guide | 05/01/2014
4. Living in postbellum Virginia, Shad follows older brother Jeremiah in joining the KKK. But after stumbling into an arrangement to teach tailoring at the colored school in exchange for reading lessons, Shad's loyalty to the Klan begins to come into conflict with his conscience. Though the tension is mostly well sustained, the narrative slows at times and the resolution feels rushed. rr. 362pg. THE HORN BOOK, c2014.
Kirkus Reviews | 08/15/2013
Set in Richmond, Va., in 1867, Westrick's debut affords readers a look into the mind and heart of a reluctant member of the Ku Klux Klan. Fourteen-year-old Shad Weaver's life is full of secrets. Desperate to learn to read, he begins attending a school for African-Americans, offering tailoring lessons to the students there in exchange for the instruction he receives. He is very careful not to be seen, especially by any members of the other secret group to which he belongs, the Klan. Shad is deeply ambivalent about the brotherhood, appreciating it for the camaraderie it fosters but becoming increasingly uncomfortable with the violence it perpetuates. When the head teacher of the African-American school is murdered and Shad's brother Jeremiah is fingered, Shad must rely on his own evolving moral compass to help him figure out what to do. While it becomes a bit tedious at times, Shad's inner dialogue is crucial, as it reveals his struggle against the almost overwhelming social forces seeking to shape him into an instrument of racist violence. The constant sense of danger evoked will keep readers interested, and while the resolution is not entirely satisfying, it is nonetheless realistic. From the perspective of a curious, compassionate young man caught up in Klan violence, this coming-of-age story will spark fruitful discussions about race, identity, social pressure and loyalty. (Historical fiction. 10-14). 368pg. KIRKUS MEDIA LLC, c2013.
Publishers Weekly | 08/05/2013
Ages 10-up. Westrick makes an impressive debut with this post-Civil War novel, set in Richmond, Va., told from the point of view of self-proclaimed Confederate son and "good old boy" Shadrach Weaver. A skilled tailor's assistant, 14-year-old Shad is dyslexic and plays second fiddle to his "hothead" older brother, Jeremiah, since their father died at Gettysburg. Circumstances bring Shad into contact with the liberally minded Perkinson household, in which black servants and children are not just treated as equals, but educated. Invited to trade sewing lessons for reading lessons, he uneasily accepts. Shad's initial shock at his situation turns to appreciation, creating a turbulent conflict between his growing feelings for the black teachers and children and his loyalty to the Ku Klux Klan, to which he has recently sworn allegiance, even as he recoils from its cruel actions. Readers will undoubtedly be taken aback by Shad's hatred of Yankees and contempt for blacks, but Westrick generally achieves her goal of capturing Shad's "emerging capacity to question his circumstances," while drawing a vivid picture of the embittered, violent environment of 1867 Richmond. Agent: Leigh Feldman, Writers House. (Sept.). 368p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2013.
School Library Journal | 08/01/2013
Gr 5-9--The Civil War is over and Richmond, Virginia, is occupied by Yankee soldiers. A secret society of men and boys has begun meeting with the stated mission of protecting Confederate widows. Fourteen-year-old Shadrach Weaver follows his older brother to a gathering and ends up being initiated into the Ku Klux Klan. Shad likes the feeling of brotherhood the group provides. On an errand for his family's tailor shop to the house of a local teacher, Shad, who suffers from dyslexia, makes arrangements to trade his sewing skills for reading lessons. He is surprised when the teacher arranges for him to work with African Americans; he knows he has to keep this secret, but it's not long before the existence of the school is discovered. Shad's brother, a loyal KKK member, becomes involved in a plot to bring the school, along with its students and teachers, to a violent end. Shad must decide between remaining loyal to his family and the brotherhood or warning the people for whom he has developed feelings of friendship and respect. Debut author Westrick does an excellent job of re-creating post-Civil War Richmond and giving voice to the resentments of its inhabitants. She explores the implications of brotherhood and demonstrates how right and wrong can be so intricately entwined that whatever choice one makes can result in disaster. A welcome addition to classroom discussions. Cary Frostick, Mary Riley Styles Public Library, Falls Church, VA. 368p. SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.
~VOYA (Voice of Youth Advocates Magazine - Retired Journal) | 08/01/2013
5Q 4P M J. Sometimes it seems authors and publishers hear wishes. Great historical fiction always feels like a gift. Brotherhood is a compelling tale of Richmond, Virginia, and its inhabitants during the Reconstruction Era. Westrick uses "brotherhood" to evoke both the familial relationship between Jeremiah and Shadrach, and their involvement with the Ku Klux Klan. Unable to read or to succeed in his mother's eyes, Shadrach makes two wildly disparate decisions: bargaining to receive schooling and taking orders from the The Cyclops, a KKK leader. Shad puts himself in an awkward position. He hopes to take over Weaver's Fine Tailoring, but the business will pass to his older brother. Skilled at measurements and sewing, Shad earns access to the Perkinson household, where he meets carpet bagger George Nelson. He is a lynchpin character with his own set of progressive and conservative views that are at odds with those of the Yankees and the Confederacy. Shad's struggle to understand slavery and its demise is compounded by his emotions for Miss Rachel. Miss Rachel's outspoken nature fascinates and frightens Shad. Can he really fancy a girl is who smarter than him and black? A family embroiled in a war of weapons and words, the Weavers have much to overcome. Hate speech proliferates, as well as evil deeds. A short disclaimer at the beginning reminds us that people did--and still do--speak cruelly about humanity. Some readers will find the novel shocking but it is all necessary for achieving an aim. There are lessons about intolerance and discrimination we still have not learned. Brotherhood is neither tedious, nor didactic. Westrick skillfully leads the reader toward conclusions regarding racism; letting each epiphany occur organically. All the characters, dialogue, and action support each other deftly and with no filler.--Laura Perenic. 368p. VOICE OF YOUTH ADVOCATES, c2013.
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