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Down The Rabbit Hole, Chicago, Illinois, 1871: The Diary Of Pringle Rose (2013)

by Susan Campbell Bartoletti(Favorite Author)

3.58 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

054529701X (ISBN13: 9780545297011)

languge

English

genre

Romance

publisher

Scholastic

review 1: The "Dear America" series has become one of the most popular, and with each book being supported with bibliographies, it has rendered noble service in presenting historical fiction supported by fact. For the intended audience, this particular title has too much going on in the way of issues--working conditions and the rise of labor unions, Down's syndrome and the treatment of the disabled, animal cruelty and the ASPCA, and women's lack of rights are just a few examples of the issues in this title.
review 2: Bartoletti tries to tell the story of two unrelated historical events: the miners’ strikes and the Chicago Fires. The book would have been stronger if she had focused on one or the other. 14-year-old Pringle’s younger brother Gideon has Down Syndro... moreme. Her parents went against the norm at the time, keeping him at home rather that in an institution and educating him at his own pace. Pringle definitely sees him through the eyes of familial love and so his portrayal is decidedly positive. While the book explores some of the time’s thinking on how best to care for people with Down’s, Gideon is not developed enough for us to know him. His mutism, stems from his parents’ fatal “accident,” not the Down’s, is as much if not more of a focus for Pringle as she tells the story. The diary entries are at times confusing as Pringle goes back and forth from past to present; a linear telling might have made more sense. The many references to Alice in Wonderland may well be confusing to readers. Much as I love historical fiction, this one is full of stumbles. less

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