Title: Belle Prater’s Boy Copyright Date: 1971
Author: Ruth White Pages of Book: 196 Pages
Genre: Realistic Fiction Reading Level: Ages 9-12
Summary: Woodrow Prater’s mother vanishes one night and because her father is drunk more often than not, he goes to live with his nearly deaf grandparents. Next door lives his cousin Gypsy and he becomes great friends with her. This story is set in the backwoods of Virginia and gives several funny examples of traditions and customs of that area. Woodrow has tremendous struggles to overcome—he is cross-eyed and everyone knows and is suspicious about his mother’s disappearance. He overcomes these trials by his friendly nature to everyone, especially the other misfits, and by his ability to tell great stories. Gypsy has struggles because of a seemingly opposite problem—her beauty. She feels that everyone only notices her because of her looks and that no one sees who she really is on the inside. These two cousins protect each other from the unkindness of others and help each other through all kinds of struggles and mishaps. Gypsy discovers that her father that died when she was five years-old committed suicide. Woodrow realizes that his mother abandoned him to escape a miserable marriage. Thus, both of them have to come to terms with a parent deserting them and we see them become stronger because of their trials. Throughout the story, they befriend others that are struggling to find acceptance. They also carry out some hilarious pranks to get revenge on some of their tormentors from the town.
Reaction: This was a great book. It had so many fun stories and jokes that had me laughing out loud. It also taught great lessons about kindness. The characters were very interesting and interacted with each other well. While some very tragic and serious problems were addressed in this book it was done in such a way to make you feel good about how they were resolved and recognize how important it is to forgive and show compassion to others. It is a great example of how we can overcome difficult things in our lives and that by having a good sense of humor and being loyal to friends, we can come out on top.
Problems: The major problems in this book are the problems that Woodrow and Gypsy are having in their families. Woodrow’s mother has disappeared and no one knows what happened to her. His father is unfit to care for him. Gypsy’s father died when she was five and she has nightmares about some horrifying experience she has had in the past, but can’t remember. Her mother re-married and Gypsy can’t stand her step-father. They also both have to face members of their community that are hurtful.
Recommendations: I would definitely recommend this book. It is so much fun to read, but also teaches some great lessons on overcoming hardships and on the value of friendship. It has lots of funny stories and jokes in it that kids would love. I think the story could help children find courage to face troubles in their families and also be a better friends to those that are different than they are.
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