For this reason, we will feature two books per issue over the next few months that would make excellent choices. Dovey, age 12, narrates her account of mountain life with the familiarity of an old friend. In the spirit of Where the Lilies Bloom, Dovey Coe is a great study in character development and plot for younger readers, theme and voice for older readers. Perhaps due in part of wildly successful Harry Potter series, orphan stories are enjoying a resurgence in popularity. Peggy Brooke's Jake's Orphan is set in the 1926 North Dakota prairie.
Tree is taken from an orphanage by a stern farming couple for one year to help with chores.
Forced to leave his brother Acorn behind, Tree adjusts to his new farm life in a stumbling, insecure manner. Following an incident at school, Tree becomes the responsibility of the farmer's brother. The plotting is complex and the characters are vivid, but Jake's Orphan 's predominant setting and themes practically demand the reader's attention.