Why? (A 26 Fairmount Avenue Book)
Grade 2–4—This seventh installment in dePaola's autobiography covers New Year's Day through April 20, 1942. The war creates a backdrop that seems at first more interesting than ominous. Tomie overhears talk of rationing and hoarding, peeks out from behind blackout curtains, and notes that, due to the war, Fleer bubblegum will no longer be available. As ever, the author fills the story with authentically childlike details: he wishes that second-grade penmanship were easier, regrets that he can't make the Valentine mailbox in school, and visits a meatpacking warehouse. In the final chapter, news arrives that his cousin, Blackie, has died in the war. The book ends on a stark note—an illustration of the second grader from behind, looking through a doorway, simply asking, "Why?" As in his previous autobiographical books, dePaola's spot-on sense of what children find interesting hits the bull's eye. He doesn't turn away from the profound sorrow of Blackie's death, setting it in the context of a loving extended family. The black-and-white full-page and spot pictures convey emotions effectively, and illustrate items that might be unfamiliar to 21st-century children. Facsimiles of diary pages enhance the story. Those who have enjoyed previous installments in the series, and those looking for a child's view of the Second World War, will want to read this.—Pat Leach, Lincoln City Libraries, NECopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.