Dancing In Cadillac Light
Gr 5-8-It is 1968 and Jaynell Lambert, an 11-year-old girl from Moon, Texas, gives readers a peek into her life. In this quiet, sleepy town, Kimberly Willis Holt (Putnam, 2001) focuses on the relationships between family members and their poor neighbors, the Pickens. It illuminates the love, prejudices, and loss that occur within such a small circle, showing the effects on the characters and how it enlarges their world. Actress Kimberly Brown's reading translates the text into a visceral experience of place with her slow-paced, distinctive southern drawl. She maintains a steady, rhythmic momentum, yet pronunciates clearly, so northerners will understand the dialogue. This young actress, primarily known for her Broadway and TV roles, does an admirable job with this medium, but her reading does not transcend the text. Listeners are always hearing the story, rather than experiencing it. There is no distinctive voice for each character, not even Jaynell's eccentric Grandpap. This keeps the characters rather one-dimensional and empathy from readers at a minimum. Her limited range of voices makes this highly descriptive narrative a bit tedious and dull. Compared to the previous translations of Holt's novels to audiobooks--My Louisiana Sky (Listening Library, 1999) and When Zachary Came to Town (Listening Library, 2000)--this one is a disappointment.Tina Hudak, St. Bernard's School, Riverdale, MDCopyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to theAudio Cassetteedition.