Reviewer: Mary Lignor
Title: Jennie's War: The Home Front in World War 2 - Sisters in Time
Author: Bonnie Hinman
Publisher: Barbour
ISBN-13: 978-1-59310-659-1
Release Date: February 2005
Genre/Sub-genre: Youth Inspirational Historical Fiction
Publisher’s Age/Grade Recommendation: Ages 8-12
OUAR’s Age/Grade Recommendation: Ages 8-12
Year/Setting: Seattle, WA 1944
Overall Rating: 4.5
Bonnie's Website/Blog: www.bonniehinman.com
Dear Readers:
The story is about a family living in Seattle during World War II. The older brother is in the service, there are two older children and two younger. The younger siblings, a boy and girl, are busy collecting paper, metal and fat as an ongoing part of the war effort. Both are in the Boy and Girl Scouts respectively and they are usually in competition as to who can collect the most. Then they get involved in growing a victory garden on a vacant lot that they used to use as a baseball field. They go into this with vigor as they want their older brother back home as quickly as possible.
At the beginning of the story Jennie and her brother Tommy are out collecting rubber to be used in making airplane tires when there is a loud crash in the neighborhood. A prototype airplane of the B-29 variety crashes during a test flight over Seattle, causing power outages and killing workers in a meatpacking plant. At that time the B-29 was top secret and the papers could not print the full story of the crash so people were worried that it might have been an enemy plane. School children, at that time, were told to be careful what they said to others as many people in the United States were afraid of spies infiltrating the coasts of the US. American citizens at that time, were very into the effort to win the war and had many mottoes that they told their children. One of the most famous ones was "Loose Lips Sink Ships." One of Jennie's neighbors had a visitor from Italy staying with him and she was sure that this person was a spy. But, what could she do about it?
I really am a fan of these Sisters in Time books. This book in the series takes us back to 1944, which is my favorite time period to read and write about. It was very interesting, in my opinion, and I'm way over the age of 12. Jennie and her family are much like any family that is waiting for a soldier to come back from the war and the kids are helping however they can to make this happen. This is a book about a girl that's very much like the young girls of today who care about their families and want the world to be a safe place to live.
I'll talk to you soon,
Mary
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