The Barn

Bibliographic information: 

Avi.  The Barn.  Avon Books, 1994,  p. 106. 

Brief plot description:

Benjamin has been at a school in Portland.  His father has an accident and he must return home to help on the farm in Willamette Valley, Oregon Territory.  His father is suffering from palsy and the doctor told them he is bad off.  Nettie and Harrison do the field work on the 320 acres while Benjamin takes care of their father.  Ben asks him a question and tells him to respond by closing his eyes which he does.  This simple movement brings hope to Benjamin and his brother and sister.  When they ask father about building a barn he responds with a yes.  The three of them begin the preparation for the barn.  Building the barn actually takes more than a week.  What will happen to the family, especially father?    

Brief review:

I believe that this book is very moving and that it tells of the hardships one faces while living in Oregon Territory during that time.  I think that this book could be read by fourth through fifth grade.  I would use it when talking about expansion or when talking about farming.  I believe that the idea that children should get from this book is that you should not give up on a person that is dying because they are still there and they can hear what goes on around them.  I really enjoyed this book because it talks about the hardships that families faced in the territories.   

Genre label:

Historical Fiction

Reading level/interest level:

4^th- 5^th grades

Subjects/themes:

Hardships

Oregon Territory

Character names/descriptions:

Benjamin – nine years old

Nettie - fifteen years old; Benjamin’s sister

Harrison- thirteen years old; Benjamin’s brother

Tod Buckman- proposed to Nettie

Similar materials in style content, theme or characters:

Thunder Rolling in the Mountains by Scott O’Dell

Hard Gold: the Colorado Gold Rush of 1859

Awards:

ALA Notable

IRA Teacher’s Choice

Bank Street Children’s Books of the year, “outstanding”

American Bookseller, Pick of the Lists

New York Public Library, Best Books of the Year

Booklist, Best Books of the Year

Editor’s Choice, Booklist

CCBC Choice

VOYA Outstanding Book

ABC Children’s Booksellers’ Choice