A Northern Light

A Northern Light

By Jennifer Donnelly

AWARDS:

* Michael L. Printz Award Honor Book
* ALA Best Book for Young Adults

* Carnegie Medal
* School Library Journal Best Book of the Year


SYNOPSIS:
The novel is set in 1906 and depicts the hard life of Mattie Gokey who lives with her pa and three sisters on a dairy farm in the Adirondack Mountains. After the death of her mother and subsequent desertion of her older brother, Mattie becomes responsible for much of the household and farm duties. However, Mattie is academically rather than agriculturally inclined. In fact, she is a word collector and wants to write stories that tell the truth about life and about her home in the North Woods. She and her best friend Weaver--the only child of the only black family in the area--dream of going to college. Their teacher Miss Wilcox (who also turns out to be a mystery herself) both inspires them and works hard to help them follow their dreams. With Miss Wilcox's help, both Mattie and Weaver receive scholarships to attend college; however, they find themselves facing family responsibilities as well as barriers such as expectations in regard to gender roles and complications due to racism. These barriers make their dream seem out of reach. Additionly, Mattie must choose between love/marriage/family or a literary life. Ironically, the murder of a young girl serves to spark Mattie's bravery to follow her dreams and help others do the same.


EVALUATION:
Donnelly chooses to tell Mattie Gokey's story using two narratives. The first narrative takes place in the present tense and focuses on the murder of Grace Brown as well as Mattie's life working at a resort in the area. The second narrative takes place in the past and focuses on Mattie's life on the farm before she goes to work at the resort. Donnelly moves back and forth between these two narratives, creating tension and mystery. The characters are complex and developmentally appropriate. The author also uses wordplay as innovative organizational devices as well as tools for character development.


CLASSROOM APPLICATION:
I would most likely use this book within small-group discussions or as an individual choice book. I think it might be a good book to use as a bridge to some of Kate Chopin's work or with Emily Dickenson's poetry. The book is also connected to Dreiser's An American Tragedy because Grace Brown's murder (an historical event) also inspired Dreiser to write his novel.


AGE RANGE:
10th-12th grades


PERSONAL REACTION:
I really enjoyed this book because of its strong female characters and complex situations. I also appreciated its innovative use of words and its marriage of historical fact with historical fiction. I learned a lot about farming and the time period by reading this book. I also found the exploration of gender roles appropriate for the time period but also appropritate for modern situations. There were moments where I felt that the author could have been more concise, but these moments were few. Overall, this is a beautiful book. I highly recommend it.