"Wholly convincing....(John is) a terrific and totally believable little kid. From his point of view we see an entire society beginning to implode."   -Washington Post Book World.

"Written with grace and sympathy." -New York times Book Review

"Stunning....This lyrical, moving novel should establish Devoto as a great Southern novelist."-Library Journal

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. In the long run was it best for John that he was not spared his struggles?Do you think children today are too sheltered? Not sheltered enough?

2. Was Aunt Nelda trapped in her way of life any more so than women today?

3. If you were spirited back in time to live in the story, which female character would you most want to be?

4. Did Uncle Luther have any redeeming charachters?

5. The book did not end with everyone living "happily ever after." Were you satisfied with this ending? Do you think it was realistic?

6. What elements in the story point out the good and bad sides of a small town life?

7. What do you think were the most important factors in precipitating the civil rights movement? Rank in order of importance, 1 being the most important. Rosa Parks-Martin Luther KIng, Jr-Television-E.D. Nixon-The automatic cotton picking machine-John and Robert Kennedy.

8. Did John's transisition match, in any way, the transformation that was taking place in the South as it was drawn kicking and screaming into the new era?

9. Was there that much difference in the life of the poor blacks and the poor whites in this story?

 

 

 When the sacks were emptied of fertilizer, the drawings could be cut out and sewn up into baby dolls that could be stuffed with cotton right out of the fields.   It was an enticement for the Negro farmers, who were mainly employed in making cotton crops. All the baby dolls had black baby-doll faces. "Will you bring me back a sack so I can make a dolly when you finish?" Shell asked.
On the west end of the Bend, the land sloped off into thick swamp before it gave way to the river.