Winter Camp Book

Recently orphaned, Toughboy and Sister live with Natasha, an elderly, cantankerous Athabascan Indian. In late fall she has them all flown to camp in a bush plane to teach the children how to trap and deal with the Alaskan winter. When an old miner is seriously injured and Natasha sets off for help, the children find their spirits pushed to the limits. Sequel to Toughboy and Sister.

School Library Journal

Gr 4-6-Following the deaths of their parents, Toughboy and Sister are tended to by an old woman in their Alaskan village. Although gruff and short on praise and affection, Natasha is wise in the ``old ways'' of the Athabascan Indians, and instructs the children through stories about bygone days and by taking them to a winter trapping camp. As in the earlier Toughboy and Sister (McElderry, 1990), the children mature, yet show instances of behavior and thought that reveal the impulsiveness of their youth (ages seven and nine). Hill's description of life and work at the camp is straightforward and unsentimental, a blend of beauty and blunt reality that is reflected in Sister's mixed feelings about trapping. Again, the children must learn to survive under trying circumstances, this time when Natasha leaves them to seek help for a wounded trapper in the midst of harsh winter weather. Familiarity with the first book is not required. A spare but compelling story of survival and the growth of two very resilient but sensitive children.-Susan Knorr, Milwaukee Public Library, WI