Reviews for A Yank among Us

The average rating for A Yank among Us based on 2 reviews is 3 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2017-06-21 00:00:00 Steven Weitz Francie, by Karen English, is an inspiring book that emphasize the background of African american history that brings you a vivid imagery of how African american suffered during discrimination of race, ethnicity, or any form of stereotypical eyes. the protagonist is Francie and the title signify her importance in the story. she is a young black girl that lives with her mom and younger brother, Prez in Alabama. there, they all three work and wait for their father to keep to his promise which is trying to get settled in Chicago so he can move his family up north. however, he didn't kept to his promises, he left the family hopes but destroy it completely himself. he gave bunch of unpleasant events and unfulfilled desire to people that loves him and closest to him. She faces many different obstacles and situations everyday. Every time she work and feels tired, there's always something that lingers in her mind which is the dream that her father sets on her family got her hyper and excited even though she know it is just a dream that won't come true. i understand how it feels that when someone close to you promise you something but never kept to the promise. it would always be a pain and a memory that you don't want to remember but no matter what, it appears in your mind constantly and circulate around leaving a deep impression. i really learned a lot from Francie because she taught me that even if you feel weak sometimes, you have to stay strong or else you might get pick on. it teaches you that sometimes don't easily believe other people even though they are very close to you. i recommend this book to people who are intolerant against segregation. Also, those who experienced the same moment and can't escape from it because it can teach you a good life lesson.

Review # 2 was written on 2018-12-26 00:00:00 Elizabeth Stanbro The story takes place in rural Alabama, where Francie, our 12-year-old protagonist, lives with her mother and little brother. Francie's father, who left them about a year ago, is in Chicago trying to `make it.' Francie lives in expectation of the day she will receive `the letter' from him, asking his family to join him. By this time Francie has grown skeptical of his past empty promises. One day, a new boy comes to school. He doesn't know how to read and Francie is assigned the job of teaching him. At first, she seems daunted by the prospect but soon changes her mind as she sees the boy is smart and eager to learn. Then one day he's unjustly accused of a crime. In order to help him, Francie risks everything, including her own family. I had trouble connecting with this book. Nothing happens until around page 40 when the new boy joins Francie's class and she is asked to teach him to read. I had to force myself to keep reading, waiting for something to happen. Francie's voice is sweet but not particularly forceful or insightful enough to sustain those first several chapters without action. The story picks up in the middle but slows down and disappoints at the end. The climax somehow happens too soon, turning the event into an anticlimactic episode. One gets the feeling that the author didn't do an outline for this story and that the events evolved as the author wrote them, giving the impression of an unbalanced structure. The ending is ambivalent. It boils down to the plot not being compelling enough, the characters not engaging enough. Technically speaking, the writing is good, but although the story has a strong premise, I feel the execution didn't live up to its full potential. Still, this is a book that deals with important issues of prejudice and racism and for this reason has good value for classroom reading and group discussion. But read only for entertainment? I doubt the general middle reader will get past those first few chapters