Ninth Ward

Ninth Ward. by Jewell Parker Rhodes. (2010). 217p. New York: Little Brown.

Awards and Honors: 
2010 Coretta Scott King Honor Author Award; 2010 Parents Choice Foundation Gold Award; Best Fiction of 2010, School Library Journal; 2011 Jane Addams Honor Book Award for Older Children

Review: 

Twelve-year-old Lanesha is growing up in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans, a tough, but close-knit neighborhood, and while Lanesha's home is not wealthy, she never lacks for love. She lives with Mama Ya Ya, the midwife who birthed her and has raised her ever since her mother died in childbirth. Lanesha and Mama Ya Ya both share "the gift". In Lanesha it manifests as an ability to see ghosts, while Mama Ya Ya has visions of events that will come. When a fierce hurricane bears down upon New Orleans, Mama Ya Ya knows that it will be unlike anything she's seen in her 82 years and Lanesha learns that she must be strong and smart to overcome the disaster. 

Opinion:

Ninth Ward is a beautiful and moving book, but unlike some other books with big messages, it's one that doesn't overshoot its audience. Its language is accessible for tweens, and kids will be drawn into the story by Rhode's pacing and her use of suspense.

Ideas:

Ninth Ward could be an illuminating addition to a unit on natural disasters.