Hattie Big Sky

Larson, Kirby. Hattie Big Sky. Delacorte Press: 2006. ISBN: 9780440239413.

Plot Summary:
Orphan, Hattie Inez Brooks has spent most of her life being shuffled between relatives. Her most recent home is with Aunt Ivy and Uncle Holt. Aunt Ivy is almost impossible to please, always unhappy with Hattie. The night Uncle Holt hands Hattie the letter from Montana her life changes. Her mother's brother has passed away and left his claim of 320 Montana acres to Hattie. She has a year to meet the remaining requirements to legally keep the claim. The thought of a sixteen year old proving a claim on her own is ridiculous to Aunt Ivy, but Hattie is not afraid of hard work and longs for a home to call her own. Hattie takes the train to Montana and is meet by Perilee Johnson and her family. The Johnsons are the closest neighbors to the claim and were friends of Hattie's uncle. After the Johnsons drop Hattie off at her new home she feels the depth of the responsibility that she has taken on and begins a life changing journey towards independence and inner peace.

Critical Evaluation:
Hattie Big Sky is a Newbery Honor Book for 2007. This excellent work of historical fiction relates the hardship and joys of pioneer life in 1914. The author has thrown in a few crumbs of romance, but they do not dominate the story or take the reader's attention away from Hattie's quest to prove the claim. The ending is believable and satisfying, although it is not neatly packaged like a lot of happy endings. The story is loosely based on Kirby Larson's great grandmother who is also named Hattie Inez and homesteaded on her own as a young woman. Kirby researched and dug around old courthouses but was not able to get a clear picture of specific events in her great grandmother's life. Hattie Big Sky is her recreation based on what little facts are known. This novel received a starred review from School Library Journal and made their best books of the year list.

Reader's Annotation:
Always try your best. Even if it doesn't work out, you can still hold your head high.

Author's Information:
Kirby Larsen has two more historical fiction novels coming out soon. Her other writing credits include two non-fiction picture books in collaboration with good friend, Mary Nethery. The official website states that a sequel is forthcoming to Hattie Big Sky, but no date was given.
Kirby was born in Washington state in 1954 and still lives there with her husband and dog, Winston. She has two adult children.

Genre:
Historical Fiction/20th Century: The Early Years

Curriculum Ties:
Homesteading
WWI

Reading Level/Interest Age:
9th +

Challenge Issue
None

Why Book Included:
This book has received a lot of praise and my sixteen year old daughter said this was a must read.