Meredith's Book Review

Title: Orphan at My Door

Author: Jean Little

Publisher: Scholastic Canada Ltd.

Place and Year of Publication: Markham, ON, Canada, 2001

Number of Pages: 199

Where You Found The Book: CHS library

Story Review:

This is the diary of a young girl named Victoria Cope.  Victoria lives in Guelph, Ontario, with her family and the story takes place during the 1980’s.  Victoria receives a diary on her eleventh birthday from her mom.  She promises that she will write in it until every page is full, and she does just that. 

The Cope Family has a girl named Peggy helping them with the housework, but when she turns in her notice that she’s leaving, the Cope family receives a home girl from France to take her place.  Her name is Mary Anna Wilson and she’s twelve years old.  Her little brother, Jasper, was also taken in by another family to work as a home boy, and Mary Anna is determined to find him.  Will he, as the orphan, show up at their door as the title suggests?

The family by which Jasper is taken in is very cruel to him, and all he wants is to run away and find his sister.  This is a story full of secrets, friendships, hard times, and a sister’s unfailing love for her brother.  Will Mary Anna find Jasper?  And if she does will he be able to stay with her?  Victoria finds herself writing about what seems to be the most exciting year of her life, as a nail biting story unfolds before her eyes.

Christian Perspective:

I believe that this story was written from a Christian perspective because in the story the characters go to church, pray regularly, and are very strict about the “Sunday Rules.”  Victoria’s family often deals with conflict in a godly way, although the people that have custody over Jasper don’t.  This story taught me that God will always help us persevere through our troubles, and that we need to be kind and show love to others.  It also taught me that I shouldn’t judge someone by appearance before I get to know him or her.

My Thoughts:

I thought that this book was really well written and it kept me engaged throughout.  At first I was unsure about reading a historical fiction book because I don’t particularly enjoy history.  This book, however, was very good, and I think I’ll read more books similar to it.  I chose this book because I had to read a historical fiction book and I’ve seen classmates read this series.  I liked it because it felt like I was in the story and the plot was very real.  It gave me a sense of what life was like back then.  I would recommend this book to middle school students who are looking to read something other than fantasy or mystery, because it was really interesting and I really enjoyed it.