Olive's Ocean by: Kevin Henkes

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Title: Olive's Ocean / Kevin Henkes

Publisher: Greenwillow Books, p2003, c2003

ISBN-13: 978-0-06-053543-8

Interest Level: 6-8

Reading Level: 6.6

Book Summary:

Martha keeps inside of her an ocean of secrets. Olive, a girl from her class, did too. It is not until Olive's death that Martha realizes that this shy girl was more like her that she realized. During the summer Martha begins to see frailty of life through her grandmother's stories and gnarled aging hands, experiences first love, heartbreak, a near-death experience, and bravery she never knew she had.

 

My Thoughts:

I cannot understand how this book would ever be censored.  This amazing story touches the very heart of what being a 12-year-old girl truly is.  The fear of death, of loss, growing old, and feeling alone with emotions you just can't share are all things coming of age girls will relate to.   The relationship between all the characters are extremely realistic. This book touches on mulch-generational relationships, sibling relationships, Peer-relationships, and personal discovery.  This is a must have for all middle to high school libraries.

 

Library Tool Box of Tips and Tricks:

Banned books display:  Moments that change our lives

Display the book Olive's Ocean with a poster board of all the "first lines of poems" Henkes lists on p. 175.  Invite students to choose their favorite line and write a poem about their own lives. The poems do not need to follow a format, but rather it should focus on choosing the most precise, vivid words that they  can to describe  a moment in their life that changed them.

Resources:

Image: Olive's Ocean [book cover] Retrieved from:  

     Http://www.titlewave.com/cover?FLR=30875L8& 

     SID=8afe34243bd86d1caf27a7d25aadf6ca&type=cover