Stepping on the Cracks

Stepping on the Cracks may be set during World War II (my father & uncles' war), but the questions it raises are just as relevant today. The book's heroines, Margaret Baker and Elizabeth Crawford, are three weeks away from being sixth graders when it opens in August of 1944. It's almost Spring when the book ends and the girls have learned a great deal outside of school.

Both girls have older brothers fighting in the war. Gordy Smith, a classmate and bully who has been persecuting bold and pretty Elizabeth since kindergarten, brags about his older brother, Donald, who is a gunner in the war. (Margaret, a self-confessed coward, is also a target of Gordy and his buddies, Toad & Doug, because of her friendship with Elizabeth.)

The girls show more don't understand why Gordy is such a bully. Elizabeth's father, a cop, has often had to deal with Gordy's alcoholic father. Mr. Crawford considers the Smith family to be 'poor white trash'. I became very angry with Margaret's mother when Margaret tried to tell her what she discovered about the Smith family. Mrs. Baker actually said, 'What people do in their own homes is their own business. It's not for us to interfere.' I wanted to scream at her that her son Jimmy might not be in mortal danger in Europe if someone had interfered when Alois Hitler was cruel to his son, Adolf. (Well, that and if the idiocy that was the Treaty of Versailles at the end of World War I hadn't created fallow ground for the seeds of Nazi evil to grow.)

I felt better about Mrs. Baker after her eyes were opened. I'm the adult grandchild of an alcoholic as well as a former medical librarian, which means I had the motive to learn about alcoholic families and access to professional books and articles on the subject. Mrs. Smith's behavior sadly rings true.

One of the characters is a conscientious objector to the war. I'm glad that Ms. Hahn found a way to demonstrate that he was no coward to the readers, even if many of her characters lacked the sense to figure it out.

Gordy Smith's story is continued in Following My Own Footsteps and As Ever, Gordy.

I would recommend this book to adults as well as children. show less

Let me just say, this book was a lot better than I originally thought it would be. I usually don't read WWII novels, I am more into the Civil War myself, so this was a different kind of read for me. But let me tell you it was worth it. This book hooked me in on the first sentence. In this book, Margaret and her best friend Elizabeth find a hut in the woods. At first, Margaret is scared to go into it, but with prompting, Margaret goes in. It turns out that Gordy (the class bully) is hiding his deserting brother in the hut. They black mail him in order for them not to tell. Along the way they get into many hardships, but they find a way through it. The cool thing about this book is that even though it is a childrens book, it isn't written show more like one. This is the perfect book for a child to read because it is all very easy to understand and it is very intriguing. However, an adult would enjoy this book just as much as a child. The way the author portrays everything it is obvious she must have witnessed it. In my personal opinon, eveyone should read this book. It doesn't matter if you don't think you would like it, just trust me, you will. show less

Stepping on the Cracks is a historical based book that has a fabulous plot and characters unique as stones. A slow start leads to a touching well thought out story of war, abuse, and friendship.

Margaret and Elizabeth are best friends who's older brothers are fighting in the war. Most days, the girls are good except for the few when they are tortured by the class bully Gordy. One day after school, dare devil Elizabeth drags Margaret along to spy on Gordy. Once they discover his secret struggle, they want to help him.

I enjoyed this book very much. Even thought it touched on history, my least favorite genre, I learned about Hitler and what everyday life was like for families of soldiers fighting overseas. It was interesting to learn that show more he had formed alliances with leaders of surrounding countries. The story didn't over-whelm me with facts and I liked that. The author'smethod was a well planned out way to distribute facts.

While most of this book was enjoyable I hated how Gordy's father acted. The way he abused his sickened me and made me cry. The parts where abuse occurred were so depressing . Which normally in my mind, this wouldn't be a good book. However, the author was skilled enough to have balanced out depressing parts with action filled bits that kept the reader interested.

The author did exceedingly well in developing characters. I felt as if I were Margaret's best friend. I knew everything about her from her secrets to her opinion on the war. It made me feel like I was part of the action. I wanted to be there to help Gordy's brother. My favorite character was Gordy. Even though he is portrayed as a mean kid, I feel bad for Gordy in his paper world of abuse by his cruel father.

The only other thing that I would've improved is the lack of challenging vocabulary. I enjoy having a variety of words so I can expand my knowledge. Otherwise the author's portrayal of struggle and friendships made me keep reading on.

Over all this is a fabulous book with unexpected twist to keep you intrigued. This is a good book I would recommend to those that like historical fiction and enjoy friendship. show less

This is one of my favorite chapter books about two young girls growing up in Maryland during World War II. Both have brothers fighting in the war and both are feeling the affects of the war all the way in America.

At home, they are facing their own war with a class bully. However, they learn a secret about the bully and form a kind of friendship. As young girls they don't really understand the full weight of the war against Hitler, but this quickly changes. They have to learn hard lessons about war and loss at a very young age making them wise beyond their years.

I think this is a fascinating story that gives students insight into the tragedy of World War II. Fourth and fifth graders will be able to identify with these characters as show more they paint a picture of life in America as a child during the war. Secrets come to life and the girls learn life lessons in loss and tough choices. I always loved this story as a young girl and continue to love it now. Mary Downing Hahn does a superb job of writing this tale through the eyes of a child. She weaves historical fiction with an intriguing plot beautifully. show less

In the body of World War II literature aimed at middle grade students, this one stands out in the way Hahn explores one girl's feelings about the war, her brother's fighting, and views toward those who believe that fighting is just not a good option. Hahn shines in this story that looks at family dynamics and does not provide readers with any easy answers.

Elizabeth and Maggie are best friends and they share a common enemy, Gordy. All of them have brothers serving in the war. Gordy is constantly picking on the girls and he steals the wood from their treehouse. When the girls decide to get revenge they make a discovery. Gordy threatens them if they tell anyone his secret. They decide to make him build them a new treehouse in exchange for their silence. Elizabeth and Maggie aren't sure how they feel about Gordy's secret. When things seem to get out of hand Elizabeth and Maggie decide they must intervene to help Gordy with his secret. The problem is Gordy has a bigger secret and he thinks no one can help with it. Where does bullying end and friendship begin? This was a tough book to read at show more times. I had to ask myself if Gordy's other problems were the reason he came across as a bully. I think this is a book that should be read aloud to all students, especially sixth graders show less

Into every ELAR/SS teacher's life must fall some Hitler. I will use this book to talk about more than just the facts that most kids get in History about the Nazi's. This book is more about a small town's mindset during the war than about the bigger picture. I feel like the kids will connect with this better.