Belle Prater's Boy

Insightful, poignant, touching and sensitively written, this 1997 Newbery honor book is one I highly recommend. With shades of Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird, the reader observes small-town life through the eyes of a young, precocious young girl.

In 1953 Belle Prater left her house, her near-do-well husband and young son and vanished from Coal Station, VA, never to be found.

In 1954 Gypsy Arbutus Leemaster's view of life is about to change when she befriends her cousin Woodrow after he moves across the street to live with their grandparents. Years earlier Gypsy's father died, and she, like Woodrow knows the pain of loss.

As the story unfolds, we learn that Gypsy's mother was the pretty one; Woodrow's mother, Belle, was plain and could show more not compete when Gypsy's mother stole the heart of Belle's suitor and married him.

Cross-eyed and wearing hand me down clothes, Woodrow is Belle Prater's boy. Pretty like her mama, dressed in frills, Gypsy is about to learn that appearances are deceiving.

Lonely and abandoned Belle Prater's boy experiences snitty comments, not only at the hands of the town bully, but in particular by the small-town, nasty society mavens.

This is a story of multi-faceted layers, of looking past appearances, of sibling rivalry, of decisions that have a life-long impact and of small town life with its charm and chills. show less

Engrossing and heartfelt I read this book in two days! It is a sweet coming of age story about two cousins learning to be themselves and overcoming their family’s expectations.

At first I was rather concerned that this relatively rich and almost spoiled child was to be exploited by the author as spoiled, but it turns out she's really a sweetheart, almost always trying very hard to be kind, to be good, and also to figure out whether always being good is satisfying. And gosh, even she, we learn at the end, has had her horrible experiences.

Woodrow, too, is an individual, not a trope or icon in any sense at all. And I'll let you know right now I appreciate his true theory, revealed in the end, about what happened to his mother.

I like that all characters have their backstories, even Woodrow's father who gets maybe 5-6 pages of attention. We don't necessarily learn a lot about them, for example, the grandparents, show more but clearly the author knows exactly who they are.

I see that there is a sequel. Even though I only read this because of Newbery Club, I will consider reading further.

If only to get more ideas for food: cornbread crumbled on vegetables, Peach Ice drink, made from vanilla ice cream, fresh peaches, and ginger ale.

Do not name your children Belle, or Love... or Chastity or Summer or Caesar for that matter. Let them be themselves, instead of fighting with the expectations risen by their name. show less

I listened to this on CD, and loved it. Uproariously funny and touching too. Woodrow's mother, Belle, has disappeared. Story is told from the point of view of Woodrow's cousin Gypsy, and her voice stays with you. Full of delightful expressions, many of which I've adopted as my own. Which is to say, yes, I'm more broke than the ten commandments.

I picked this book up and seriously could NOT put it down. And most of the time I was standing while reading it because I was supposed to be getting in the shower, but I couldn't stop reading while standing in the bathroom telling myself to put it down and get on with my shower. That's how good it was. Good thing it was Sunday morning and I have late church.

I loved the tone and voice of the book. I loved the characters. I loved the strong family. I loved the lessons that were taught. I loved the relationships. I will definitely read the sequel and hope not to be too disappointed.

Engaging story of two cousins living in rural 1950s West Virginia, both facing loss within their families. I was pleased to see not only good character development, but also an avoidance of stereotypes.

Excellent read. Coming of age, Economic instability and inequality. The characters in this book are real and very enchanting. A young girl comes to grips with a loss and her cousin does too. They work through their problems both together and apart. Great examples of bullying and learning to stick up for others.