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    Long Way from Chicago, Book 2, A: A Year Down Yonder
    Unavailable
    Long Way from Chicago, Book 2, A: A Year Down Yonder
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    Long Way from Chicago, Book 2, A: A Year Down Yonder
    Audiobook3 hours

    Long Way from Chicago, Book 2, A: A Year Down Yonder

    Written by Richard Peck

    Narrated by Lois Smith

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    Mary Alice and Grandma Dowdel return for more astonishing, laugh-out-loud adventures when fifteen-year-old Mary Alice moves in with her spicy grandmother for the year. Her extended visit is filled with moonlit schemes, romances both foiled and founded, and a whole parade of fools made to suffer in unusual (and always hilarious) ways.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateOct 17, 2006
    ISBN9780739371831
    Unavailable
    Long Way from Chicago, Book 2, A: A Year Down Yonder
    Author

    Richard Peck

    "I spent the first eighteen years of my life in Decatur, Illinois, a middle-American town in a time when teenagers were considered guilty until proven innocent, which is fair enough. My mother read to me before I could read to myself, and so I dreamed from the start of being a writer in New York. But Decatur returned to haunt me, becoming the "Bluff City" of my four novels starring Alexander Armsworth and Blossom Culp. When I was young, we were never more than five minutes from the nearest adult, and that solved most of the problems I write about for a later generation living nearer the edge. The freedoms and choices prematurely imposed upon young people today have created an entire literature for them. But then novels are never about people living easy lives through tranquil times; novels are the biographies of survivors. "I went to college in Indiana and then England, and I was a soldier in Germany -- a chaplain's assistant in Stuttgart -- ghost-writing sermons and hearing more confessions than the clergy. In Decatur we'd been brought up to make a living and not to take chances, and so I became an English teacher, thinking this was as close to the written word as I'd be allowed to come. And it was teaching that made a writer out of me. I found my future readers right there in the roll book. After all, a novel is about the individual within the group, and that's how I saw young people every day, as their parents never do. In all my novels, you have to declare your independence from your peers before you can take that first real step toward yourself. As a teacher, I'd noticed that nobody ever grows up in a group. "I wrote my first line of fiction on May 24th, 1971 -- after seventh period. I'd quit my teaching job that day, liberated at last from my tenure and hospitalization. At first, I wrote with my own students in mind. Shortly, I noticed that while I was growing older every minute at the typewriter, my readers remained mysteriously the same age. For inspiration, I now travel about sixty thousand miles a year, on the trail of the young. Now, I never start a novel until some young reader, somewhere, gives me the necessary nudge.. "In an age when hardly more than half my readers live in the same homes as their fathers, I was moved to write Father Figure. In it a teenaged boy who has played the father-figure role to his little brother is threatened when they are both reunited with the father they hardly know. It's a novel like so many of our novels that moves from anger to hope in situations to convince young readers that novels can be about them... "I wrote Are You in the House Alone? when I learned that the typical victim of our fastest growing, least-reported crime, rape, is a teenager -- one of my own readers, perhaps. It's not a novel to tell young readers what rape is. They already know that. It's meant to portray a character who must become something more than a victim in our judicial system that defers to the criminal... "Two of my latest attempts to keep pace with the young are a comedy called Lost in Cyberspace and its sequel, The Great Interactive Dream Machine. Like a lot of adults, I noticed that twelve year olds are already far more computer-literate than I will ever be. As a writer, I could create a funny story on the subject, but I expect young readers will be more attracted to it because it is also a story about two friends having adventures together. There's a touch of time travel in it, too, cybernetically speaking, for those readers who liked sharing Blossom Culp's exploits. And the setting is New York, that magic place I dreamed of when I was young in Decatur, Illinois..." More About Richard Peck Richard Peck has written over twenty novels, and in the process has become one of America's most highly respected writers for young adults. A versatile writer, he is beloved by middle graders as well as young adults for his mysteries and coming-of-age novels. He now lives in New York City. In addition to writing, he spends a great deal of time traveling around the country attending speaking engagements at conferences, schools and libraries... Mr. Peck has won a number of major awards for the body of his work, including the Margaret A. Edwards Award from School Library Journal, the National Council of Teachers of English/ALAN Award, and the 1991 Medallion from the University of Southern Mississippi. Virtually every publication and association in the field of children s literature has recommended his books, including Mystery Writers of America which twice gave him their Edgar Allan Poe Award. Dial Books for Young Readers is honored to welcome Richard Peck to its list with Lost in Cyberspace and its sequel The Great Interactive Dream Machine... Twenty Minutes a Day by Richard Peck Read to your children Twenty minutes a day; You have the time, And so do they. Read while the laundry is in the machine; Read while the dinner cooks; Tuck a child in the crook of your arm And reach for the library books. Hide the remote, Let the computer games cool, For one day your children will be off to school; Remedial? Gifted? You have the choice; Let them hear their first tales In the sound of your voice. Read in the morning; Read over noon; Read by the light of Goodnight Moon. Turn the pages together, Sitting close as you'll fit, Till a small voice beside you says, "Hey, don't quit." copyright © 2000 by Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers. All rights reserved.

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    Reviews for Long Way from Chicago, Book 2, A

    4/5

    531 ratings41 reviews

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    • 5/5
      This book will make you laugh out loud. It gives a wonderful view of small-town life during the 1937 recession following the Great Depression. It’s an uplifting story, one that doesn’t deny the hardships of the time, but doesn’t dwell on them either. Even though it’s set in southern Illinois, I feel the book could have been located in just about any rural small town in the country at that time. I think the book would be enjoyed by both boys and girls about age 9 and up (reading level is about grade 4.5-4.9).American actress Lois Smith narrated the audiobook. She did a marvelous job creating unique voices for Grandma Dowdel and other interesting characters such as Wilhelmina Weidenbach, Mildred Burdick, Miss Butler, Effie Wilcox, and Aunt Mae Griswold. My only complaint was her voicing of Mary Alice – it sounded too whiny and too young for a 15-year-old.
    • 4/5
      I really like this "trilogy", two of which are Newbery Award winners. The writing is descriptive of a time past and the characters are real and true to life.

      The three stories follow a brother and sister during the depression when they leave their parents to live with their Grandmother in rural Illinois, a trip to the 1933 Chicago World's Fair, ending with the brother's enlistment in the military. The book is filled with life, humor and introspection.

      I recommend this for those children who are assigned the genre of Historical Fiction.

      This is the sequel to "A Long Way From Chicago and has won the John Newbery Award for children's literature.

      The book takes place in 1937...The u.s. is in a recession, father has lost his job and their apartment forcing them to move into a "light housekeeping" room with a shared kitchen . The family is being broken up...Joey has joined the Civilian Conservation Corps planting trees, Mary-Alice (now 15 and a Junior in h.s.) is sent down to stay with Grandma Dowdel.

      No matter how hard Grandma has it, there is always food on the table and an adventure to be had. Grandma is as brusque as ever, but don't you know her sly intelligence, wry wit & love shine through.....
    • 5/5
      When Mary Alice's family falls on hard times in pre-WWII Chicago, she must spend a year in the country with her irascible Grandma Dowdel.I had never read this before, and it was recommended to me by a friend. I enjoyed very much the humor and the strong characters, particularly Grandma Dowdel. I listened to this on audiobook, and I thought the narrator did a very good job.
    • 5/5
      Richard Peck returns to the town and the smart, strong-willed, highly eccentric grandma he left us with in A Long Way From Chicago. Now Mary Alice is the narrator, coming to spend a year with Grandma alone, her brother grown and gone now. Grandma is the primary character in the short-story collection of a novel. She is always two steps ahead of everyone else, and always scheming something or other.
    • 3/5
      (this comment copied from my review for the first book)

      Excellent book, with history, humor, and discuss-able characters and themes. Somehow I just didn't really enjoy it, though. I guess because I kept comparing Mrs. Dowdel with my own widowed, opinionated, strong, privy-using Grandma, and there was some match, and some contrast, and the dissonance made me uncomfortable.

      I can't say whether to recommend it or not - read the other reviews and see for yourself.
    • 5/5
      One of my favorite books - funny, heartwarming, brought tears to my eyes.
    • 3/5
      Hmph. I _thought_ she was imitating Grandma Dowdel a little too well. Now there's two of them running their little plots. Interesting but not enjoyable, for me - if you don't mind manipulators, you might like it better.
    • 4/5
      It's 1937, and Mary Alice is now 15 years old. She has been sent to live with her grandmother while her father searches for employment. Things are tough all over, but Grandma Dowdel hasn't changed from her eccentric ways, using atypical methods to keep them both clothed and fed. Wonderful, smile-inducing book, and worthy of the Newbery it won in 2001.
    • 5/5
      Mary Alice has to go live with her Grandma Dowdel in a small town in Illinois because the Depression is hitting her family hard, with her father out of work and her parents temporarily moving to a place too small for her to stay with them. She starts off a bit appalled by life at her grandma's, without the amenities she's used to in Chicago, but grows to appreciate the town, its quirky people, and her relationship with her tough grandma.This Newbery Medal winner is a sequel of sorts to A Long Way from Chicago, but can be read as a standalone and was in fact one of the first books I read by Richard Peck. Where the first book was more a series of short stories from the summers Joey and Mary Alice stayed with Grandma Dowdel, and in fact focuses more on Joey, this one is Mary Alice looking back and remembering one year. I loved the humor and the character sketches readers get following a school year in 1937-38. Grandma Dowdel is a force of nature, and most people are afraid of her. But the relationship she has with Mary Alice grows strong, and I loved seeing how both of them changed in the course of the story. There's a lot of humor and hijinks that make for fun reading or listening.
    • 5/5
      The Little BookwormMary Alice and Grandma Dowdel from Peck's Newbery Honor, A Long Way From Chicago, return. This time Mary-Alice is sent to live with Grandma Dowdel while her father looks for work. Her brother Joey, whose point of view A Long Way From Chicago was told, is gone and Mary Alice is alone with Grandma. Told in several short stories about Mary Alice's year with her grandmother, we get to experience life in a small rural town and her "hard hearted" grandmother. But Mary Alice learns that her grandmother is more than she appears when her grandmother finds a way to do good works under the cover of only doing her part. A Year Down Yonder is a wonderful old-fashioned book and I loved it. I would recommended it to anyone.
    • 5/5
      Mary Alice is forced to move in with her grandmother during the great depression. During their time together Grandmother teaches Mary Alice many things about country living. Mary Alice starts to see just how hard her Grandmother works to make a living. She learns a lot about helping out and respecting the people around her. Grandmother is very honest to everyone about everything and isn't afraid to tell anyone she meets. (Vocab. can be tricky 5 and up novel study)
    • 4/5
      This book is the sequel to "A Long Way From Chicago," a story about two children in the 1930's going to visit their grandma for a week each summer, and the adventures that they have with Grandma each successive summer. Needless-to-say, Grandma is quite a colorful character!
      In this next book, after the boy (the older of the two) goes off to war, the girl (aged 15), must go to live with her grandmother for a year, as her parents, having lost their jobs during the depression, cannot take care of her in Chicago. She attends the local high school in the small downstate town where Grandma lives and again has many adventures. But surprisingly, she learns a lot from Grandma, learning to understand her, and taking many of the lessons she learns into her adult life.
      My thoughts: Even though this is a Young Adult book, it is very entertaining and heart-warming! I highly recommend it!

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      Set in the late 1930s, A Year Down Yonder is about a young girl whose family has fallen on hard times. Her parents have to move the family out of their apartment in Chicago, her brother signs on to a work farm out west, and Mary Alice is sent south to stay with her Grandma Dowdel. Grandma Dowdel is a fantastic character, a shotgun wielding prankster and trickster, and it’s ridiculously fun to read about the antics and adventures she drags her granddaughter Mary Alice into. And though, she’s not a hugging woman, or even a soft words kind of woman, you can tell she’s got a lot of heart and love for the people close to her. A wonderful story.
    • 5/5
      Another good'un by Peck.
    • 4/5
      Grandma Dowdel and Mary Alice are such great characters and watching Mary Alice become more and more like her grandmother as the book progresses is a hoot. Great curricular connections are available via the historical aspects of the story as well as the culinary aspects.

      Listened to Listening Library CD edition narrated by Lois Smith. Previously read in April 2003 for COTC Book Club
    • 5/5
      Review: Mary Alice is a young girl who is sent to live with her grandmother during the Great Depression because her family cannot afford to take care of her and her brother. Throughout the story, Mary Alice and her grandmother build a relationship through hardship, humor, and ultimately love. Genre: Historical FictionGenre Critique: This book was an exceptional example of historical fiction because it gives the reader an inside look into the live of a child who has to learn how to live during the Great Depression, a very impacting period of time in our country's history.
    • 5/5
      A year Down Yonder is about a young girl who moves to from Chicago to rural Illinois to live with her grandmother. Her grandmother is a tough, no non-sense woman. Mary Alice moved to live with her grandmother during the depression because her family couldn't afford to take care of her. At first, Mary Alice feels like a huge misfit because she's from the city. She had a hard time adjusting to life in rural Illinois but eventually comes to appreciate her grandmother and at the end of the book, she asks to stay with her grandmother for longer. In the end, she ends up marrying a boy she met in her grandmother's town and the book concludes with a sense that for Mary Alice, it was all meant to be. This an easy to read novel that grabs the readers attention because of the interesting characters and plot. It adds humor but stays true to the lifestyle of the people of the historical time. Genre Critique: This is a historical fiction novel. I think this is a good example of historical fiction because it contains accurate historical information and is also an engaging story. The characters are realistic and the setting reflects life during the depression. Star Rating: 5 starsMedia: N/A, no illustrations
    • 4/5
      This book is a historical fiction book for intermediate grade levels. This book tells the story of Mary Alice, who moves in with her grandmother after the height of the Great Depression so that her parents may get on their feet financially. At first Mary Alice thinks that it will be the death of her to go live in her grandmother's hicktown, but she slowly begins to fall in love with her new home. Grandmother Dowdel is quite the character, always up to something, and has a quick wit. While many people in town think that she is crazy, Mary Alice slowly begins to learn that there is a method to the madness. Many odd things occur to Grandmother and Mary Alice throughout the book, and sooner than later Mary Alice finds herself growing up and becoming just like her grandmother. The book ends with her marrying the high school boy she met in the small town during her year with Grandmother Dowdel. This is a good historical fiction book because while it is not all based on facts and does not cite any explicitly or include resources, it makes many references and implies many things having to do with the Great Depression. The book gives students a good feel for what it may have felt like to live during this time period.Style: The author's characterization of Grandmother Dowdel was very impressive to me. Without the development of that character, there would not have been a book. While reading, one is always waiting to find out what grandma was up to next. Once the character had been established, the reader was constantly curious as to what she would get into next. Media: This book is a novel and is just text.Use: This book would be great to use with intermediate grades to study author's craft, specifically characterization.This book would also be useful in a historical study of the Great Depression to increase student understanding of the times and issues.
    • 4/5
      This book tells the story of Mary Alice and the year she had to spend with her Grandma Dowdel because of the Great Depression. Having spent many summers with Grandma, Mary Alice knows the kind of year she is getting into; a year filled with mischief, gossip, and embarrassment. What she does not realize is how she will come to understand and appreciate the grandma she has always been wary of and the deep love and protection that will come over her. As Mary Alice and Grandma Dowdel spend the year together, they take the town by storm and provide care for those who rarely receive it and devious tricks for those who think they deserve everything.Genre: Historical Fiction Critique: This book is a good example of historical fiction because it provides credible facts about the Great Depression while also telling a interesting story. The plot is very realistic and could take place outside of the late 1930s, but fits nicely in this setting and helps the reader understand the everyday struggles of people in the Great Depression. Critique of Style: Richard Peck carefully crafts detailed imagery to create his style of writing. Including simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole and more, Peck creates a clear and entertaining picture in the mind of the reader throughout the story. This style is very effective in engaging the readers and allowing them to experience the scenes in the book along with the characters.Media: n/a
    • 5/5
      The sequel to "A Long way From Chicago", this book continues the story of Grandma Dowdel and Mary-Alice. This time, with her family struggling to make ends meet and her father out of a job, Mary-Alice is sent to live with Grandma Dowdel until her parents can get back on their feet. With her brother Joey off working in the west, Mary-Alice is on her own at Grandma's for the first time. While in the first book, all of the visits were recorded over their summer visits, in this one, we get to see each of the seasons and how they are handled in Grandmas' part of the world. I, again, really enjoyed this book. The characters are developed so lovingly, it feels like a return visit to old friends. In this one, Mary Alice is growing up, and starting to come into her own, although she is definitely bringing some of Grandma's traits along with her. We get even more of Grandma's hijinks, and learn how she survives and takes care of things year round in this time and place, and the lessons she teaches to Mary Alice through her actions, for better or worse. There are laugh-out-loud moments, and moments that brought tears to my eyes.I would definitely recommend this book to readers from 3rd or 4th grade (easy chapter book age) on to all ages. Younger readers will get a kick out of the historical aspects, and be asking their parents "could that have really happened?" or "would that actually work?", while older readers, as long as they are not snobs about the age-level the writing itself is aimed at, will probably find it nostalgic, either because of their own experiences, or the stories they may have heard from their parents or grand-parents. As C.S. Lewis once said, "No book is really worth reading at the age of ten, which is not equally (and often far more) worth reading at the age of fifty and beyond." As with Lewis's own Chronicles of Narnia, these books are timeless and ageless, easily read, and enjoyed just as much at 50 as they are at 10.
    • 4/5
      This book is set during the period following the Great Depression. A young girl is sent to live with her grandmother for a year. It is an excellent book and is one you can't put down.
    • 4/5
      I found the story of Mary Alice and her grandmother delightful. I loved the way Mary Alice grew to appreciate her grandmother's unconventional ways and the small town that she finds herself living in. I enjoyed watching Grandma Dowdel using her wits to keep people safe and to prick the hot air out of some of her neighbors. Very enjoyable!
    • 5/5
      I loved this one! Set in the Great Depression, this book tells the story of Mary Alice, a high school girl who is sent from Chicago to live with her Grandma Dowdel in small town Illinois. Grandma Dowdel is a stubborn straight shooter who is feared by most of the town. At first, Mary Alice isn't sure what to think of her. But as Mary Alice and Grandma face Halloween pranksters, cranky neighbors, and the Daughters of the American Revolution, they grow to like and respect one another. This is a charming, funny story that made Grandma Dowdel one of my favorite literary characters.
    • 5/5
      15 year old Mary Alice Dowdel has to spend the year 1937 in rural Illinois. She takes the train down from Chicago and her Grandma Dowdel meets her at the station. Grandma Dowdel is formidable and an amazing person. You come to see why her daughter in law and the entire town she lives in fears and respects her. Every season brings new adventures. To say they made pies for Halloween, had a Christmas play, made cherry tarts for Valentine's Day, celebrated Armistice Day, had a tornado, doesn't say much, although all are true. It was a different world in 1937, and a character like Grandma Dowdel was even different for that world. She's as Big and sure of herself as Julia Child, as down to earth as Ma Kettle, and as self sufficient and big hearted as only herself. Although this is a book which looks like it might be for younger children, it's only 130 pages, it would help to have some background in World War I and the Great Depression. Also, there are several more adult themes which weave their way through it, an unwanted pregnancy, a naked woman running through town, so I would recommend this book for girls over 11 and for any adult.
    • 4/5
      A very cute and touching story about a wild grandmother and her young and careful granddaughter. This story takes place in the year 1937 when everyone was feeling the great depression. The young grandaughter, Mary Alice, is sent to live with her grandma,Grandma Dowdel, when her parents don't have the money to take care of her. This story, a sequel to "A Long Way From Chicago" is a story that will warm the heart.
    • 5/5
      The Depression was a difficult time for families all across the country. In 1937 Mary Alice's family is forced to send her to live with her eccentric grandmother in another part of Illinois. The last thing a teen age girls wants to do is live with her crazy, eccentric grandmother in a country town. Mary Alice finds that with her grandmother, there is more than meets the eye and the year she had dreaded becomes the most entertaining and enlightening one of her life.
    • 5/5
      Mary Alice goes to stay with her eccentric grandmother who lives in a small town during the Great Depression. She dreads staying in the small town, but comes to love the town and her grandmother so much that she begs to stay. Grandma is the highlight of the story. She seems like a prickly character, never one for hugging, but through the stories Peck tells about her, we grow to learn the softer side of Grandma, a side she doesn’t really like others to see. Grandma and Mary Alice have a whole series of adventures including Halloween pranks with a privy and middle-of-the-night visits to a pecan tree and a cherry pie social with the DAR.
    • 5/5
      Great historical fiction book. The author Richard has really done an awesome job with creating unique characters that match with the time setting of the depression. Mary Alice and Grandma Dowdel make a good team in overcoming all obstacles.
    • 4/5
      In 1937, Mary Alice leaves Chicago to spend a year with her ornery grandmother in a small town. Effects of the Great Depression are deftly woven into a bildungsroman, in which Mary Alice learns to care for other people (while still demonstrating 15-year-oldness by choosing the Cuban heeled shoes from Sears-Roebuck). The engaging story draws the reader into small town 1930s American life. This would be a good recommendation for later elementary readers, but frankly, many of Peck's other works may be preferred by young readers.
    • 5/5
      A Year Down YonderThis is a quick and funny book to read. The story takes place right after the depression in 1937. Mary Alice's father has lost his job in Chicago and her parents have to get a new apartment. Mary Alice, 15, is sent to live with her Grandma Dowdel because money is tight. She used to come one week each summer with her brother Joey. But he is off planting trees for the government. When Mary Alice gets to her grandmother's hick town in Southern Illinois he has to learn to make new friends in the local high school. She has a rough start because all the girls think that she is the "rich girl from Chicago". Mary Alice states, "If I am so rich, why am I here. Mary Alice goes through different adventures with her crazy grandmother. They steal pecans and pumpkins to make pies for the school Halloween party, they booby trap the backyard so that the local boys can't knock down the outhouse, or "privy", and they rent the extra room to a starving artist from New York City. Mary Alice even goes through her first tornado. But aside from the adventures, she sees that her grandmother cares about the people in her town. Grandma Dowdel does what she can to make sure that no one goes without.This book was a very quick and enjoyable read. It picked up right where A Long Way From Chicago left off. I would recommend this book to anyone needing a historical fiction book or just a good laugh regardless of whether or not they had read the prequel! I would like to have this in my collection of reading selections for both my fifth and sixth graders because it is easier to read and yet has great literary and historical value. This would even been a great book for teachers to read aloud to fourth graders with much emphasis on the funny "hick" style language. I also wanted to note that this was one of the three books that I chose as a Reader Choice Book for my Cameron university Intermediate Literature class. I selected fifth grade as the grade most desirable to present it.Extension Activities in the classroom or at home can include naming at least 5 real people found in the story (examples: Kate Smith; Admiral Byrd). Have the student find out more information on these real folks. Have your students do a mini-report. Also there were several references on such things as the CCC; WPA; Depression, etc. that students could report on or do a collage on or poster. ALSO: Keep a list of similes/metaphors found in the book (Example: cool as a cucumber; like a woodpecker with palsy). Several things could then be done with the list. Collect some from the class members. Have them use the sayings in a story or list how many things could be "cool as a cucumber'). RESEARCH THE GOODS: A question I had as I was reading the book was: "Were there sneakers (tennis shoes?) in those days?" If so, did they call them sneakers? My mother grew-up in that time frame and she never mentioned it. There are also several other things I questioned (Lane Bryant; paper plates; switchblades; paper doilies). Have the students check some of these questions out on the Internet or in the library or by interviewing seniors who were alive during that time frame.