Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Tru & Nelle by G. Neri - OPTIONAL

Neri, G. Tru & Nelle: Based on the real-life friendship of Truman Capote and Nelle Harper Lee 328 pgs. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2016. Language: G ( 0 swears, 0“f”); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG (Bullying, KKK) .   

Seven year old Tru has been sent to live with relatives in Monroeville, Alabama.  Six-year-old tomboy Nelle lives close by, and the two strike up an immediate friendship.  They have a lot in common, they both love Sherlock Holmes,  and have the same teacher in school. Nelle defends Tru against the bullies and helps him work through his feelings of abandonment. But when someone breaks into the drugstore and the school they get to solve a real mystery.  

This is a well-written story of friendship, accepting quirky friends and dealing with disappointment. I’m not sure the intended audience will appreciate/understand who Truman Capote and Harper Lee are. The characters are so very young (6,7,8) that interest level is elementary, however, the reading level is middle school, but Capote and Lee are authors better known to the high school students (maybe).   

MS - OPTIONAL Lisa Librarian

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