Curiosity
- Author: Gerald Allen Wunsch, Drawings by Irene Joslin
- Publisher: 1st Books Library (2003)
- Classification: Illustrated
- Reviewed by: Carolyn Howard-Johnson
Author Gerald Alllen Wunsch believes Curiosity is the first children’s book to tell the story of the Underground Railroad from a contemporary perspective. Trust me. Children will not care. They’ll only notice that it’s a delightful mystery a la Nancy Drew that has a couple of things going for it that are often neglected in today’s children’s literature.
Near and dear to my heart is that the protagonist and narrator, Ginger Wannamaker, has grandparents who are anything but the kind of stereotypes who should have disappeared from literature (but didn’t) in the 70s. Her grandfather whizzes around southern Indiana in his carefully groomed MG and her grandmother – though she is frequently seen preparing delicious breakfasts – does so to the beat of rock & roll.
It also approaches fiction with the curiosity, no pun intended, of a child. Once a youngster has been introduced to a subject “wire haired terriers”, as an example, or “buffalo nickles” she wants to know more about them. This book provides a fascinating nonfiction element about those things in a kind of index that entertains called “Learning More”. It even includes adorable pictures of the author’s real life and oh-so-perky dog, Laird.
Mostly, however, this story is an adventure complete with spooky old homes, secret passages and part of America’s history come alive. If a grade school child has lots of curiosity, she’ll enjoy reading this book herself. Younger children will learn from it, too, if their older siblings will only read it to them.
(Carolyn Howard-Johnson’s first novel, This is the Place, has won eight awards.
Her newly released Harkening, a collection of stories, has won three.
Her practical and detailed how-to book on promotion, THE FRUGAL BOOK PROMOTER: HOW TO DO WHAT YOUR PUBLISHER WON’T, will be released in August of 2004 by www.StarPublish.com. Learn more at: http://carolynhowardjohnson.com.)
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