Review Highlights
| REVIEWS
FROM A FEW READERS: ...Typical comments [from my students] were, "This is my favorite book ever." "I LOVE this book!"... Libby --
4th Grade Teacher -- Florida ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ...I liked all of the crazy characters...But my favorite character of all was Evangeline. The emotions that she feels in the book make her seem real and come to life. Jordan -- Lake
Mary, Florida ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo The story supplies an inspiring message of facing life's problems and not running away from them, regardless of the situation.
Angel, Media Specialist,
Liberty Township, OH ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ...it reminded me of a cross between Because of Winn Dixie and Kingsolver's The Bean Trees. I will be recommending it to my students... Sherrie,
Intermediate School Media Specialist -- Florida ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo I would recommend this for most middle school and public libraries.
Barb, Middle School
Librarian, Cincinnati, OH ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ...a lovely piece of YA (Young Adult) reading... Adrienne
– Tampa, Florida ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo This is a wonderful story that made me laugh and cry... A great book to curl up with! Linda –
Tilton, New Hampshire ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo What a delightful book! ... I truly do believe that this book shouldn't be limited to kids. Kathe -
Grayson, Georgia ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo … I just absolutely loved it!! It was very touching... Cheyenn –
Garden City, Kansas ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ... A good lesson on responsibility and not giving up... Joel --
West Palm Beach, Florida ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ... Evangeline Brown...will break your heart and make you grin ear to ear. Darren --
San Diego, California |
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| FROM
THE BOOK'S DUST JACKET: ... a poignant story that both touched my heart and tickled my funny bone ---an honest tale that speaks to the longing for love and attention in us all. Han Nolan |
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PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY ...Davis's skillful assembly of well-defined characters and her precise, concisely wrought descriptions add color to Eddie's bleak surroundings and demonstrate that love, beauty and compassion can flourish in the most unlikely places.... |
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| ABA BOOK SENSE
CHILDREN'S PICKS ...Warm, funny, and thoughtful -- this book has it all! |
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| BOOKPAGE ...a dead-on understanding of what it's like on the other side of the tracks... accurately captures the mixture of resentment and shame that many poor children feel, but also delivers plenty of the thing they need most: hope... |
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| STORIES FOR CHILDREN MAGAZINE The theme of this award-winning book is how children who live with alcoholic, dysfunctional parents in poverty have many challenges to face but can also be resilient when necessary. Both the characters and the plot are well developed, and the narration flows smoothly for easy reading. |
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| MIAMI HERALD ...a great character, a near-sighted tuffy with skinned knees and a gruff exterior masking her very frightened soul. What she's afraid of ... is that no one loves her. She's wrong. I do, for one. |
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| SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL ... Likable characters are developed in a satisfying, linear plot that explores the challenges of living with dysfunctional adults... |
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| YA BOOKS CENTRAL ...brought me back to when I was young and we had just moved to Florida... a nicely written story about the importance of friendship, family, and being true to yourself. |
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| KIDSREADS ...a poignant book with fresh, surprising characters (I love Eddie's attitude!) and a lively but thoughtful plot... |
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| HORN BOOK GUIDE ...Her [Evangeline's] gradual acceptance of friendship and growing trust of adults is believable. Setting and characterizations are also well drawn in this poignant story. |
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| FALL BOOK REVIEW ... The story is heart-wrenching because it is the story of many children... I plan to offer this book to students who live in similar situations... |
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| ROUND ROCK
INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT ... Students will enjoy this story of a strong sixth grader working through difficulties and coming out a winner. |
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| NEW BOOKS FOR YOUNG
READERS ...This story illustrates some effective problem solving, and teaches the reader to appreciate life a little more. |
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| CHILDREN'S
LITERATURE ....Davis's story is well written, evoking both laughter and tears. Children and adults alike will enjoy this story of Eddie's growth and maturation. |
Complete Reviews
| REVIEWS FROM
READERS
... I started reading your book to my homeroom last week---the 1st wk of school. Today we invited my team teacher's 25 kids in to share with us. My kids very excitedly told the others about the book and tried to get them up to speed. When it was time for lunch, no one wanted to leave!!!! Typical comments were, "This is my favorite book ever." "I LOVE this book!" On and on. I was supposed to give them your website as many wanted to get in touch with you but the day got away from me. Tomorrow! ...they're just mesmerized by everything and can't wait to meet you... From an email - Libby -- 4th Grade Teacher -- Florida ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo Crazy Characters at the
Cadillac Motel Evangeline Brown and the Cadillac Motel is about eleven year old Evangeline whose Pa is an alcoholic. So is her pa’s best friend Jesse. Evangeline’s best friend is Farrell, which is Jesse’s son. Evangeline’s ma died when she was very young. Farrell and Eddie (that is Evangeline’s nickname) have trouble with their Pas’ when their teacher, Miss Rose, visits their houses. One day they hear Miss Rose talking to the principal that she is going to call social services about their problems at home. Farrell has had social services called before, and he tells Eddie that they will never get him again...NEVER! I can’t tell you how the story ends, but I can tell you what I enjoyed most. I liked all of the crazy characters. One of my favorites was Angelique Starr; that is her stage name. Angelique always puts on makeup like a clown as described by Eddie. Another interesting person was a man who escaped from jail. Eddie gives details about his eyes, which made me feel that his eyes told lies. But my favorite character of all was Evangeline. The emotions that she feels in the book make her seem real and come to life. Evangeline Brown and the Cadillac Motel was the winner of the Ann Durell Fiction Contest with Dutton Children’s Books. It has also been nominated as a future Sunshine State book. I was able to do an interview with Ms. Davis and asked her what her favorite part of the book was. It was at the end, so you’ll have to read this exciting book to find out! From a book
review by Jordan -- student -- Lake Mary, Florida oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooSummary:
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| Review: (From the book dust jacket) With its wonderfully willful heroine, reminiscent of Scout in To Kill a Mocking Bird, Evangeline Brown and the Cadillac Motel is a poignant story that both touched my heart and tickled my funny bone ---an honest tale that speaks to the longing for love and attention in us all. Han Nolan |
| Review: PUBLISHER'S
WEEKLY Sixth-grader Eddie (short for Evangeline Dawn) Brown, narrator of this impressive first novel, lives in Paradise, Fla., a town "full of dust and dirt and rotting buildings," and her history is just as grim as the setting. Her mother is dead, her pa is alcoholic, and Eddie hates living in a run-down motel, which features "the big butt end of [a] pink Cadillac [that] looks like it's crashed partway through the cinder-block wall of the motel office." Eddie's prospects for the future begin to brighten, however, after she meets three newcomers to Paradise: Miss Rose, a teacher who recognizes Eddie's intelligence and singing talent; Angelique Starr, an exotic-looking guest at the motel; and, most importantly, Farrell Garrett, a boy who has suffered even more than Eddie. When Eddie and Farrell overhear Miss Rose planning to call Social Services about the poor living conditions of some of her students, the two decide to run away. Davis's skillful assembly of well-defined characters and her precise, concisely wrought descriptions add color to Eddie's bleak surroundings and demonstrate that love, beauty and compassion can flourish in the most unlikely places. Ages 8-up. Copyright
© Reed Business Information |
Review:
ABA AUTUMN 2004 BOOK SENSE CHILDREN'S PICKS Eddie (Evangeline Dawn) and Farrell find friendship in the unlikely town of Paradise. Both have drunks for fathers, tough skins from being bullied, and bright, but undiscovered, minds. Warm, funny, and thoughtful -- this book has it all! Reviewed
by Jane Morck, |
Review: BOOKPAGE -- Life on the wrong side of the tracks Almost 17 percent of American children live in poverty, a startling statistic. Michele Ivy Davis gives readers a touching and realistic glimpse into the life of one of these children in her new novel Evangeline Brown and the Cadillac Motel. Davis must have grown up poor, or had close friends who did, because she shows a dead-on understanding of what it's like on the other side of the tracks. Evangeline (Eddie, to her friends) Brown lives in a sleepy little Florida town called Paradise, and she doesn't like her home life very much. There's a lot not to like. For starters, her mother died when she was small, and she lives at her father's business, a run-down motel with the tail end of a pink Cadillac mounted on one wall. If that weren't embarrassing enough, she sports a wardrobe of second-hand clothes, and most of the time when she gets home from school, her father is passed out, drunk. She shuns, and is shunned by, the other kids at school, and with sixth grade starting up, she's dreading the wizened old teacher she's sure to get. Imagine Eddie's surprise when young Miss Rose strolls in the door! Her happiness quickly turns to consternation when her new teacher puts her in the front of the class, and after sizing up a few test scores, begins to call on her more than she'd like. She reluctantly tries out for the choir at Miss Rose's behest, but the last straw comes when she finds out that the teacher is planning on visiting her at home! With the help of her new friend Farrell, the son of her dad's drinking buddy, Eddie decides on a drastic plan of action—she's going to run away. Davis accurately captures the mixture of resentment and shame that many poor children feel, but also delivers plenty of the thing they need most: hope. The winner of the Dutton Children's Books Ann Durell Fiction Contest, Evangeline Brown and the Cadillac Motel is a winning first novel that young readers will learn from and enjoy. Review by James Neal Webb |
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Review: STORIES FOR CHILDREN MAGAZINE Evangeline Dawn Brown, who used her first two initials to come up with the nickname Eddie, lives with her widowed father in an apartment of the gaudy Cadillac Motel (it actually has the end of an old pink Cadillac automobile sticking out the front) which he owns and operates on Celestial Ave. in Paradise, FL. Unfortunately, her father spends most of his time drinking beer and whisky with his old friend Jesse, who had recently moved to town and works on cars at a nearby garage, and has more often than not been in an alcoholic stupor since Eddie's mother died. It seems as if the only people who care anything about her are Ruby, the motel's housekeeper, and Angelique, a new resident at the motel who begins working some at the front desk. Because it is on the "wrong side" of town, Eddie has few friends at school. However, the summer before Eddie goes into sixth grade, she and Jesse's son Farrell become good friends, partially because they have several things in common--grieving over dead mothers, having alcoholic fathers, and playing basketball. Things seem to be going a little better until the new school teacher that fall, Miss Rose, starts visiting the homes of her students. Eddie is almost ashamed for her to visit the Cadillac Motel. After Miss Rose had visited both Farrell's and Eddie's homes, the two youngsters overhear her telling the principal that she was going to call social services to get help for some of the families. Farrell had been involved with social services following his mother's death, was in several foster homes before coming to Paradise, and did not want to go back to that. So he and Eddie hatch a plan to run away to Atlanta, GA, and live with Farrell's grandmother. Will they make it, or will something happen to keep them from carrying out their scheme? The theme of this award-winning book is how children who live with alcoholic, dysfunctional parents in poverty have many challenges to face but can also be resilient when necessary. Both the characters and the plot are well developed, and the narration flows smoothly for easy reading. Parents, especially of children on the younger end of the reading level, should know that there are some cursing and taking the Lord's name in vain, though Eddie does wince whenever she says a bad word because her dad had taught her not to "cuss." There is a definite sadness that runs throughout the book, but in the end there is a positive note of hope. One may not always approve of the choices that Eddie makes, but they are understandable given the circumstances, and there are important lessons to be learned from the fact that Eddie is able to find the help that she needs. Review by Wayne S. Wallker |
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Review: MIAMI HERALD Somebody to Love Over in Tampa, another first-time novelist, Michele Ivy Davis, entered her novel in a national contest and won the grand prize -- a publishing contract. Evangeline Brown and The Cadillac Motel (Dutton, $16.99, ages 8 to 12) debuts next month, the bittersweet tale of a motherless child who makes her first true friend and rescues her father from his alcohol-soaked grief. Eddie -- the nickname Evangeline gives herself -- is a great character, a near-sighted tuffy with skinned knees and a gruff exterior masking her very frightened soul. What she's afraid of -- get out your hankies -- is that no one loves her. She's wrong. I do, for one. Review
by Sue Corbett |
Review: SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL Sixth-grader Evangeline Dawn Brown is embarrassed about the "butt end" of an old pink Cadillac that protrudes from a wall of her father's run-down motel as a gimmick to attract customers in Paradise, FL. Even more embarrassing is the fact that since her mother died, her father has become an alcoholic. Fortunately, a new friend, Farrell, likes basketball as much as she does, lives nearby, and shares many of her feelings since his mother is dead, too, and his father drinks with Eddie's father. The protagonist is a good student who is happy with her new teacher until the woman announces that she will visit each child's home. Eddie does her best to make a good impression during the visit, but her father is obviously drunk. Both youngsters fear intervention by social workers who might send them to foster homes, and they plan to run away together. Likable characters are developed in a satisfying, linear plot that explores the challenges of living with dysfunctional adults. Though this novel is not as multilayered as Patricia Reilly Giff's Pictures of Hollis Woods (Random, 2002), readers will find parallel relationships and action. Review
by Jean Gaffney |
| Review: YA BOOKS CENTRAL Everyone, sometimes secretly and sometimes not, likes to read about familiar places and familiar things. Reading Evangeline Brown and the Cadillac Motel brought me back to when I was young and we had just moved to Florida. We lived for the summer in a motel much like Evangeline's while we searched for a house. Backwoods Florida has hundreds of these little places: small, dusty, paint peeling off the walls, the smell of mildew assaulting you whenever you open the door. But they still have charm for all of that. Evangeline is having a hard time seeing the charm since her mother died. Her dad doesn't keep the place up like he could (in fact, he spends more time drinking with his buddy than anything else). She doesn't have any friends at school until Farrell comes to live next door with her Pa's drinking buddy. It's an uneasy friendship at first, since neither of them seems to know exactly how to behave. A new teacher at school is a pleasant surprise for Evangeline. Instead of the dreaded Mrs. Thornton, she has the young and pretty Miss Rose. But Miss Rose is planning on scheduling home visits and that scares both Evangeline and Farrell. They know that their home life isn't all it's cracked up to be and Evangeline in particular is both embarrassed and ashamed. Things come to a head when Evangeline and Farrell both fear that Social Services are coming to take them away. (There are quite a few other things going on in this story, but I don't want to give away every detail) In the end, they both discover that family is what you make of it. This is a nicely written story about the importance of friendship, family, and being true to yourself. I recommend this book for readers aged 10 and up. Review
by Kimberly Pauley |
| Review: KIDSREADS.COM In this novel, which won
the coveted Ann Durrell Fiction Contest (Dutton
Children's Books' contest for new writers of
middle-grade fiction), Evangeline
"Eddie" Brown lives in poverty with her
beer-sodden father. Their home is the rarely
frequented Cadillac Motel, decorated with the
butt-end of a pink Cadillac. Eddie has lived in
Paradise since she was born. The motel is in sad
shape and so is Eddie's Pa, who has never
recovered from her mother's death when Eddie was
five. Ruby, the motel maid, functions somewhat as
a mom substitute. Eddie is friendless and teased
unmercifully at school. Reviewed by Terry Miller
Shannon |
| Review: HORN BOOK GUIDE Eleven-year-old Evangeline has built a protective shell around herself in order to survive life with an alcoholic father in their increasingly decrepit Florida motel. Her gradual acceptance of friendship and growing trust of adults is believable. Setting and characterizations are also well drawn in this poignant story. MVK.
181pg. The Horn Book, Copyright 2004 |
| Review: FALL BOOK REVIEW Summary Evaluation Reviewed
by Deborah Peters, 8th grade Language Arts
teacher, |
| Review: ROUND ROCK
INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT Evangeline, who would rather be called "Eddie," lives with her father in the rundown Cadillac Motel in the poorer area of the town of Paradise on Celestial Avenue. Since her mother has died, her alcoholic father takes little interest in Eddie or the upkeep of the motel. Her best friend (actually her only friend) is Farrell whose father is her dad's drinking buddy. After their new teacher makes home visits, they overhear her discussing calling the social services concerning the home conditions of some students. They know that they are the ones she is discussing. Farrell convinces Eddie that the best thing for them to do is to run away to stay with his grandmother in Atlanta. Students will enjoy this story of a strong sixth grader working through difficulties and coming out a winner. (Rating: Outstanding/Superior) Karen
Hodges, Librarian |
| Review: NEW BOOKS FOR YOUNG
READERS Evangeline, or Eddie, appears to have a simple life, living in the town of Paradise. Her and her Pa dwell in a tacky worn-out 50’s motel, with a big “Cadillac butt” sticking out of the storefront. Pa thinks the idea will appeal to customers, but Eddie detests it. With the new school year starting soon and a teacher she does not like, Eddie encounters some new faces that may change her life. When she realizes that her family life is in jeopardy, she wants to do something about it, and fast. Running away seems to be the thing to do. In Evangeline Brown and the Cadillac Motel, Michele Ivy Davis successfully engages the reader in the many events of Eddie’s life. This story illustrates some effective problem solving, and teaches the reader to appreciate life a little more. Department
of Curriculum and Instruction |
| Review: CHILDREN'S
LITERATURE Evangeline, otherwise known as Eddie, is a ten-year-old girl who lives an isolated life in Paradise, a small town in Florida. Her family is poor, and her distant, lazy, alcoholic father runs a broken-down motor lodge called the Cadillac Motel. Her mother died when she was young; unfortunately her father won't even talk to her about it. To make matters worse, the kids at school pick on her. Things pick up, though, when she befriends Farrell, a ten-year-old boy who lives nearby. Farrell has had a difficult life too, for he has only an alcoholic father as well, and he is the only one who truly understands Eddie. The two become close over the course of the school year, and they forge a strong friendship. As their respective situations worsen at home, the two decide they must do something to change their lives. They decide to run away to Atlanta, but after a frightening encounter at the bus station and a night out in the woods, Eddie gains a truer understanding of her father and decides to return home. Farrell, unable to part with Eddie, also returns. The whole experience brings the two closer together and improves their respective relationships with their fathers. Davis's story is well written, evoking both laughter and tears. Children and adults alike will enjoy this story of Eddie's growth and maturation. 2004, Dutton's Children's Books, Ages 12 up. Jennings Graves -
Children's Literature |
