Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

Unavailable
In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson
Unavailable
In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson
Unavailable
In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson
Audiobook3 hours

In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson

Written by Bette Bao Lord

Narrated by Melissa Hughes

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

4/5

()

Currently unavailable

Currently unavailable

About this audiobook

In 1947, the Year of the Boar, Sixth Cousin, also known as Bandit, leaves China with her parents for a new beginning in America. Proud of the American name that she chose herself, Shirley Temple Wong is optimistic that her new home will be the land of many opportunities. But it's harder than she expected. Though her classmates in Brooklyn come from a variety of backgrounds, Shirley is the only one who doesn't speak English, and she worries that she will never have a friend. Then she gets in a fight with Mabel, the tallest, scariest girl in the fifth grade. Though Shirley winds up with two black eyes, she is faithful to the code of childhood and doesn't tell anyone what happened. Her silence gains her the respect and friendship of Mabel, who gives her the gift that truly changes her life: baseball. Soon Shirley is the biggest Brooklyn Dodgers fan of all, listening to the radio to hear the triumphs and heartbreaks of the team and her hero, Jackie Robinson. In the hands of acclaimed author Bette Bao Lord, who based this remarkable novel on her own experiences as a young immigrant, Shirley's story resonates with hope, poignancy, and that special mixture of humor and seriousness that characterizes a child's view of childhood.
LanguageEnglish
Release dateNov 1, 2011
ISBN9781609987237
Author

Bette Bao Lord

Bette Bao Lord based her acclaimed middle grade novel In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson largely on the days when she herself was a newcomer to the United States. She is also the author of Spring Moon, nominated for the American Book Award for First Novel, and Eighth Moon.

Related to In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson

Related audiobooks

Children's Animals For You

View More

Related articles

Reviews for In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson

Rating: 3.7849986 out of 5 stars
4/5

100 ratings6 reviews

What did you think?

Tap to rate

Review must be at least 10 words

  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    A cute read! A little girl from China tries to learn about life in her new country, the United States, while keeping the traditions and memories of her old country, in the year of the Boar, 1947. It’s a good story! My issue with the book was that I was expecting more about Jackie Robinson, based on the title. He’s in here, but as just a part of Shirley Temple Wong’s new life. I wanted more! But if you’re looking for a good story about being in a new country, this will do!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I loved how this story was told through the viewpoint of a young Chinese immigrant. It gave me a better understanding of how someone might feel moving to new country with a completely different language and culture. Shirley’s adjustment was often humorous, making this a fun book to read. I also liked that the book explained some of Chinese culture. When Shirley’s family learned that she would be moving to America, Shirley desperately wanted to know what was going on but knew she could not ask because it is not appropriate for children to ask questions in China. The message of this book is learning to adjust to new environments.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    1947 is the year of the boar in the Chinese calendar, and it's the year when 10 year-old Sixth Cousin and her mother leave Chungking to reunite with her father in their new Brooklyn home. Taking the name of Shirley Temple Wong to better fit in, she doesn't speak English and is smaller than her new classmates. All her attempts to make friends fail until she discovers baseball and the new star of the Brooklyn Dodgers, Jackie Robinson.Though it's a children's book, this is a good story about the difficulties of transitioning between cultures. We meet Shirley first in her very traditional extended Chinese home, where every member of the family is aware of the hierarchy, then see her try to figure out a place that has so little structure. It's based on the author's own arrival in America
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    This is the story of a ten year old girl that grew up in China with a whole clan of family around her which was the custom. She then moves to America with her mother. They go there to live with her father who went before them. This story starts by introducing the chinese clan members and their customs used at New Year. They are celebrating the year of the boar. She leaves for America shortly after that celebration. She is called Sixth cousin or bandit at this home. At the celebration her Grandfather tells everyone that she can't go to America with such a name. from that time forward she is her American name: Shirley Temple Wong.The story is told in her point of view. it tells of her struggles of new new world like the fact that she doesn't speak English. Or how the people looked different like the woman with no eyebrows. I think that Lord did a good job helping you visualize the things of China with the things of Brooklyn,NY. It was the year of the boar; it was the year of Jackie Robinson. I am not sure if I would recommend this book. I thought it had good detail but had a hard time reading it.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Charming and sweet, Shirley Temple Wong wins the readers' hearts in the first chapter when she suggests that her grandfather give her the American name of Uncle Sam. She receives Shirley Temple instead and sets sail for her new home in New York, where she discovers a land of new wonders: washing machines, refrigerators, skyscrapers, and a new language that sounds like "gurgling water." Small moments throughout the story continuously endear Shirley to the reader. While trying to imitate winking, her teacher mistakes her constant blinking for an eyesight problem, and when she asks her teacher about the girl Jackie Robinson, the reader laughs with the class, enjoying a moment that is only embarrassing on the surface. For once Shirley learns about Jackie Robinson, she discovers that the class had complimented her baseball skills. Delightfully entertaining and meaningful.Classroom uses: topics for discussion include loneliness, identity, customs, friendship, & opportunity
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This is a very good book but it's not extremly good, the things I liked about this book were how the author used ways of describing the scene or the person of a part, like when an old piano teacher takes out her teeth and makes her talk and sound weird. I also like how when your done reading you feel like there is more to the book. In all the book was great but not the best I ever read.