From the Bookshelf of Mock Newbery 2026…
Find A Copy At
Group Discussions About This Book
No group discussions for this book yet.
What Members Thought
Apr 14, 2013
Barbara
rated it
liked it
Shelves:
immigration,
jobs,
literacy,
rural-life,
cultural-identity,
folk-tales,
bullies,
animals,
civil-rights,
community
Set in 1870 and 1871 in Reconstruction era Louisiana, this historical fiction title follows one sugar cane harvest season in the life of ten-year-old Sugar. Sugar lives on the River Road plantation along with several elderly residents who have befriended her after the death of her mother. The Beales have taken her in as a sort of surrogate child now that all their own children have left the area. Although life is hard, Sugar still manages to find time to play and to dream. Her friendship with Bi
...more
Sugar is a 10 year old living in Louisiana in 1870 right after slavery has ended. Her father was sold right after she was born, her mother died working the sugarcane fields and though she is free, Sugar has no one to move North with. Mr & Mrs Beale take good care of Sugar, but they are older and afraid of change, so being reluctant to move North, they stay on Mr. Will's plantation working the sugar cane fields for him each year. Being somewhat of a spunky trouble seeker, she develops a forbidden ...more
Sugar's comes from a family of slaves. Her father was sold off before the Civil War and even after the war her mother refused to leave the plantation in hopes that he would come back to them. But he hasn't. Then Sugar's mother dies. Now Sugar is by herself on the plantation with the other former slaves who have stayed to work. Unfortunately, it is mainly the older slaves who are tired and didn't think they could resettle somewhere else. Change is hard. The overseer doesn't want to accept that th
...more
10-year-old Sugar is an orphan on a sugar plantation in Louisiana during Reconstruction. She lives with a group of slaves who stayed on after they were freed, but they work just as hard as if they were still slaves. She's got spirit and makes trouble, and she and the owner's son become friends to the chagrin of everyone around them. When a group of Chinese workers come to the plantation to help with the harvest, Sugar helps to bridge the cultural gap between the two groups. Solid historical fict
...more
I was a little unsure about this book. I wanted to read it, but I wasn't sure it would grab my attention. I was wrong. This book was very engaging. Readers won't be able to help themselves as they cheer for Sugar, Billy, and Beau. Set in the 1870s after The Civil War, the story shares how African Americans were still treated poorly and unfairly. I found it very interesting that Chinese people cam over to work on the plantations, but very much enjoyed Beau's strong, patient, caring character. A v
...more
Again, I had to fight my impulse to not like this book just based on the "Historical Fiction" label. I fell in love with spunky Sugar.
...more
In post-Civil War Louisiana, 10-year-old orphan Sugar is on her own. She works all day in the sugar cane fields and dreams of going north - but there is no one to take her. As many of the former slaves have left, the plantation owner brings in a crowd of Chinese men to work his fields. At first the remaining blacks are unhappy about their new neighbors and coworkers, but Sugar proves to be the force who unites them both. Yet not everyone is happy about the end of slavery and the coming of foreig
...more
Sugar lives alone in old slave quarters on a plantation. But slavery ended with the war. Not that Sugar feels very free. She still must work long hours at back-breaking tasks. No one seems to care that she's just a little girl. This is a interesting look at life in the post-war South. I especially enjoyed learning about the Chinese presence during the Reconstruction period.
...more
Apr 16, 2013
Addy
marked it as to-read
Apr 16, 2013
Mary Ann
marked it as to-read
May 13, 2013
Ernie Cox
added it
Jul 22, 2013
Maria Caplin
marked it as to-read
Nov 15, 2015
Julie
marked it as to-read
Aug 23, 2016
Donalyn
marked it as to-read
Aug 29, 2016
Kate
marked it as to-read
Oct 02, 2016
Jenny
marked it as to-read
Jul 25, 2018
Michelle
marked it as to-read
Jan 16, 2021
Kirsten Barber
marked it as to-read-soon
