Hattie Big Sky

Bibliography: Larson, K. (2006). Hattie Big Sky. New York: Delacorte Press.

ISBN: 978-0375846410

Genre: historical fiction

Reading Level/Interest Age: 12+

Plot Summary:

16 year-old Hattie has never had anything of her very own, much less a home where she felt truly welcomed. She’s spent her whole life tossed about between relatives who don’t ever seem to want her. When a letter arrives addressed to her, and only her, she’s thrilled. The contents of the letter, though, captivate her soul--a distant uncle has left her his Montana farm. Hattie doesn’t care that it still needs proving up or that she doesn’t have the skills to make it happen; she’s simply thrilled by the fact that she’ll finally have a home to call her own. Armed with a pair of cast-off work gloves and some old boots a couple sizes too big, she heads west into her dreams. Much more than hard work and a steep learning curve await Hattie when she arrives in Montana. Her uncle hadn’t mentioned his debts or the immensity of the work remaining before the government would officially deed her the property. As daunting as it was, Hattie was adamant that she finish the job so that she would never, ever have to feel homeless again. New friends and neighbors showed her to sink fence posts, milk a cow and keep chickens. They lent her tools, helped sow her fields and gently suggested how to make edible bread. Hattie, in turn, shares her friendship and willingly cares for those who need help. Together, this small community creates a family, ready to face any crisis together. When crisis does indeed hit, Hattie has to choose where her true home really is.

Critical Evaluation: Hattie Big Sky is a lovely, well-crafted story, underscoring the theme of finding one’s self through multiple avenues. The plot revolves around Hattie and her amazonian efforts to prove up the Montana claim her uncle bequeathed her. She’s never had a true home of her own and believes that owning this land will give her the security she so desperately wants. Mirroring that same plot line is the struggles her friend, Charlie, is enduring. As a soldier fighting on the European frontlines of World War II, he writes to Hattie about his disillusion. He had originally thought that fighting in the war would be romantic and that he would be the hero everyone worshipped. Both he and Hattie battle cold. They battle hopelessness. They battle loneliness. They battle prejudice. But both are fighting for home. Symbolism also plays a strong role in Hattie Big Sky. The endless acres of fencing that Hattie needs to post represent the unending struggles she faces as a young woman struggling to figure out where she belongs, but just as she learns how to dig each hole and secure each post, she learns that “there were bigger things in life than proving up on a claim. I was proving up on my life” (145). The game of baseball add symbolism, imagery and even foreshadowing to deepen the effect of Hattie’s struggles. Even though she was secure in her ability to win the town baseball game thanks to her pitching skills (learned from Charlie), Hattie has to confront the fact that sometimes skill isn’t enough to succeed. When “the sky hurled hailstone after hailstone” onto her freshly sown hay, Hattie likened it to “a pitcher on fire, throwing fastball after fastball” (238). The myriad of literary devices that author Kirby Larson uses to emphasize the enormity of Hattie’s struggles creates a deep and riveting story,  for character and emotion and reader connection.

Reader’s Annotation: Hattie is willing to do anything for a home of her own, even when there’s every chance she’ll lose it. Figuring out where she truly belongs, though, becomes even more of a challenge than fighting for her farm.

Author Information: Kirby Larson is the acclaimed author of the 2007 Newbery Honor book Hattie Big Sky; its sequel, Hattie Ever After; The Friendship Doll; Dear America: The Fences Between Us; Duke; and Dash, winner of the National Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA) Gold Award and the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction. She has also co-written a number of picture books, including the award-winning Two Bobbies: A True Story of Hurricane Katrina, Friendship, and Survival and Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine, and a Miracle. She lives in Washington with her husband and Winston the Wonder Dog.¹

In 2006, Kirby began a collaboration with her good friend, Mary Nethery, which has resulted in two award-winning nonfiction picture books: TWO BOBBIES: A True Story of Hurricane Katrina, FRIENDSHIP AND SURVIVAL (illustrated by JeanCassels) and NUBS: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine and a Miracle. A frequent speaker, Kirby enjoys sharing her passion for research, reading and writing. She has presented at more than 200 schools, workshops and seminars in nearly 20 states and as far away as Qatar and Lebanon. Kirby lives in Kenmore, Washington with her husband.²

Curriculum ties: homesteading; pioneering; WWI homefront

Booktalks: Can you imagine working this hard? How would you support your friends if they were harassed?

Challenge issues: prejudice

Challenge resources (for usage in a challenge situation):

• Library Selection Policy

• Rationale explaining why the item was chosen for the collection
• Active listening skills
• Awards
• Reconsideration form (as a last resort)
• Illinois Library Association (Banned Books Listings)
• National Council of Teachers of English “Right to Read”
• Positive and negative reviews: expert, parent, student
• ALA Strategies and Tips for Dealing with Challenges to Library Materials
• ALA Bill of Rights on Intellectual Freedom

• Books and other library resources should be provided for the interest, information, and enlightenment of all people of the community the library serves. Materials should not be excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation.
• Libraries should provide materials and information presenting all points of view on current and historical issues. Materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.

Reasoning: Hattie Big Sky provides historical reference of the impact of the first World War on the American homefront while simultaneously weaving a story around homesteading. It also works to dispel the prejudices that surround both immigrants in America and women being head of households. It achieves library tenets by providing diversity, education and entertainment.

References:

¹Kirby Larson. (n.d.). Retrieved October 10, 2015, from http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/contributor/kirby-larson

²Biography Kirby Larson. (n.d.). Retrieved December 3, 2015, from http://www.kidsreads.com/authors/kirby-larson

Hattie Big Sky. (n.d.). Retrieved October 10, 2015, from http://www.amazon.com/Hattie-Big-Sky-Kirby-Larson-ebook/dp/B0010SKTBG/ref=tmm_kin_title_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1445214729&sr=1-1