Module 4: Caddie Woodlawn, Newbery 1936

Citation
Brink, C.  (1935).  Caddie Woodlawn.  New ed., 1973.  New York: Macmillan Publishing.

Summary
Eleven-year-old Caddie Woodlawn struggles with what it means to be a girl and grow into a woman on the frontier of Wisconsin during the Civil War.  Told through a series of stories, this tale primarily relates the adventures and misadventures of Caddie and her two closest brothers, Tom and Warren.  It delves into the complex relationship of settlers to Native Americans of the area, including a sympathetic, if not politically correct, character by the name of Indian John with whom the Woodlawns enjoy mutual respect.

Impression
As I referenced in my discussion post, this is one of those books that I had wanted to read for many years and have finally had "practical" enough excuse to do so.  What a marvelous work of American literature!  Comparisons with Laura Ingalls Wilder are inevitable; I read Wilder's books voraciously as a child and young adult.  Though I still love and will always love tales of Laura, her books feel less introspective than this little volume.  Perhaps this is just a function of having so many volumes to tell her story, which covers many years.  However, Brink's story, based upon her own grandmother's childhood experiences, provided this reader with yet another positive female protagonist, full of spirit, spunk, and compassion.  Her relationship with her siblings and parents is characterized skillfully and lovingly.  I strongly recommend this book for any collection, as its themes and characters are timeless, while the story itself is set in an interesting time in American history.

Review
Jaffke, K.  (2007).  Caddie Woodlawn [webpage].  From Wisconsin Kids Paper Dolls: A Learning Resource from WisHis for Kids website.  Retrieved from http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/kids/dolls/caddie/reviews.htm

Excerpt:
My favorite part of the book was when Caddie used her entire silver dollar to buy things such as a comb, candy, and other goodies for three small children who did not have a mother. This was a very unselfish thing for Caddie to do. She was being very kind and a good friend to those little children.
I wouldn't change any part of this book. I enjoyed this whole book and found it to keep my interest for the entire time. I would recommend it to my friends because it was an exciting book that showed how life was in the 1860's from a 11 year old's perspective. Caddie was very different from other children, especially different from other girls. She made this book very entertaining and kept me connected. I always wanted to come back and read what exciting adventures that Caddie would have next.

Suggestions for Use

This book certainly lends itself well to read-alouds.  However, I think that an interesting way to use the book would be to create an American frontier-themed evening for families in the library.  Children could be encouraged to dress as their favorite characters from the American frontier.  The librarian would promote Caddie, the Little House books, The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate, and many other books chronicling life on the frontier.  The American diary series would be good selections, as well.  Perhaps families with Native American heritage could share their experiences and perspectives.  I would envision this event as taking place in February, when we celebrate Presidents' Day.  Abraham Lincoln himself represents part of the mythology of the American frontier, and his birthday would tie in well to such an evening.