Eat, Read, and Be Mommy

My second girlie has been practicing her dance to that very song–from “Anastasia”–while I’ve been reading a book about Russia before and during WWI.  Perfect timing, right?  And Gloria Whelan’s Angel on the Square is narrated by a girl whose mother was lady-in-waiting to the Empress and who therefore lived with, learned with, and played with Anastasia (nicknamed “Stana”) for years.  I’m quite sure Katya and her mother are fictional, of course, but the main events from history are all there–the war, Alexei’s hemophilia, the Bolsheviks, and the sad end of the  Romanov family.  (I thought the book might avoid the actual executions entirely, but no, they’re there.  An event spoken of rather than described, but they’re there.)

I actually checked this one out for my oldest; she read Listening for Lions in school last year and wanted something else by the same author.  I didn’t remember Whelan’s historical fiction as being masterful, but I still love the genre, so I’ve been hoarding it so I could read it first.  And, no, it’s not quite masterful, but it is compulsively readable.  It’s not the sort of book that’s full to the brim of meticulously researched details and tidbits about the time period and subject, but it’s going to have rather a broad appeal to young readers.  If your child has a passion for history, there are probably better books on the topic to be found, but if you’re looking for a fast-paced, engaging historical read written with the average middle grader in mind, don’t miss Gloria Whelan.