Anastasia Krupnik by Lois Lowry. Yearling, 1984.
Before Number the Stars, there was Anastasia. Anastasia may seem like a normal tween who has nothing on the plot lines in The Giver and Number the Stars, but in many ways her wry personality can mean the world to someone who finds similarities between themselves and Anastasia. The plot line is pretty basic, I think what makes Anastasia stand out are the details of Anastasia's personality and her observations about the people around her.
-She can't start her great American novel until she has the perfect title.
-She thinks that Nancy Drew is lame because the most famous girl detective won't let her boyfriend Fred, put the moves on her.
-She gives her poet dad a hard time for keeping his poetry in the refrigerator (in case the house burns down). She finds this incredibly embarrassing.
-She has a wart on her thumb that by he end of the book has become a character in itself.
Basically, by the time you've read through everything Beverly Cleary has written, it is time to turn to Anastasia. Also, I think reading the series adds depth to Lowry's later works.
Appropriate for precocious 4th graders. Good for 5th to 8th graders.
AR: Book Level: 4.5 Points: 3.0
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