JANUARY 1905
Katharine Boling, . . Harcourt, $16 (170pp) ISBN 978-0-15-205119-8
An elegant structure and carefully observed details of textile mill village life at the turn of the 20th century mark this first novel about twin 10-year-old girls. "I am full of hate," begins Pauline, "and that, I know, is wicked." She, like her parents and older brother, works in a cotton mill from "six until noon, from one until six." Her twin, Arlene, born with a deformed foot, begins the second chapter with the exact wording as her sister's. She must keep house, scrub the laundry and bring dinner in tin pails to the mill at noon. Each sister envies the other: Pauline believes Arlene is "the favored one" who leads an idle life. Arlene begrudges Pauline's "real" job and the company of girls her age. Boling (
Reviewed on: 06/14/2004
Genre: Children's