Holm, Jennifer. (2007). Penny from Heaven. New York, NY: Random House. ISBN: 9780375836893.
B. Plot Summary:
The audiobook, Penny from Heaven, is set in 1950s New Jersey, a difficult time after World War II. It is about an eleven year old girl named Penny who lost her Italian father at a very young age. No one talks about his death. Penny lives with her mother, her dog Scarlett O'Hara and her maternal grandparents who she calls Mimi and Pop Pop. Although Penny loves her mother, she doesn't like how worried and overprotective she is. Penny despises her grandmother's cooking. On the other hand, Penny loves visiting her dad's side of the family. She loves spending time with her dad's mom Nonny, cousin Frankie, and several uncles and aunts. Her Italian side is vibrant, loud and exciting.
Penny has a close relationship and adores her Uncle Dominic, her dad's brother. She wishes her mom would marry him. But her mom has other plans as she is already dating her milkman, Mr. Mulligan. While searching for some hidden family money with Frankie, Penny injures her fingers and is taken to the hospital. While staying at the hospital, she overhears two nurses talking about her mother and father. She learns that her father died because he was accused of being an Italian spy. Penny then discovers that he wasn't a spy, but was thought to be because he had a new illegal radio given to him by Uncle Dominic. Her father was then taken to an internment camp, where he got sick and died. She learns that she got her nickname Penny from the last letter her father wrote, where he called her "his lost penny." The novel ends on a high note. Penny's mother weds Mr. Mulligan and both families finally join together to celebrate.
C. Critical Analysis:
The audiobook Penny from Heaven immediately grabs the reader's attention with the vibrant narration and fun personality of the main character Penny. Holm's storytelling is easy to follow due to all of the quirky character in this historical novel. Once you get to know Penny's personality, the reader learns of her deep family issues. This is something that all readers can connect to: family deaths, two sides not talking to each other and eating food we don't like, but we just don't want to offend our grandparents. No family is perfect. The theme of this novel is to show loyalty to your family, no matter what issues arise.
There are many historical references, such as World War II, the discussion of internment camps, and movie references such as Scarlett O'Hara from Gone With the Wind. While I highly enjoyed the narration of the audiobook, I wished I had the physical copy of the book because I didn't get a chance to view the photo album that Holm included in the book, in which she shares photos and background information on the war and Italian internment camps.
D. Review Excerpts:
**Children's Literature states "Holm's writing is warm and fine; reading this book is as good as time travel into the life of the 1950s. A real treat awaits the reader at the book's end when the author writes about loosely basing Penny on her mother, complete with family pictures, a photo of the old Ebbets Field, plus a picture example of the records kept on Italian Americans during the World War."
**Publisher's Weekly states, "A youthful voice serves Sealey well as narrator of this offbeat period piece chronicling the colorful experiences of 11-year-old Penny Falucci during the summer of 1953. As Penny struggles to recover from a household accident, she learns an ugly truth about her father's death years ago and comes to understand the estrangement between her mother's family and her father's boisterous Italian clan. Holm's plot has surprising twists and turns and plenty of evocative flavor, all of which give Sealey room to stretch a bit. Her crisp, even rhythm complements the pace of the unfolding drama."
E. Connections:
The theme of this story is family loyalty, so teachers can share other books with this common theme such as The Raft. Students might also enjoy reading books about Italian culture and traditions. In older grades, students can research and learn more about World War II.
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