Book: City of Orphans
Author: Avi
Illustrator: Greg Ruth
Publisher: Atheneum Books For Young Readers
Pages: 350
Grade Level: 5th and up
Rating: 5 Stars
At the end of the Nineteenth century, the streets of New York were flooded with Newsies, young boys selling the daily newspaper. Maks, a thirteen year old boy sells his copies of The World to help support his immigrant family. He is in constant fear of being attacked by the Plug Uglies, a gang that harasses Newsies, which is how he meets Willa, a young girl who comes to aid Maks when he is assaulted. When Maks’ sister Emma is accused of stealing from a guest at the Waldorf hotel, Maks and Willa take on the case with the help of a sickly lawyer to save her from jail time. Avi recreates old New York with a complete sense of how poor and difficult tenement life was for immigrants.
I read this book right after I saw the Disney movie Newsies, which takes place around the same year with a similar premise focusing on the Newsies in Old New York. The two are perfect companions for any class learning the history of New York. Avi is an amazing writer of historical fiction, and truly transports the reader to the time and place he is writing about. If you have seen the movie, you MUST read this book! And if you have read the book, you will definitely enjoy the movie immensely!
