PROJECT MULBERRY
by Linda Sue Park
Clarion Books
ISBN: 0618477861
Ages 9-13
240 pages

This is the story of Julia and her friend Patrick, and their project for the state fair. But it's also the story of how the book was made, for between the chapters we get to eavesdrop on the author, Linda Sue Park, chatting with her character, Julia. Ms. Park explains how she wrote the book, where some of the ideas came from, and how she can't ever get away from Julia! If you really want to, you can read the story straight through, skipping over the in-between author/character conversation, but you'll miss out on some fun and fascinating information.

Julia's mother suggests that Julia and Patrick raise silkworms, as Julia's great-grandmother did in Korea. Patrick embraces the idea, but Julia is not enthused; she fears that it seems way too Korean. Secretly, she hopes growing silkworms will prove to be impossible --- and then they can find an all-American-type project instead of an Asian one.

To Julia's dismay, silkworm eggs are available. However (to her delight) it seems the mulberry leaves that the worms must eat are harder to find. Can Julia pretend to be trying to help find a mulberry tree while continuing to hope they never find one?

PROJECT MULBERRY tells an interesting tale, offers the unique author chat between chapters, and also touches on many subjects: racism, nature's cycles, life and death, the pain and pleasure of having a little brother, friendship, feeling different, self-acceptance, and sustainable farming. The author embroiders the story's threads into an exquisite whole, presenting us with a book that is unusually satisfying on many levels.

Highly recommended!

   --- Reviewed by Terry Miller Shannon (terryms2001@yahoo.com)

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