Sarah, Plain and Tall

MacLachlan, Patricia, Sarah, Plain and Tall, 1985, Fitzhenry & Whiteside Limited.

Keywords:

-Late 19th Century Fiction

-Country Lifestyle

-Abandonment, Loss and Love

Grades:

-3rd-5th

Annotations:

A widower places a mail order bride advertisement to have help for his two kids, Anna and Caleb. Sarah answers that advertisement and makes the move from ocean side Maine to country side Kansas. Sarah is a key role in these children's lives as she helps them cope without their mother and allows for them to trust her as the new mother figure in their lives.

Teaching Suggestions:

-Newspaper advertisements: how they work, what to write, how much they cost, etc.

-Map reading: Locate Maine, locate Kansas, means of transportation, distance, cost of travel then and now.

-Research how times have changed: clothes, transportation, homes, buildings, etc.

-How are Mail Order Bride advertisements viewed now?

Misconceptions:
-Though this story is happy through out, it is important to discuss the problems of advertisements such as these.

-Address how kids may feel now if a parent did that to them: would they be happy or mad?

Overall, this book was a happy read that would allow for positive literary support in poetry and writing. It is important to address time differences and how this book may be different in current times. Kids could either feel happy for the characters in the book, and others may feel sad because their lives may not be as happy as the characters in the book. Address your audience correctly for this particular book and set up positive questions that the students can reflect on.