|
|
| Plot Summary of Fresh Air |
|---|
"
Mira, Apr 2003, 23.95, 288 pp.
ISBN: 1551666820
For the most part, Lucinda Hunter has not left her Connecticut home in twenty-seven years. Rarely she will leave to go into town, but that takes quite a struggle for her to achieve. Shockingly, Lucinda is the daughter of the late great actress Lily Hunter and a noted screenwriter in her own right. However, when her mother died, Lucinda learned that her father was a black man. Unable to cope with not knowing whether she belongs to the white or black race, both or neither, she became a hermit.
Lucinda looks out her window to see a young African-American female playing in her yard. The girl invites Lucinda outside. Surprisingly she goes and soon a bond forms between the nine-year-old Harlem resident Katanya Taylor, in town as part of the FRESH AIR program, and the recluse. As they become better acquainted, Kat helps Lucinda overcome her agoraphobia one step at a time.
FRESH AIR is an engaging contemporary tale that showcases how modern communication systems enable an individual to hide from society as everything can be ordered on line. The story line focuses on friendship, as everyone needs someone to care about. Lucinda is an incredible lead character and though Kat acts more like an adult than a preadolescent, readers will find her charming too. The support cast provides the audience deep insight into Lucinda as Charlotte Vale Allen gifts her fans with a deep psychological drama.
Harriet Klausner
"
Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
|
"Lucinda Hunter, daughter of the famous late movie star Lily Hunter, lives a solitary life. Now getting on in age, she suffers from agorophobia which prevents her leaving the house for any real length of time. One day, a little black girl named Katanya is by her window. Katanya waves to her and beckons her outside to talk. An instant friendship ensues. Katanya lives in the city but has come to the country for two weeks for the "Fresh Air" program. The family she has to stay with suffers a marital breakdown and Katanya tries to stay away from the tension and also the prejudice evident in the house.
Katanya spends a lot of time with Lucinda and they get to know each other's lives. Slowly but surely, Katanya encourages Lucinda to go outside for the first time in years. Lucinda's desire to show Katanya a good time on her exchange seems greater than her desire to be a hermit.
Lucinda found out after her mother's death that her father was a black man, however Lucinda never met him or his family. She hired a detective company to try and find him but was unsuccessful. Katanya, who is extraordinarily bright for her age, gives a new approach to the search and Lucinda is motivated to look again.
This book looks at several fascinating facets, agorophobia, the search for your parents/family tree, racial prejudice and the struggle for identity when you have a mixed parentage. It also is a heartwarming story of family and friends, and the triumph of love in the life of the lonely."
Louisa Eggleton, Resident Scholar
|
|
| Review Analysis of Fresh Air |
|---|
|
Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
|
|
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book?
- thoughtful
Time/era of story
- present (2000-2010)
Inside culture (main char)
- Black
Internal struggle/realization?
Yes
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Ethnic/regional/gender life
Yes
Brain/Body disability?
- mental illness
Woman's story?
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Female
Profession/status:
- writer
Age:
- 40's-50's
Eccentric/Mental
Yes
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
How sensitive is this character?
- soggy whimpering jelly muffin
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Strong but gentle sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
- Very much smarter than other characters
Physique
- very athletic
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- none
Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings?
- 2 ()
United States
Yes
The US:
- Northeast
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- no torture/death
Unusual Style:
- a lot of flashback and forwards
- No single main character?
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
|
|
|
Click here for more information about this book
Charlotte Vale Allen Resident Scholar Profiles
TOP SCHOLAR:
 Louisa Eggleton
SCHOLARS:
| |
Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
Use our site!
17 FREE Sci-Fi Ebooks!
FREE "How to be happy" Ebook!
Feedback
Most recent discussions:
General Book Talk
Book writing discussion
Off-topic message board
Norah Lofts
6:49:46 PM
Suzanne Weyn
10:35:23 PM
George W. Bush
5:33:46 PM
Kin Platt
12:58:29 AM
Anonymous
12:47:34 PM
Lilian Jackson Braun
10:05:52 PM
Jane Rubino
10:04:38 PM
LaVyrle Spencer
10:04:00 PM
G.A. McKevett
10:03:31 PM
David Williams
10:03:01 PM
Steven Pressfield
10:02:30 PM
Jeanette Walls
10:00:19 PM
Darryl Ponicsan
9:59:27 PM
Ann Rinaldi
9:58:30 PM
R.L. Stine
9:57:34 PM
Geoffrey Huntington
9:57:14 PM
Betty Mahmoody
9:56:38 PM
Deric Longden
9:56:11 PM
Mary Downing Hahn
9:55:48 PM
Iris Johansen
9:55:24 PM
More message boards
|
