"Anna's Fight for Hope" by JoAnn A. Grote

About this book:

  “Times are tough for Anna Harrington.

But times are even tougher for some of her friends, who’ve been devastated by the Great Depression. Dot’s family is hungry and may lose its home, while Chet, riding the rails as a hobo in search of work, is in trouble with the law.

Twelve-year-old Anna and her cousin, Fred, watch in sorrow as others suffer, wondering what they can do to show God’s love to their friends. Soon, they come up with some clever ideas to help—but with jobs scarce, food hard to come by, and the authorities making things difficult, will Anna’s efforts be enough?”


Series: Book #20 in the “Sisters in Time” series. Click on the numbers to be taken to that review: #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11, #12, #13, #14, #15, #16, #17, #18, & #19.


Spiritual Content- Prayers; Talks about God; ‘H’s are capitalized when referring to God; Church going; Mentions of God & Jesus; Mentions of prayers & praying; Mentions of churches, church going, sermons, & pastors; A mention of a blessing.

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘dumb’; A bit of eye rolling; Mentions of wars, fighting, injuries, illnesses, & deaths (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of a baby that was kidnapped & later killed; Mentions of jails/prisons, criminals, stealing, & threats; Mentions of alcohol, drinking, drunks, & saloons; Mentions of seeing a rabbit killed (barely-above-not-detailed); A few mentions of seeing someone die from being runover (barely-above-not-detailed); A couple mentions of killing baby pigs; A couple mentions of rumors.

Sexual Content- N/A.

-Anna Harrington, age 12

-Fred Patterson
                                P.O.V. switches between Anna & Fred (mainly Fred)

                                            Set in 1931-1932
                                                    141 pages

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Pre Teens-

New Teens-

Early High School Teens-

Older High School Teens-

My personal Rating-

This book mentioned a few things (like a baby being kidnapped and later found dead & seeing a rabbit killed) that I think younger readers might have sensitivity towards. Depends on the reader, of course, but would probably be best for an adult to read along with them.

See y’all on Friday with a new review!

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

"Emily Makes a Difference" by JoAnn A. Grote

About this book:

  “People need Emily Allerton’s help.

Emily Allerton is like any twelve-year-old girl—excited about her chance to see the Chicago World’s Fair and mesmerized by the remarkable technology on display there. She even sees an amazing new machine called an “automobile.”

But when Emily and her cousin, Ted Kerr, return home to Minneapolis, a national economic slowdown puts thousands of people out of work. They’re homeless and hungry—and Emily knows that God wants her to do something to help.”


Series: Book #16 in the “Sisters in Time” series. Click on the numbers to be taken to that review: #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11, #12, #13, #14, & #15.


Spiritual Content- A Scripture is quoted; Prayers & Thanking God; Talks about God; ‘H’s are capitalized when referring to God; Mentions of God; Mentions of churches, church going, a Christmas Eve service, a sermon, & a pastor; A couple mentions of Bibles; A mention of missionaries; A mention of hymns; A mention of being blessed;

             *Note: Mentions of a magic show (Emily doesn’t think her mother would like her seeing one, but after being told that it’s not real magic, she goes to the show with a sliver of guilt); A mention of looking like someone saw a ghost.

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: two ‘stupid’s; Some eye rolling; Getting caught in a trolley track & pain (barely-above-not-detailed); Falling into the water & not being able to swim (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of accidents, missing fingers as a result, & deaths (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of a former slave & slavery; Mentions of a fire; Mentions of a young boy being arrested & called a thief; Mentions of rumors; A few mentions of lies & lying; A mention of horse droppings;

             *Note: A few mentions of a silly song about a girl killing her parents (Lizzie Borden); A couple mentions of books.

Sexual Content- N/A

-Emily Allerton, age 12
                                P.O.V. switches between Emily & Ted

                                            Set in 1893
                                                    143 pages

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Pre Teens-

New Teens-

Early High School Teens-

Older High School Teens-

My personal Rating-

Because of the writing about the unions and statistics about injuries, deaths, and populations felt very Wikipedia-like in the way they were presented, I didn’t really enjoy this one. It was interesting but came across a little too stiff at times with those facts. Emily’s family can also come across a bit mean to her with their comments of comparing her to her older sister and a cousin’s wife saying that she has no brains. Didn’t enjoy this one as much as I hoped based on the back-cover.  

See y’all on Friday with a new review!

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.