Hazel Green - Hardcover

Odo Hirsch grew up in Melbourne, Australia, where he trained to be a doctor. He now lives in London, where he spends his time writing children's books. He is the author of Bartlett and the Ice Voyage, winner of the Blue Peter Award in the UK and a Junior Library Guild Selection.

Grade 3-5-This entertaining story of one child standing up to adult authority is likely to win many fans. Hazel Green thinks it's unfair that children are not allowed to march in her town's annual Frogg Day parade, so she convinces the powers that be to let them to participate-as long as they have a float. She and the other youngsters from her building, the birthplace of the man the parade honors, develop the plans for a model of the building, but Yakov, a mathematical genius, tells Hazel that it will fall down, which no one wants to hear. Meanwhile Hazel is being falsely blamed for revealing her friend's secret recipe for a new pastry to a rival baker. Ultimately, resourceful Hazel proves that she didn't give away the secret, helps her friends fix the tower, makes a friend of Yakov, and marches in the parade. While some of the more minor characters are rather stereotypical, Hazel, Yakov, and several of the adults are interesting, complex characters. The writing is clever and funny, the plot has broad appeal, and readers will applaud Hazel's triumphs. Hirsch's book will satisfy audiences looking for gentle, humorous fiction.
Amy Lilien-Harper, The Ferguson Library, Stamford, CT
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