Anna's Fight for Hope: The Great Depression by JoAnn A. Grote

Title: Anna’s Fight for Hope: The Great Depression (1931) (Sisters in Time #20)

Author: JoAnn A. Grote

Pages: 144

Year: 2004

Publisher: Barbour Books

     When I was in school I never enjoyed history class. I found the textbooks to be very boring. Therefore I grew up with a very poor understanding of our history. As an adult I’ve become more interested in it and yet I find that I have a very hard time getting myself to sit down and read about it unless it is in novel format. I have found that if I start with a book written for 8-12 year olds I can become so caught up in a time period that I will then want to go on and read more things geared for adults about the same period. This is one of those wonderful children's books.

     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 their 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.

     The characters were very well developed and likable. I was drawn into the story and actually learned quite a bit about the Great Depression that I had never known before. I’ve checked some of the facts that were new to me and found them to be accurately portrayed.

     I thoroughly enjoyed this story and give it 5 stars. It’s a great history lesson for both adults and middle-grade students. I highly recommend it.