School Library Journal Review
Gr 4-6-Finn's Irish family embodies many of the hopes and dreams of immigrants as they endure the setbacks and challenges of poverty. Finn's desire to become a reporter does not extend to enjoying school, just as his father's aspirations for wealth sometimes lead him outside the law. The 13-year-old's buddies, Racetrack and Mush, are also newsies and, along with Grandpa Jiggsy, keep things humming. Bartoletti's engaging style using slang (heavy use of "my arse" throughout) and the family's Irish background help the story to become much more than a recitation of historical facts. This story of life as a newsie, hawking papers on the streets of New York, is a standout in the series. The book includes an imagined epilogue that continues the deception that this is a real diary, and a historical note provides the accurate context with numerous photographs. For fans of the series, this title will be a highlight-it's entertaining and the characters leap off the pages.-Carol A. Edwards, Sonoma County Library, Santa Rosa, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Horn Book Review
Finn Reardon, an Irish-American living in New York City in 1899, attends sixth grade, works as a newsboy each evening, and dreams of becoming a reporter. Bartoletti gives her reader a great deal of historical information in a novel that is more about a time period than about a character. An afterword explains which elements of the story, such as the newsboys' strike of 1899, are based on historical fact. From HORN BOOK Fall 2003, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
