CANR
WORK TITLE: The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S): Coats, Jillian Anderson
BIRTHDATE: 1979?
WEBSITE: http://www.jandersoncoats.com/
CITY: Everett
STATE: WA
COUNTRY:
NATIONALITY:
LAST VOLUME: CA 316
http://www.brynmawr.edu/history/majors/
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Daughter of a geologist and a librarian ; married; children: one son.
EDUCATION:Graduated from Bryn Mawr College, 2001 (magna cum laude); Drexel University, M.L.I.S., 2003; University of Washington, M.A., 2008.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer.
AWARDS:Kirkus “Best Teen Books” citation, School Library Journal “Best Books” citation, and Junior Library Guild selection, all 2012, YALSA Best for Young Adults award, 2013, and Washington State Book Award for Young Adults, 2013, all for The Wicked and the Just.
WRITINGS
Contributor to anthologies, including A Tyranny of Petticoats: 15 Stories of Belles, Bank Robbers, & Other Badass Girls, edited by Jessica Spotswood, Candlewick Press (Somerville, MA), 2016. Also maintains a blog.
SIDELIGHTS
J. Anderson Coats holds master’s degrees in library science and history, but she has been writing novel manuscripts since she was a child. Her first published book, the young-adult novel The Wicked and the Just, is set in North Wales in 1293, ten years after the country was invaded and overtaken by the English. As Coats noted in an interview with Melissa Buron on the eponymous Melissa Buron Web site, the Welsh “managed to resist outright conquest by their English neighbors until 1283, but then the victorious English fast-tracked a series of castles and walled towns to maintain control of the area and the people. What interested me was this question: Even when granted a lot of special privileges–including significant tax breaks–how did English settlers live in a place where they were outnumbered twenty to one by a hostile, recently-subjugated population, and how did the Welsh live so close to people who’d done the subjugating, especially given the burdens placed on them by their new masters?”
In The Wicked and the Just, these questions and the nature of justice are explored through two teenage girls, Cecily and Gwenhwyfar, as the story alternates between their points of view. Cecily is a member of the English gentry, and she moves with her father from Coventry, England, to Caernarvon, Wales. Cecily hates her new home and misses her old friends, and she takes out her unhappiness on her servant, Gwenhwyfar. Although the girls are the same age, their lives are very different, separated not only by class divides but also by the role of occupier and occupied. Cecily slowly begins to adjust to life in Wales and is kinder to Gwenhwyfar in the process. She becomes aware of the injustices around her, but her changes of heart are not enough to save her from the violence of the Welsh rebellion.
Several reviewers focused on the apt characterization in the novel. Coats told a My Friend Amy’s Blog interviewer, “I don’t think writers can keep themselves completely separate from their characters, no matter how hard they try. Cecily has my bullheaded conviction of the way things ought to be, and Gwenhwyfar has my simmering rage at the many unfairnesses the world dumps on our doorsteps. That said, I’m not nearly as bold as either of my protagonists. I don’t have Cecily’s overwhelming hubris (although it was fun to write) and I don’t have Gwenhwyfar’s singleminded ferocity.” Commending the author’s efforts in an online Compass Book Ratings article, a critic stated: “Add these complex characters to an interesting period of history with a satisfactory, not pat ending, and you have one of the better books I have read in a while. As a debut novel, Coats sets the bar high for future work.” A contributor to the Arlington Library Web site was also impressed, finding, “This fantastic first novel is all about characters. … J. Anderson Coats has painted a beautiful and terrible picture of a time in history that is absolutely heartbreaking.” A Kirkus Reviews columnist announced, “Never opting for the easy characterization, debut author Coats compellingly re-creates this occupation from both sides.” The ending, the reviewer stated, “will take readers’ breath away.”
Other reviewers highlighted the novel’s historical aspects, with a Clear Eyes, Full Shelves Web site contributor noting that “while The Wicked and the Just takes place in 1293-1294, what I found the most fascinating was how their situation is still completely relevant in our world today. There are occupied countries with people of different cultures squeezed into the same small space. There is still racism, discrimination, and ethnocentrism. This connection of past events to the present, for me, is what makes history a favorite subject despite being removed from the classroom for a decade.” According to an online Wandering Librarians writer, “It’s a dark, sad story, full of violence and injustice. And was the rebellion justice? Everyone knows the English soldiers will come and things will go back to the way they were before. Will there be any differences? This was really an excellent book … that really made you think about the character of people and how people treat each other.” Offering a similar assessment on the Book Smugglers Web site, a reviewer remarked: “There was huge inequality and injustice between Welsh and English at the time and this book is great at exploring the ways those happen in society. When the tables are turned in the end, it was very interesting to see the altered dynamics between the two girls, between the two peoples and the examination of the difference between justice and revenge–not to mention the excellent thoughtful examination of what the Welsh revolt could ever hope to accomplish.” An online Stacked critic concluded that the book is “a perfect fit for history buffs and readers who crave knowledge about time periods that are not their own. Moreover, the historical details are fascinating and the writing is excellent.”
In The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming, Coats examines a new place and time period–the American Northwest in the middle of the nineteenth century. As the story begins, Jane has just lost her father in the Civil War, and is living with her stepmother and young half-brother in Lowell, Massachusetts, where Mrs. Deming has had to take a job in a factory to stave off financial disaster. “Hopeful but accustomed to disappointments,” declared Booklist reviewer Carolyn Phelan, “Jane narrates the story as a girl who’s quick to assess people.” Jane promised her father before he was killed at the battle of Vicksburg that she would continue her education and receive a certificate of completion (the equivalent of a high school degree today). Her stepmother, however, needs Jane to care for her little half-brother Jer while she works in the factory, and she believes housekeeping skills will be more useful to Jane than an education. The arrival of Mr. Mercer, an entrepreneur who is recruiting emigrants to travel to Washington Territory, seems like a godsend to the trio—he promises Mrs. Deming the chance at a wealthy husband and Jane the opportunity to finish her schooling. Buying into Mr. Mercer’s plan, the Deming family begins a four-month voyage by ship around the tip of South America to their new home. On arrival, however, they discover that Washington Territory is nowhere near the earthly paradise they were led to believe. Once again the family is thrown back on its own resources—especially Jane, who feels left out when her stepmother marries a hard-working frontiersman, Mr. Wright. She “cautiously but bravely makes her way in her new town,” stated Sarah Hannah Gomez in Horn Book, “finding her own mentors and allies.” “Jane,” said a Kirkus Reviews contributor, “learns to skin otters, build a canoe, and look for ways in which everyone can get a part of what they want.”
Coats told CA: “I don’t think I’ve ever not been a writer. I scribbled stories everywhere in crayon when I was a kid. I wrote my first book before I lost my first tooth. My second-grade teacher shepherded twenty-nine seven-year-olds through the publication process, from idea to editing to cover design. The result was twelve pages, handwritten, meticulously illustrated, and complete with a copyright date and a colophon. That’s when I realized all the stories in the books I loved so much were written by actual people. And I had stories to tell as well.
“When I was just starting out, I got a valuable piece of advice from Elizabeth Bear, a fantasy writer I admire very much: ‘Learn to write this book.’ There’s no one way to write a book, and every book is going to need something different. It’s important to be open-minded and let the needs of each book guide how you write it. For me, writing is more about having a lot of tools in your toolbox than a specific, defined process.
“Every reader is going to get something different out of my books and that’s the way it should be. Once it’s in the world, it’s out of my hands.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, April 1, 2012, Carolyn Phelan, review of The Wicked and the Just, p. 70; December 15, 2016, Carolyn Phelan, review of The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming, p. 58.
Horn Book, March-April, 2012, Deirdre F. Baker, review of The Wicked and the Just, p. 99; January-February, 2017, Sarah Hannah Gomez, review of The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming, p. 90.
Kirkus Reviews, March 15, 2012, review of The Wicked and the Just; December 15, 2016, review of The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming.
Publishers Weekly, February 27, 2012, review of The Wicked and the Just, p. 91.
School Library Journal, May, 2012, Rick Margolis, “Don’t Miss J. Anderson Coats’s Debut, ‘The Wicked and the Just'”; Renee Steinberg, review of The Wicked and the Just, p. 96; January, 2017, Kaela Cochran, review of The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming, p. 84.
Voice of Youth Advocates, February, 2012, Heidi Uphoff, review of The Wicked and the Just, p. 588.
ONLINE
Arlington Library Web site, http://www.arlingtonlibrary.org/ (January 31, 2013), review of The Wicked and the Just.
Book Smugglers, http://thebooksmugglers.com/ (April 3, 2012), review of The Wicked and the Just.
Bryn Mawr College, http://www.brynmawr.edu/ (March 24, 2017), author profile.
Chick Loves Lit, http://chickloveslit.com/ (December 30, 2011), “Fun Five: J Anderson Coats.”
Clear Eyes, Full Shelves, http://cleareyesfullshelves.com/ (April 16, 2012), review of The Wicked and the Just.
Compass Book Ratings, http://www.compassbookratings.com/ (April 17, 2012), review of The Wicked and the Just.
Debutante Ball, http://www.thedebutanteball.com/ (March 15, 2012), author interview; (April 21, 2012), author interview.
Elliott Review, http://elliottreview.blogspot.com/ (April 17, 2012), author interview.
J. Anderson Cooper Home Page, http://www.jandersoncoats.com (August 15, 2013), author profile.
Jean Book Nerd, http://www.jeanbooknerd.com/ (July 1, 2012), author interview; review of The Wicked and the Just.
Melissa Buron Web site, http://melissaburon.wordpress.com/ (November 15, 2012), author interview.
My Friend Amy’s Blog, http://www.myfriendamysblog.com/ (May 15, 2012), author interview.
Reading Fever, http://www.thereadingfever.com/ (April 17, 2012), author interview.
ReadVenturer, http://www.thereadventurer.com/ (March 15, 2012), author interview.
Sharing Our Notebooks, http://www.sharingournotebooks.amylv.com/ (January 28, 2012), “J. Anderson Coats: It Only Had to Be Collected.”
Stacked, http://www.stackedbooks.org/ (September 14, 2012), review of The Wicked and the Just.
That’s Write, http://leightmoore.blogspot.com/ (August 2, 2012), Leigh Talbert Moore, “MSFV Winner: J. Anderson Coats.”
Turn the Page, http://www.turn-the-page.net/ (April 17, 2012), author interview.
Wandering Librarians, http://wanderinglibrarians.blogspot.com/ (February 7, 2013), review of The Wicked and the Just.
Word for Teens, http://www.wordforteens.com/ (April 16, 2012), author interview.
YA Books Central, http://www.yabookscentral.com/ (December 14, 2016), Kayla King, “Author Chat with J. Anderson Coats, Plus Giveaway!”
YA Book Reads, http://yabookreads.com/ (April 11, 2012), author interview.
J. Anderson Coats is the author The Wicked and the Just, one of Kirkus’s Best Teen Books of 2012, a 2013 YALSA Best for Young Adults (BFYA) winner, and a School Library Journal Best Books of 2012 selection. It was also a 2012 Junior Library Guild selection and won the 2013 Washington State Book Award for Young Adults.
Jillian’s short story, “Mother Carey’s Table,” appeared in A Tyranny of Petticoats: 15 Stories of Belles, Bank Robbers, and Other Badass Girls (Candlewick, 2016).
Her second book, The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming, is a middle-grade novel set in Washington Territory in the 1860s which follows a girl moving west with her family as part of the second Mercer emigration expedition. R is for Rebel (formerly Ungovernable Girls), forthcoming from Atheneum in spring 2018, follows the daughter of known subversives as she’s sent away to be re-educated and must walk the line between rebellion and survival.
Jillian lives in the Pacific northwest with her husband, teenage son, and a cat with thumbs.
Jillian Anderson Coats
Class of 2001
Children’s Book Author
The Wicked and the Just (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2012)
The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming (Atheneum, 2017)
MLIS, Drexel University, 2003
MA, History, University of Washington, 2008
Author Chat with J. Anderson Coats, Plus Giveaway!
Wednesday, 14 December 2016 Kayla King, Blog Manager Giveaways News & Updates 946 Hits 4 Comments
Author Chat with J. Anderson Coats, Plus Giveaway!
Today we're excited to chat with J. Anderson Coats, author
of The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming!
Below you'll find more about J. Anderson,
her book, plus a giveaway!
YABC: Which came first, the title or the novel?
J. ANDERSON COATS: The book definitely came first. I find titles notoriously difficult, and this one came about the way most of my titles do - writing lists of words until something good emerges from the junk. Somehow my titles end up long and Twitter-unfriendly. Not sure why. :)
YABC: Thinking way back to the beginning, what’s the most important thing you've learned as a writer from then to now?
J. ANDERSON COATS: When I was just starting out, I learned this from Elizabeth Bear, a fantasy writer I admire very much: “Learn to write this book.” There’s no one way to write a book, and every book is going to need something different. Be openminded and let the needs of each book guide how you write it. Very often your backbrain will surprise you with the answer you need without you having to think it up. Think of everything you learn as tools in a toolbox - you might not need them all for the book you’re working on, but you’ll be glad to have them for future books.
YABC: What do you like most about the cover of the book?
J. ANDERSON COATS: I love Jane's dancing braids and the way the artist captured her energy and curiosity. My favorite part (oddly) may be the sky - how it reflects the many moods of the Pacific northwest.
YABC: What new release book are you looking most forward to in 2016?
J. ANDSERON COATS: Since 2016 is more or less behind us, let me share two of my favorites that came out this year. I really enjoyed Jessica Spotswood’s WILD SWANS - Ivy tries so hard to be true to herself even when she’s under so much pressure. It’s very relatable. CLOUD AND WALLFISH by Anne Nesbet is a delightful middle-grade historical set during the Cold War with an authentic voice and a creative, intriguing structure.
YABC: What was your favorite book in 2015?
J. ANDERSON COATS: I absolutely loved Dietland by Sarai Walker. Who wouldn’t love a subversive, compelling book about an all-female terrorist group called “Jennifer” who takes aim at abusive men, wrapped up in a keen satire about the destructive nature of beauty myths?
YABC: What’s up next for you?
J. ANDERSON COATS: My next book is a middle-grade coming out in early 2018, also from Atheneum, called R is for Rebel. It’s set in a fictional occupied country, and it’s about the daughter of known subversives who is sent away to be reeducated and must walk the line between resistance and survival.
YABC: Which part of the writing process do you enjoy more: Drafting or Revising?
J. ANDERSON COATS: Revising. Definitely. Creating something out of nothing is exhausting, but transforming something flawed and misshapen and lumbering into something sharp and lovely feels infinitely more doable.
YABC: Is there an organization or cause that is close to your heart?
J. ANDERSON COATS: The defense of intellectual freedom and the fight against censorship. Ignorance is at the heart of so many of the issues we face, and dismantling it with the free exchange of ideas and the continued diversification of voices and points of view is our best shot at a world that recognizes each of us as fully human.
Meet J. Anderson Coats!
J. Anderson Coats is the author of The Wicked and the Just, one of Kirkus’s Best Teen Books of 2012, a 2013 YALSA Best for Young Adults (BFYA) winner, and a School Library Journal Best Books of 2012 selection. It also won the 2013 Washington State Book Award for Young Adults. Her newest book, The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming (Atheneum/Simon & Schuster, 2017), is set in Washington Territory in the
1860s. R is for Rebel, a historical fantasy for middle-grade readers, is forthcoming in 2018.
J. Anderson Coats
Other Names : Coats, Jillian Anderson
Nationality: American
Occupation: Novelist
Contemporary Authors Online. Detroit: Gale, 2014. From Literature Resource Center.
Full Text: COPYRIGHT 2017 Gale, Cengage Learning
Updated:Jan. 16, 2014
Table of Contents
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PERSONAL INFORMATION:
Daughter of a geologist (father) and librarian (mother); married; children: one son. Education: Graduated from Bryn Mawr College (magna cum laude); Drexel University, M.L.S.; University of Washington, M.A. Addresses: Home: Everett, WA. E-mail: j@jandersoncoats.com.
CAREER:
Writer.
WORKS:
WRITINGS:
The Wicked and the Just (young-adult novel), Harcourt (Boston, MA), 2012.
Also author of a blog. Contributor of poetry and short stories to books.
Sidelights
J. Anderson Coats holds master's degrees in library science and history, but she has been writing novel manuscripts since she was a child. Her first published book, the young-adult novel The Wicked and the Just, is set in North Wales in 1293, ten years after the country was invaded and overtaken by the English. As Coats noted in an interview with Melissa Buron on Buron's Web site, the Welsh "managed to resist outright conquest by their English neighbors until 1283, but then the victorious English fast-tracked a series of castles and walled towns to maintain control of the area and the people. What interested me was this question: Even when granted a lot of special privileges--including significant tax breaks--how did English settlers live in a place where they were outnumbered twenty to one by a hostile, recently-subjugated population, and how did the Welsh live so close to people who'd done the subjugating, especially given the burdens placed on them by their new masters?"
In The Wicked and the Just, these questions and the nature of justice are explored through two teenage girls, Cecily and Gwenhwyfar, as the story alternates between their points of view. Cecily is a member of the English gentry, and she moves with her father from Coventry, England, to Caernarvon, Wales. Cecily hates her new home and misses her old friends, and she takes out her unhappiness on her servant, Gwenhwyfar. Although the girls are the same age, their lives are very different, separated not only by class divides but also by the role of occupier and occupied. Cecily slowly begins to adjust to life in Wales and is kinder to Gwenhwyfar in the process. She becomes aware of the injustices around her, but her changes of heart are not enough to save her from the violence of the Welsh rebellion.
Several reviewers focused on the apt characterization in the novel. Coats told a My Friend Amy's Blog interviewer, "I don't think writers can keep themselves completely separate from their characters, no matter how hard they try. Cecily has my bullheaded conviction of the way things ought to be, and Gwenhwyfar has my simmering rage at the many unfairnesses the world dumps on our doorsteps. That said, I'm not nearly as bold as either of my protagonists. I don't have Cecily's overwhelming hubris (although it was fun to write) and I don't have Gwenhwyfar's singleminded ferocity." Commending the author's efforts in an online Compass Book Ratings article, a critic stated: "Add these complex characters to an interesting period of history with a satisfactory, not pat ending, and you have one of the better books I have read in a while. As a debut novel, Coats sets the bar high for future work." A contributor to the Arlington Library Web site was also impressed, finding, "This fantastic first novel is all about characters. ... J. Anderson Coats has painted a beautiful and terrible picture of a time in history that is absolutely heartbreaking." A Kirkus Reviews columnist announced, "Never opting for the easy characterization, debut author Coats compellingly re-creates this occupation from both sides." The ending, the reviewer stated, "will take readers' breath away."
Other reviewers highlighted the novel's historical aspects, with a Clear Eyes, Full Shelves Web site contributor noting that "while The Wicked and the Just takes place in 1293-1294, what I found the most fascinating was how their situation is still completely relevant in our world today. There are occupied countries with people of different cultures squeezed into the same small space. There is still racism, discrimination, and ethnocentrism. This connection of past events to the present, for me, is what makes history a favorite subject despite being removed from the classroom for a decade." According to an online Wandering Librarians writer, "It's a dark, sad story, full of violence and injustice. And was the rebellion justice? Everyone knows the English soldiers will come and things will go back to the way they were before. Will there be any differences? This was really an excellent book ... that really made you think about the character of people and how people treat each other." Offering a similar assessment on the Book Smugglers Web site, a reviewer remarked: "There was huge inequality and injustice between Welsh and English at the time and this book is great at exploring the ways those happen in society. When the tables are turned in the end, it was very interesting to see the altered dynamics between the two girls, between the two peoples and the examination of the difference between justice and revenge--not to mention the excellent thoughtful examination of what the Welsh revolt could ever hope to accomplish." An online Stacked critic concluded that the book is "a perfect fit for history buffs and readers who crave knowledge about time periods that are not their own. Moreover, the historical details are fascinating and the writing is excellent."
Coats told CA: "I don't think I've ever not been a writer. I scribbled stories everywhere in crayon when I was a kid. I wrote my first book before I lost my first tooth. My second-grade teacher shepherded twenty-nine seven-year-olds through the publication process, from idea to editing to cover design. The result was twelve pages, handwritten, meticulously illustrated, and complete with a copyright date and a colophon. That's when I realized all the stories in the books I loved so much were written by actual people. And I had stories to tell as well.
"When I was just starting out, I got a valuable piece of advice from Elizabeth Bear, a fantasy writer I admire very much: 'Learn to write this book.' There's no one way to write a book, and every book is going to need something different. It's important to be open-minded and let the needs of each book guide how you write it. For me, writing is more about having a lot of tools in your toolbox than a specific, defined process.
"Every reader is going to get something different out of my books and that's the way it should be. Once it's in the world, it's out of my hands."
FURTHER READINGS:
FURTHER READINGS ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
PERIODICALS
Booklist, April 1, 2012, Carolyn Phelan, review of The Wicked and the Just, p. 70.
Horn Book, March-April, 2012, Deirdre F. Baker, review of The Wicked and the Just, p. 99.
Kirkus Reviews, March 15, 2012, review of The Wicked and the Just.
Publishers Weekly, February 27, 2012, review of The Wicked and the Just, p. 91.
School Library Journal, May, 2012, Rick Margolis, "Don't Miss J. Anderson Coats's Debut, 'The Wicked and the Just'"; Renee Steinberg, review of The Wicked and the Just, p. 96.
Voice of Youth Advocates, February, 2012, Heidi Uphoff, review of The Wicked and the Just, p. 588.
ONLINE
Arlington Library Web site, http://www.arlingtonlibrary.org/ (January 31, 2013), review of The Wicked and the Just.
Book Smugglers, http://thebooksmugglers.com/ (April 3, 2012), review of The Wicked and the Just.
Chick Loves Lit, http://chickloveslit.com/ (December 30, 2011), "Fun Five: J Anderson Coats."
Clear Eyes, Full Shelves, http://cleareyesfullshelves.com/ (April 16, 2012), review of The Wicked and the Just.
Compass Book Ratings, http://www.compassbookratings.com/ (April 17, 2012), review of The Wicked and the Just.
Debutante Ball, http://www.thedebutanteball.com/ (March 15, 2012), author interview; (April 21, 2012), author interview.
Elliott Review, http://elliottreview.blogspot.com/ (April 17, 2012), author interview.
J. Anderson Coats Home Page, http://www.jandersoncoats.com (August 15, 2013).
Jean BookNerd, http://www.jeanbooknerd.com/ (July 1, 2012), author interview and review of The Wicked and the Just.
Melissa Buron Web site, http://melissaburon.wordpress.com/ (November 15, 2012), author interview.
My Friend Amy's Blog, http://www.myfriendamysblog.com/ (May 15, 2012), author interview.
Reading Fever, http://www.thereadingfever.com/ (April 17, 2012), author interview.
ReadVenturer, http://www.thereadventurer.com/ (March 15, 2012), author interview.
Sharing Our Notebooks, http://www.sharingournotebooks.amylv.com/ (January 28, 2012), "J. Anderson Coats: It Only Had to Be Collected."
Stacked, http://www.stackedbooks.org/ (September 14, 2012), review of The Wicked and the Just.
That's Write, http://leightmoore.blogspot.com/ (August 2, 2012), Leigh Talbert Moore, "MSFV Winner: J. Anderson Coats."
Turn the Page, http://www.turn-the-page.net/ (April 17, 2012), author interview.
Wandering Librarians, http://wanderinglibrarians.blogspot.com/ (February 7, 2013), review of The Wicked and the Just.
Word for Teens, http://www.wordforteens.com/ (April 16, 2012), author interview.
YA Book Reads, http://yabookreads.com/ (April 11, 2012), author interview.
The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming
Sarah Hannah Gomez
The Horn Book Magazine. 93.1 (January-February 2017): p90.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 The Horn Book, Inc.. A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Sources, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.hbook.com/magazine/default.asp
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Full Text:
The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming
by J. Anderson Coats
Intermediate, Middle School Atheneum 282 pp.
2/17 978-1-4814-6496-3 $16.99 g
e-book ed. 978-1-4814-6498-7 $10.99
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
When eleven-year-old Jane's father died in the Civil War, his widow was forced into millwork and Jane became nanny to her half-brother, Jer. But now they've found Mr. Mercer, a prospector of sorts bringing a boatload of widows, orphans, and young marriageable ladies from the East Coast to Washington Territory. Jane is convinced this opportunity will be just the thing to broaden her mind and allow her to live up to the promise she made her father, to get a leaving certificate from school. (Her stepmother has other ideas and wants Jane to learn to keep house.) In conversational prose, Jane chronicles the four-month boat trip and her first months in Seattle, which is not the exciting boom town full of bankers and investors that Mr. Mercer implied it would be. Feeling precariously positioned as an orphan living at the whims of her stepmother's good graces, Jane cautiously but bravely makes her way in her new town, finding her own mentors and allies. Jane's complex emotions and believable relationships with people of all ages and from different backgrounds give dimension to her character.
The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming
Carolyn Phelan
Booklist. 113.8 (Dec. 15, 2016): p58.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist_publications/booklist/booklist.cfm
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Full Text:
The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming.
By J. Anderson Coats.
Feb. 2017.288p. Atheneum, $16.99 (9781481464963). Gr. 4-6.
Since Jane's father's death during the Civil War, she has lived with her stepmother, Mrs. D., and little stepbrother. Mrs. D. spends their last funds on a voyage from New York around Cape Horn to the "unspoiled and majestic" Washington Territory. There she aims to catch a husband to support them, while Jane yearns for friends and an education. After a difficult journey, they arrive in tiny Seattle and soon settle into a new life with unexpected challenges and many rewards. Coats, whose YA novel The Wicked and the Just (2012) was set in thirteenth-century Wales, shows considerable versatility in creating very different but equally vivid historical settings and characters here. Hopeful but accustomed to disappointments, Jane narrates the story as a girl who's quick to assess people and their motives. The hostility between Jane and her young stepmother is believable, and so are the tentative steps that the girl takes toward independence when she finds the support she has needed all along. A rewarding chapter book for historical fiction fans.--Carolyn Phelan
Coats, J. Anderson: THE MANY REFLECTIONS OF MISS JANE DEMING
Kirkus Reviews. (Dec. 15, 2016):
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
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Full Text:
Coats, J. Anderson THE MANY REFLECTIONS OF MISS JANE DEMING Atheneum (Children's Fiction) $16.99 2, 28 ISBN: 978-1-4814-6496-3
A hardscrabble frontier girl finds happiness in hard work and compromise. Jane Deming, age 11, has been single-handedly caring for her brother, Jer, since just after his birth two years ago. Papa died in the battle of Vicksburg; destitute, Jane's 22-year-old stepmother has been working 14-hour days in a mill to keep them. Asa Mercer's plan to take 700 single girls and widows from New England to a new town in Washington territory, Seattle, seems like a godsend. Mrs. D. wants to regain her lost girlhood and marry a banker. Jane hopes for school, playtime, and friends. After a four-month voyage, they're astonished to discover that Seattle is a foggy, rough-hewn frontier town--hardly a tropical paradise. With no money and no hope of employment, Jane's stepmother marries a frontiersman, Mr. Wright, who, while far from rich or handsome, does his best to listen to what his new family needs. While the main characters are all white, several characters in Seattle are either full or half Native American, specifically Duwamish, and they are portrayed with honesty and sympathy. Pragmatic, adaptable Jane learns to skin otters, build a canoe, and look for ways in which everyone can get a part of what they want. There's plenty of action, but the strength of the novel comes from its characterization, especially Jane's, whose point of view becomes more reliable as she matures. Ignore the lackluster title and cover. This one's a keeper. (Historical fiction. 8-14)
Coats, J. Anderson. The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming
Kaela Cochran
School Library Journal. 63.1 (Jan. 2017): p84.
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COATS, J. Anderson. The Many Reflections of Miss Jane Deming. 288p. ebook available. S. & S./Atheneum. Feb. 2017. Tr $16.99. ISBN 9781481464963.
Gr 3-5--Jane is a girl determined to escape the life she and her family are leading in Lowell, MA, after her father is killed in the Civil War. Unable to attend school, she is forced to take care of her younger brother while her stepmother works in a factory to support the family. When an opportunity is presented to travel to Washington Territory, Jane is convinced that she will be able to continue her education there. The journey turns out to be an adventure in itself, and Washington Territory is not all that has been promised. Still, Jane is able to make the best of many difficult situations. Readers will enjoy the twists and turns of the young protagonist's life in this fast-paced novel. VERDICT Fans of Avi's historical fiction and graduates of Little House on the Prairie will find this a satisfying read. Recommended for school and public libraries looking for engaging historical fiction--Kaela Cochran, Lincoln Township Public Library, Stevensville, MI