The Road to Paris

by Nikki Grimes Narrated by Myra Lucretia Taylor

Overview

Popular author Nikki Grimes won the Coretta Scott King Award for Bronx Masquerade. When Paris' mother snaps again, beloved brother Malcolm is carted off to a boys' home and Paris is sent to another foster home. There, biracial Paris finally finds someone else to trust. But when her mother comes back into her life, she must decide where home really is. "... well crafted and simply but elegantly told."-School Library Journal

Editorial Reviews

School Library Journal

Gr 5-7 -Paris Richmond, age 9, has spent her short life trying to find home. Home is not with her African-American alcoholic mother, her unknown white father, her cold-hearted grandmother, or the abusive foster homes that she has endured. The one constant is Paris's life is her beloved brother Malcolm. When the foster care system splits up the siblings, Paris is devastated. Malcolm is sent to a boys' home, and Paris must travel across the state to live with the Lincoln family. Experience has taught her to keep her expectations low, but this time is different. Paris is treated with respect and given her own room. She comes to love her new brothers and develops admiration for her foster parents. As the school year unfolds, Paris makes a friend and finds a sense of peace singing in the church choir. She begins to trust herself, her new family, and God. As a biracial child living in a predominantly white neighborhood, Paris navigates her way through bigotry and, as much as she loves her new family, wonders if she will ever fit in. When her mother calls and tells Paris that she wants to give the "family thing" another try, Paris must choose the right path for herself. Narrator Myra Lucretia Taylor admirably interprets this Coretta Schott King Honor Book (Putnam, 2006) by Nikki Grimes. A satisfying, poignant story for middle-school listeners.-Tricia Melgaard, Centennial Middle School, Broken Arrow, OK

Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

Eight-year-old Paris Richmond has never had it easy. Her white father walked out on the family; her black mother tends to drink when she's lonely. Only Paris's older brother Malcolm is a constant, even when they are sent to live with an awful foster mother. When the children run away, Family Services separates them and Paris must face a strange new foster family and a new school on her own. The Lincolns turn out to be a good foster family, and Paris spends a year learning to trust others, God and herself. She finds not being entirely forthcoming can be as painful as being false, and she finds in her new strength forgiveness for her birth mother. Grimes has created a real little girl whose growth is perfectly paced and believable. The characters around her are not all perfectly realized, but Paris's story is touching and worth a place in most collections. Given the dearth of success stories featuring foster children and bi-racial characters, this is all the more important. (Fiction. 8-12)

From the Publisher

"In clear short chapters, Grimes tells a beautiful story of family, friendship, and faith from the viewpoint of a child in search of home in a harsh world. [I]t is the human story behind the case file that readers will remember." —Booklist, starred review

Product Details

BN ID:	2940170701247
Publisher:	Recorded Books, LLC
Publication date:	01/01/2016
Edition description:	Unabridged
Sales rank:	1,172,381
Age Range:	8 - 11 Years

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