Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Jun 2010
192 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
Paperback Original. An alcoholic mother, a distracted father, a best friend who spends all his time with his new "girlfriend," and three relentless schoolyard bullies: Prinny Murphy's past, present, and future certainly are "tense." Adding to her misery, she still can't read well enough to escape from remedial lessons with the dour Mrs. Dooks. But when a kindly substitute teacher introduces her to LaVaughn's inner-city world in the free verse novel, Make Lemonade, Prinny discovers that life can be full of possibilities – and poetry.
"Starred Review. Although this is a sequel (The Nine Lives of Travis Keating, 2009) it out-stands alone perfectly. Ages 10-14." - Kirkus Reviews
"The characters are multidimensional and believable ... MacLean weaves them into a raw, realistic novel that reminds readers that finding your voice is sometimes harder than using it." - School Library Journal
"Jill MacLean's The Present Tense of Prinny Murphy is a moving, engaging, troublesome book that middle school readers will find difficult to put down. ...As good as the first book was, the second installment is even better. Highly Recommended." - CM Magazine
"Beautifully layered and sensitively written, Prinny's story will garner MacLean - and the characters of Ratchet - yet more fans. Let's hope there is a return visit soon." - Quill & Quire
"MacLean's novel,...is a heart-wrenching, yet ultimately hopeful, depiction of a young girl struggling in a small Newfoundland community...This book would be useful for discussions about poetry, alcoholism, or bullying. Very highly recommended." - Resource Links
"While Prinny was an appealing supporting character in the previous book, she absolutely shines in this one! Plucky and determined, forthright and earnest, she is a refreshing, utterly likable protagonist who narrates her story in a voice that is clear and true." - Atlantic Books Today
This information about The Present Tense of Prinny Murphy was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Jill MacLean's life has always drawn on experience in her life. Her books are set in Newfoundland, where her son and his family now live. Over the years, she's canoed, kayaked, hiked and snowmobiled there, traveled the coves by boat, and stayed in the outports. Little did Jill realize at the time that these experiences could all be called "research," or that her love of the province would translate into words.
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