Flip-Flop Girl by Katherine Paterson

From the Publisher

Uprooted following the death of their father, nine-year-old Vinnie and her five-year-old brother, Mason, cope in different ways--one in silence--but both with the help of Lupe, the flip-flop girl.

Publishers Weekly

Torn apart by the recent death of her father, 10-year-old Vinnie does not look forward to moving from D.C. to Virginia and starting a new life in Brownsville (a town as dull as its name) with her stressed-out mother and ``crazy'' younger brother, Mason, who has not spoken a word since the funeral. Sharing her dreary grandmother's cramped house is bad enough, but going to a new school proves even less bearable. The only classmate to show her any kindness is Lupe, herself ostracized by the others. Like Lyddie, the eponymous heroine of the author's previous novel, Vinnie finds a refuge from emotional pain in fantasy, but when the object of her romantic dreams, gentle teacher Mr. Clayton, announces his upcoming marriage, she feels betrayed. Enraged, she scratches Mr. Clayton's beautifully painted car--whereupon her remorse teaches her the destructive effects of her anger, allowing her to come to terms with her problems and to open her eyes to other people's suffering. A master of rendering the intensity of childhood emotions, Paterson explores the impact of grief and the slow process of healing. With deep compassion, her story crystallizes the vulnerability and resiliency of preadolescents placed in tragic circumstances. Ages 8-10. (Feb.)

Children's Literature

This slender but meaty novel is great for reluctant readers. Vinnie, the heroine, is trying to adjust to her father's death by moving away from her home and living with her grandmother, But it is tough attending a new school in thrift store clothes, plus competing with a grieving brother who refuses to speak for her working mother's attention. Vinnie blossoms in brief moments under the glorious attention of a compassionate teacher. But she must share this teacher with others, even the Flip-Flop Girl who's father is in prison and who is so poor that she wears flip-flops to school. Vinnie's jealousy drives her to destroy a car treasured by her teacher. When the Flip-Flop Girl is blamed, Vinnie must make amends. Paterson gives us painful realism and an intelligent young heroine who has the biting humor, core honesty, and courage to survive and thrive.1996 (orig.

School Library Journal

Gr 4-6-Sorrow and loneliness sweep over Vinnie and her little brother, Mason, after their father dies and their mother moves them to a small town to live with their grandmother. Mason has been mute since the funeral, and Vinnie's mother, overwhelmed with worry about him and her struggle to support the family, seems to have nothing left to give her daughter. Thrust into a new school, without friends or the right clothes, and with rumors about her troubled brother wafting around her, Vinnie is drawn to a very tall, very odd girl who wears long dresses and orange flip-flops. Lupe is more of an outcast than she, and has suffered tragedy and rumor as well. But Lupe is strong, confident, and intuitive, and is able to offer support to Vinnie and her brother when it's needed, to stand back when it's not, and to accept whatever befalls her with grace. It's Lupe and a gentle, generous teacher who help the girl through her grief and her guilt and give her back her family. Life has been reckless with the children in this book, but Paterson has not-she's given them complex problems and personalities, compassionate adults, and a compelling story that is as strong as the power of redemptive love that prevails in this thoughtful tale.- Susan Oliver, Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library System

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