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Under the Haystack
When her mother and her stepfather did not come home for dinner, Sandy had a sense of foreboding. But her mother had been late before, so Sandy hid her fears from her two younger sisters. Only later, getting up in the middle of the night and finding that her mother's clothes were gone, did she admit the horrible truth–they had been abandoned. Readers will be caught up in thirteen-year-old Sandy's attempt to shield her sisters from knowledge of the desertion and to keep them all together on their run-down, debt-ridden farm. She deceives the neighbors by inventing a sick aunt whom their mother is supposed to be visiting, earns small sums by doing odd jobs, and faces crises, big and small, with occasional help from her only friend, Joe. Her hard test of self-reliance comes at a time in her life when she is undergoing changes she longs to explore and think about–a time, too, when the mystery and thrill of first love unexpectedly come to her. Sandy's story is also one of life on an American farm hovering on the brink of poverty. "Under the Haystack" is a novel rich in family warmth, humor and sadness. Sandy, courageous and believable as she stand in uncertainty on the threshold of womanhood while trying to hold her family together, is a girl with whom readers can readily identify.
130 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 1, 1973
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
January 17, 2013
I haven't re-read this book for a very long time but the review of http://dearauthor.com/book-reviews/ov... Uses for Boys at Dear Author trigged something in my memory. Sandy, the heroine, is 13 years-old.
Here's a snapshot from the jacket copy: "When her mother and her stepfather did not come home for dinner, Sandy had a sense of foreboding. But her mother had been late before, so Sandy hid her fears from her two younger sisters. Only later, getting up in the middle of the night and finding that her mother's clothes were gone, did she admit the horrible truth--they had been abandoned. [] Sandy's story is also one of life on an American farm hovering on the brink of poverty. Under the Haystack is a novel rich in family warmth, humor, and sadness."
Sandy is so brave and resilient, on the cusp of maturity -- and she somehow manages to hold her family intact, cobbling together a weave of lies and half-truths. Her only friend, and first love, Joe, is a presence in the story but this is Sandy's journey.
Notice the time of publication -- 1973. I can't even imagine how differently this would be written today, and I don't think the imposed "rules" would improve it. Looking back, there's a character who is very important, Joe's mother, who doesn't even get a mention. Fans of Nora Roberts's Key of Valor, a very special book with a thread of gut-wrenching sadness, will like Under the Haystack.
It looks like this book has been repubbed: the cover is the same as my hardcover (and guess what it sold for in 1973 -- $4.95).
Here's a snapshot from the jacket copy: "When her mother and her stepfather did not come home for dinner, Sandy had a sense of foreboding. But her mother had been late before, so Sandy hid her fears from her two younger sisters. Only later, getting up in the middle of the night and finding that her mother's clothes were gone, did she admit the horrible truth--they had been abandoned. [] Sandy's story is also one of life on an American farm hovering on the brink of poverty. Under the Haystack is a novel rich in family warmth, humor, and sadness."
Sandy is so brave and resilient, on the cusp of maturity -- and she somehow manages to hold her family intact, cobbling together a weave of lies and half-truths. Her only friend, and first love, Joe, is a presence in the story but this is Sandy's journey.
Notice the time of publication -- 1973. I can't even imagine how differently this would be written today, and I don't think the imposed "rules" would improve it. Looking back, there's a character who is very important, Joe's mother, who doesn't even get a mention. Fans of Nora Roberts's Key of Valor, a very special book with a thread of gut-wrenching sadness, will like Under the Haystack.
It looks like this book has been repubbed: the cover is the same as my hardcover (and guess what it sold for in 1973 -- $4.95).
March 27, 2016
1. This was my favorite book as a kid. The last time I read it was 13 years ago in high school. I've been in the first reading funk of my life and someone suggested I re-read an old favorite, so I chose this one. That did the trick.
2. The book is still as fabulous as it always was.
3. I used to play in haystacks and realize now that it's because of this book.
4. I also realize now that the haystack is a symbol of Sandy's childhood. The haystack slowly disappears until there is nothing left just as Sandy's childhood disappears with having to be the responsible one and starting her period and becoming a young lady.
5. I always loved reading about how they survived during the summer.
6. As an adult I now wonder, how many kids are abandoned like this?
7. I always wanted there to be a sequel but now I'm okay with the story as is.
8. Sandy <3 Joe.
9. I want a creek so I can play in it.
10. I haven't revisited this book because I loved it so much and I wanted my favorite English teacher to read it. She read it and when I asked how she liked it she said it was, "Okay." It sort of embarrassed me and broke my heart that I liked a book that she didn't. As an English teacher now, I let kids read whatever they want and when they ask me to read something they love, I find the parts of the book I did like and discuss it so I don't crush their spirit. I do appreciate the fact that she cared enough to read it though.
11. This book would be so much different in today's society. I'm not sure a kid could survive on their own all summer.
2. The book is still as fabulous as it always was.
3. I used to play in haystacks and realize now that it's because of this book.
4. I also realize now that the haystack is a symbol of Sandy's childhood. The haystack slowly disappears until there is nothing left just as Sandy's childhood disappears with having to be the responsible one and starting her period and becoming a young lady.
5. I always loved reading about how they survived during the summer.
6. As an adult I now wonder, how many kids are abandoned like this?
7. I always wanted there to be a sequel but now I'm okay with the story as is.
8. Sandy <3 Joe.
9. I want a creek so I can play in it.
10. I haven't revisited this book because I loved it so much and I wanted my favorite English teacher to read it. She read it and when I asked how she liked it she said it was, "Okay." It sort of embarrassed me and broke my heart that I liked a book that she didn't. As an English teacher now, I let kids read whatever they want and when they ask me to read something they love, I find the parts of the book I did like and discuss it so I don't crush their spirit. I do appreciate the fact that she cared enough to read it though.
11. This book would be so much different in today's society. I'm not sure a kid could survive on their own all summer.
June 21, 2020
I have read this story so many times, I've lost count. This is my all time favorite story! I've searched for it on library shelves for years...I am so happy to find it again.
November 5, 2022
Such a hard, sweet, but sad story. So glad to get a chance to re read it 35 years after I read it in Jr. High
December 27, 2024
I really enjoyed this one. I wanted to read a juvenile farm life fiction and found this on archive.org. This fit the bill perfectly! A young girl having to grow up fast to take care of her two younger sisters.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews