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Onions: Hitting the High Notes
Onions has just been sent to his 16th foster home, Despondent, he steals the purse of Sandrine, a retired circus performer. Instead of turning him in to the police, Sandrine enlists the boy in her fight against City Hall. In the process, Onions learns the importance of reading, having a worthwhile life-goal, and how to play the trumpet, his ultimate redemption. Sandrine is a strong role-model for pre-teens through 18-year-olds as she helps Charles Wesley Onions find meaning in life. A tragic event leads to the powerful, uplifting, and inspiring ending. Finally, Onions is a modern-day Holden Caulfield .. without the swearing.
481 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 12, 2012
About the author
Cy Young
18 books12 followersCy performed on Broadway as a singer/dancer/performer working in Broadway reviews and appeared with Buster Keaton and Howard Keel in National Tours. Cy's recorded many songs for the Painted Smiles label, published three plays through Samuel French, three musicals produced off-Bdwy, and has a song on the Streisand Third Album. Cy's currently writing books: a thriller Deathload, a y.a. novel, Onions, and is working on a series called Kicker.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
April 5, 2014
A nice story of friendship between a young boy and an elderly woman who becomes a mentor to him.
October 15, 2018
I received Onions by Cy Young in exchange for an honest review. I have given this book five out of five star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This story is about the bond and friendship that blossoms between a twelve-year-old boy called Charles Wesley Onions and an eighty-year-old women called Sandrine Galano Fuller. The differences of age are set aside between the two when similarities start to form through interests and hobbies they both enjoy.
Sandrine tried to teach "Onions" right from wrong after the incident of trying to snatch her purse as his reason for doing so was that he can't get a job, so Sandrine sets him to work with her every Saturday for a small amount of money by picketing about the Sports Dome the Mayor is looking to build in their town. There is an underlying problem which a lot of the public are not aware of about this Sports Dome, which Sandrine and Onions try to help make people aware by picketing outside with "Anti-Dome" flyers and a petition.
As they start to spend quite a lot of time together, they start to help one another in many ways, for example Sandrine helps Onions to play the trumpet, invest his time in reading all different kinds of books and to help improve his mood swing. Whereas, Onions helps Sandrine by doing odd bits and bobs around her house and challenging her at the french language.
To read about a troubled boy who has been pushed from pillar to post through foster homes, to find friendship and to become a better person by working with Sandrine Galano Fuller was beautiful, because of how the author, Cy Young, has written this story. I would love to read more material from this author!
I became invested in both of the main characters and really adored them, especially for helping one another and for the bond they created. I thought they were well-developed and it was interesting to find out about both of their backgrounds too.
I really enjoyed this story and glad I took my time to read it because there was a lot to this book in terms of information and what was happening within the story even though it wasn't a very long book.
This was such a lovely feel-good story, which made me feel a lot of emotions ranging between happy and sad throughout. I would definitely recommend this to everyone to read!
April 22, 2019
"Charles Wesley Onions hated everything. He hated his father for dying...and leaving him alone with his alcoholic mother. He hated his mother for sending him off to a foster home. He hated...the 15 other foster parents who abused him and made him work before and after school. But most of all, [Onions] hated himself." (LOC 72)
The boy had a wild-eyed charm and witty naiveté. He was a boy that was into comic books, because good always triumphed over evil. Like the heroes he reads about, he was a young fighter, but he had a firm grasp of reality.
Onions then develops a mentorship with Sandrine, a former circus performer, who opens up his world to literature, music, knowledge, and morality. "Unenlightened, uninformed people usually haven't learned to discipline their minds." (65) Sandrine teaches the boy a simple equation to life: Read to gain knowledge, then learn to store the knowledge and use it when the time comes. After all, the mind is a precious thing, to fill with great ideas and beautiful thoughts. "You can be a bum or a great man." (68)
I liked the "knowledge is power" mantra and how it pushed Onions to do more for himself. It's definitely a great message for kids. The historical and dates facts were daunting at times and didn't quite correlate with the main coming-of-age tale that I became so inspiring. In fact, these segments almost deviated from the story of Onions, especially when the focus turned on the mayor and the councilman. I understood that the boy got involved in the battle of politics, but it just seemed to tarnish the flourishing development of the young boy. I think it made it too serious and not that fitting for a middle-grade audience.
I though the book had a fun-looking cover. It blended a child-like quality with a precocious sense of adventure, however, I'm not sure if it was quite fitting for the academic and political views within the story.
All in all, this was a nice story of a poor boy that grew his mind. I honestly would've taken out the political aspect and focused more on the learning development. But I think his story is a great testimony of what learning can do.
The boy had a wild-eyed charm and witty naiveté. He was a boy that was into comic books, because good always triumphed over evil. Like the heroes he reads about, he was a young fighter, but he had a firm grasp of reality.
Onions then develops a mentorship with Sandrine, a former circus performer, who opens up his world to literature, music, knowledge, and morality. "Unenlightened, uninformed people usually haven't learned to discipline their minds." (65) Sandrine teaches the boy a simple equation to life: Read to gain knowledge, then learn to store the knowledge and use it when the time comes. After all, the mind is a precious thing, to fill with great ideas and beautiful thoughts. "You can be a bum or a great man." (68)
I liked the "knowledge is power" mantra and how it pushed Onions to do more for himself. It's definitely a great message for kids. The historical and dates facts were daunting at times and didn't quite correlate with the main coming-of-age tale that I became so inspiring. In fact, these segments almost deviated from the story of Onions, especially when the focus turned on the mayor and the councilman. I understood that the boy got involved in the battle of politics, but it just seemed to tarnish the flourishing development of the young boy. I think it made it too serious and not that fitting for a middle-grade audience.
I though the book had a fun-looking cover. It blended a child-like quality with a precocious sense of adventure, however, I'm not sure if it was quite fitting for the academic and political views within the story.
All in all, this was a nice story of a poor boy that grew his mind. I honestly would've taken out the political aspect and focused more on the learning development. But I think his story is a great testimony of what learning can do.
June 6, 2018
Twelve-year-old Charles Wesley Onions has been through many foster homes. At school, he gets bullied and the kids make fun of him. It seems like he goes from one bad experience to another, never knowing how long he might stay in one place.
We see things start to change for him when he meets eighty-year-old Sandrine Galano Fuller. She is a former high-wire circus performer and hires him to help her out. In return, he tries to help her save the town from a pro-dome that could bankrupt the county.
Mrs. Fuller has a love of books. She admits that she has been collecting them since she was a little girl. Her walls are labeled and she tells him a little about the books. He soon starts reading a book a week. Mrs. Fuller likes that he is reading. She notices his mood swings have improved, too.
She also teaches Onions to play the trumpet, mentioning that Maynard Ferguson and Eric Miyashiro play the octaves. When Onions asks who they are. She responds, "Two of the best jazz musicians in the world.” He is so enthused, he plays until his lips are numb.
Later, she shows him, "The Silver Cross" and "The Medal of Honor ".The author tells us, "Suddenly he felt something strange. A chill knifed through his body. It was as if he was in the presence of something beautiful, something greater than he was, something honorable, something sacred."
Throughout this read, we see a young man growing up and taking a stand. The different perspectives and events switching back and forth follow along with the ups and downs of life's transitions. And the beautiful melody "Over the Rainbow", is a reminder that the paths we take in life are never easy but are frequently filled with a wistful affection for the past and hope for the future.
I received this beautiful story through the generosity of the author.
We see things start to change for him when he meets eighty-year-old Sandrine Galano Fuller. She is a former high-wire circus performer and hires him to help her out. In return, he tries to help her save the town from a pro-dome that could bankrupt the county.
Mrs. Fuller has a love of books. She admits that she has been collecting them since she was a little girl. Her walls are labeled and she tells him a little about the books. He soon starts reading a book a week. Mrs. Fuller likes that he is reading. She notices his mood swings have improved, too.
She also teaches Onions to play the trumpet, mentioning that Maynard Ferguson and Eric Miyashiro play the octaves. When Onions asks who they are. She responds, "Two of the best jazz musicians in the world.” He is so enthused, he plays until his lips are numb.
Later, she shows him, "The Silver Cross" and "The Medal of Honor ".The author tells us, "Suddenly he felt something strange. A chill knifed through his body. It was as if he was in the presence of something beautiful, something greater than he was, something honorable, something sacred."
Throughout this read, we see a young man growing up and taking a stand. The different perspectives and events switching back and forth follow along with the ups and downs of life's transitions. And the beautiful melody "Over the Rainbow", is a reminder that the paths we take in life are never easy but are frequently filled with a wistful affection for the past and hope for the future.
I received this beautiful story through the generosity of the author.
April 26, 2026
Author Cy Young will take you on an unforgettable and amazing adventure! Once you get into the story, it becomes so real that you forget it’s a fiction story! Author Cy Young makes the characters come alive in a way that you laugh, cry and almost experience what the characters are experiencing! Thank you Mr. Young for writing such a wonderful book!
April 22, 2019
Cy Young made it easy for me to fall in love with his zany characters, especially Sandrine Fuller, an octogenarian, eccentric genius who in her younger years graced the stage of Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus as a tight rope walker playing the trumpet upside down. Partnering with a pimply adolescent named C.W., a foster home throwback who hated everything, they make quite an unpredictable pair. What’s really fun is how the author reveals these wonderful character’s strengths and flaws and what drives them through their crazy, yet courageous, adventures. Amidst the shenanigans, upheavals, and attempts to right the wrong, the last living member of the famous Flying Galanos teaches C.W. the fundamentals of a life worth living. The feisty female, who constructed an airplane in her own backyard, becomes the mother and teacher he never had. A fast and funny read that unexpectedly brought tears to my eyes in between the laughs.
~ Libby Belle, author of fiction stories, published works: UK Woman’s Weekly, NY Adelaide Literary, Beyond Art & More, and a four-book series of stories on the horizon.
~ Libby Belle, author of fiction stories, published works: UK Woman’s Weekly, NY Adelaide Literary, Beyond Art & More, and a four-book series of stories on the horizon.
July 9, 2018
Full review:
https://bookstoldmeso.blogspot.com/20...
'' ''Have you read all these books?''
''Yep, at one time or another. I encourage you to read. The more you read, the more you know, the more confident you'll become and the harder it will be for people to take advantage of you.'' ''
https://bookstoldmeso.blogspot.com/20...
'' ''Have you read all these books?''
''Yep, at one time or another. I encourage you to read. The more you read, the more you know, the more confident you'll become and the harder it will be for people to take advantage of you.'' ''
March 2, 2018
A feel good story, I would recommend this boom to anyone needing a mood boost. Made me smile, made me cry, and then made me smile again.
A feel good story i would recommend to anyone needing a mood boost. Made me smile, made me cry, made me smile again. This is a keeper.
A feel good story i would recommend to anyone needing a mood boost. Made me smile, made me cry, made me smile again. This is a keeper.
March 8, 2018
Loved this book
A great story read it in one day could not put the book down once I started.A must read for all ages
A great story read it in one day could not put the book down once I started.A must read for all ages
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews