Hannah, Divided

by Adele Griffin

In 1934, a thirteen-year-old with a gift for numbers is offered the chance to leave her family's dairy farm to spend one term at an exclusive Philadelphia girls' school preparing for a scholarship exam.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Juvenile, Young Adult, School, Fiction

288 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2002

About the author

from Wikipedia:

Adele Griffin is the author of over thirty highly-acclaimed books across a variety of genres, including Sons of Liberty and Where I Want to Be, both National Book Award Finalists.

Her debut adult novel The Favor explores themes of friendship, surrogacy, and nontraditional family building.

Find her on TikTok at @adelegriffinbooks and Instagram at @adelegriffin or www.adelegriffin.


website: www.adelegriffin.com


Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/adelegriffi...

Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Adele-G...


Open Road Media interview
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSa3P...

Reviews

[BiblioBickie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Set in 1934, HANNAH, DIVIDED follows the changes Hannah experiences when she decides to go against her family's wishes and leave the dairy farm to pursue advanced math education in Philadelphia. Hannah is gifted with numbers, patterns, and math in general; however, she is less skilled at reading because she gets distracted by the beautiful shapes of the letters and ends up counting, for example, how many a's are on the page/in a chapter/in a book. Hannah is constantly counting and manipulating numbers; she is also often tapping sequences and rhythms to calm herself when agitated.
Hannah's grandfather is the only family member who encourages her to consider a life outside of Chadds Ford and the family dairy farm. Even her friends are focused on becoming "June brides" and living in white houses on the same street - each has chosen her favorite shade of shutters. Hannah has conflicting feelings about the comfort and safety of home and the lure of higher learning. The ending is somewhat unsatisfying; the reader is left with many questions about what happens to Hannah next, though she seems to become more philosophical about her lot in life. There is even an abrupt turn-around in a fellow schoolmate who suddenly thinks Hannah is worth including in a party.
I liked the gentle treatment of Hannah's differences (OCD? Asperger's? Dyslexia?) and her authentic-sounding determination. The book does not cudgel the reader with lessons or labels. However, I did not like the ending or the complete lack of ambition of the family for Hannah; they seemed to view her as a needed farmhand/dairy maid and didn't see why girls needed to read or cipher.
Best for ages 9-11.

[Christy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thirteen-year-old Hannah Bennett loves her life in Chadds Ford. She goes to school, helps out with her family's dairy farm, jumps rope, and listens to favorite radio programs with her friends. Although she has difficulty reading, she does have one area of special talent: numbers.Her gift for math means she does all of the invoicing for the farm, and helps out the younger students in their one-room schoolhouse. Best of all, Hannah enjoys a special relationship with Granddad McNaughton, who shares her passion for counting and calculating. He thinks of her gift as the key to a greater future elsewhere. "You'll rust here," he predicts. But Hannah can't imagine life anywhere else.

Then Hannah is offered a rare opportunity for a country girl in 1934: to test for a scholarship to attend a private school in Philadelphia. Over her parents' objections, Hannah goes. But life in a big city is harder and lonelier than she'd ever imagined. Just when things seem at their worst, Hannah must somehow find the courage to decide what she values most.

Acclaimed author Adele Griffin's first historical novel is a funny and poignant story of one girl's journey to her bravest self.

[Emily Clifford · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an unexpectedly well-written book and I loved the complexity of relationships and the perspectives of the characters. It takes place in Pennsylvania during the 1930s and has lots of rich historical details to bring that time period alive. Hannah is a math prodigy but is remedial in reading, and soon has to make difficult decisions about her education and her dreams.

Weaknesses? It focuses on education, friendship, dreams, family...those could be poky topics for some kids. But it does have a really engaging way of portraying Hannah's math skills as an amazing gift but perhaps also as a crutch that distances her from others. The wealthy patron aspect is also an interesting dynamic and I thought the end was satisfying (even if it did leave me with some questions).

[Nicole West Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is especially inspirational to those of us with disabilities that may hinder our ability to learn or progress. Hannah has to deal with what we now know as dyslexia and OCD but back then in the 30’s it would have been hard to find help for that. I love that the ending was positive without truly knowing exactly what happened regarding the exam. She felt she didn’t pass but that was ok because she was gonna keep moving forward regardless and not let the negativity of failing get to her.

[Lisa-Jaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in the depression in 1934, 13 year old Hannah lives on a dairy farm and has trouble reading, however she has an amazing talent with maths and when offered the chance to work towards a scholarship she has many things to think about and decide. Great book and a quick read.

[Ruhama · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hannah is a farm girl who is exceptional at math. In fact, she can't stop counting--she's constantly tapping out numbers and looking for ways that the number thirty-two is special (she sounds a little OCD, but I'm not sure if that's a correct diagnosis). Her story takes place during the Depression, so when a wealthy patron of clever children wants to take her under her wings for a scholarship, she can hardly refuse. Hannah is whisked off her dairy farm to the city, where she studies math and reading (in which she's fallen far behind) to prepare for entrance exams. Life is very different there, but she manages to adjust, and loves all the new math she's studying. The book does end with the test, and it's implied she doesn't pass, so there is room for another book, though it stands alone quite well.

The title is clever, as it incorporates the math aspect of Hannah's life, as well as her physical division between country and city life. In a lot of ways, this felt like Anne of Green Gables for the younger set, and would prepare them for Montgomery's works. Hannah shows how one can change when thrust into new circumstances, as well as how you have to make decisions for yourself sometimes, rather than trying to please others. I enjoyed watching her grow and develop from country mouse to city mouse, and appreciated that she came to terms with failure as a learning process, rather than a sign to quit. I also liked that she enjoyed math, and became determined to forge ahead, especially in a time when women/girls didn't do things like math and science.

[Carla]

Story is about Hannah, who lives on a dairy farm with her family during the Great Depression and has a savant-like ability in math. She gets the opportunity to go to Philadelphia to study at a private school and enter a scholarship competition. Obsessive-compulsive disorder is highlighted, as is dyslexia. An enjoyable read, though I'm not sure what the author's point or message was. Perhaps it was the importance of perseverance.

An enjoyable read, though I'm not sure what the author's point or message was. Perhaps it was the importance of perseverance.

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good description of a girl with Asperger's syndrome who has a gift for math in 1934 Pennsylvania.

[Reader Girl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the historical aspect of the novel as well as its attention to "exceptional" people. However, I think the second half of the book lost some of its focus.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book for girls STEM. Too bad our system doesn"t own