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| Perma-Bound Edition ©2011 | -- |
| Paperback ©2011 | -- |
Waldorf-Astoria Hotel (New York, N.Y.). Fiction.
Family life. New York (State). New York. Fiction.
Homeless persons. Fiction.
Gangs. Fiction.
Immigrants. Fiction.
New York (N.Y.). History. 1865-1898. Fiction.
Starred Review Dickensian street action comes to New York's Lower East Side in this gripping story, set in 1893, about newsboy Maks, 13, who feels "hungry twenty-five hours a day." After rescuing a filthy, homeless girl, Willa, Maks takes her to the crowded tenement he shares with his struggling Danish immigrant family. Pursued by Bruno, the leader of the Plug Ugly street gang, Maks is desperate to save his sister, Emma, who was imprisoned after being falsely accused of stealing a watch from the Waldorf Hotel, where she worked as a cleaner. Just as compelling as the fast-moving plot's twists and turns is the story's social realism, brought home by the contrasts between the overcrowded, unsanitary slums ("No water, gas, electricity") and the luxurious Waldorf. Then there are the unspeakable conditions in prison, where, even as a prisoner, Emma must pay for food. Avi writes in an immediate, third-person, present-tense voice, mostly from Maks' colloquial viewpoint ("He's full of heartache, but no one is seeing it"), with occasional switches to Willa and to the young gangster leader. Threading together the drama are tense mysteries: Is Willa really an orphan? Who stole the watch? Pair this riveting historical novel with Linda Granfield's 97 Orchard Street, New York: Stories of Immigrant Life (2001), a nonfiction account of Lower East Side tenements.
Starred Review for Kirkus ReviewsAn immigrant family tries to survive crime, poverty and corruption in 1893 New York City. Earning enough money to cover the rent and basic needs in this year of economic panic is an endless struggle for every member of the family. Every penny counts, even the eight cents daily profit 13-year-old Maks earns by selling newspapers. Maks also must cope with violent attacks by a street gang and its vicious leader, who in turn is being manipulated by someone even more powerful. Now Maks' sister has been wrongly arrested for stealing a watch at her job in the glamorous Waldorf Hotel and is in the notorious Tombs prison awaiting trial. How will they prove her innocence? Maks finds help and friendship from Willa, a homeless street urchin, and Bartleby Donck, an eccentric lawyer. Avi's vivid recreation of the sights and sounds of that time and place is spot on, masterfully weaving accurate historical details with Maks' experiences as he encounters the city of sunshine and shadow. An omniscient narrator speaks directly to readers, establishing an immediacy that allows them to feel the characters' fears and worries and hopes. Heroic deeds, narrow escapes, dastardly villains, amazing coincidences and a family rich in love and hope are all part of an intricate and endlessly entertaining adventure. Terrific! (author's note, bibliography)Â (Historical fiction. 10-14)Â
Horn Book (Sun Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2012)In 1893 New York City, thirteen-year-old Maks hawks newspapers for eight cents a day. A street gang is roughing up the newsies; Maks's sister has been arrested for theft; and his father is about to lose his job. Avi's fast-paced, muscular prose, along with his Dickensian cast of characters and a mystery of comfortable complexity, make this a gratifying adventure.
Kirkus Reviews (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)An immigrant family tries to survive crime, poverty and corruption in 1893 New York City. Earning enough money to cover the rent and basic needs in this year of economic panic is an endless struggle for every member of the family. Every penny counts, even the eight cents daily profit 13-year-old Maks earns by selling newspapers. Maks also must cope with violent attacks by a street gang and its vicious leader, who in turn is being manipulated by someone even more powerful. Now Maks' sister has been wrongly arrested for stealing a watch at her job in the glamorous Waldorf Hotel and is in the notorious Tombs prison awaiting trial. How will they prove her innocence? Maks finds help and friendship from Willa, a homeless street urchin, and Bartleby Donck, an eccentric lawyer. Avi's vivid recreation of the sights and sounds of that time and place is spot on, masterfully weaving accurate historical details with Maks' experiences as he encounters the city of sunshine and shadow. An omniscient narrator speaks directly to readers, establishing an immediacy that allows them to feel the characters' fears and worries and hopes. Heroic deeds, narrow escapes, dastardly villains, amazing coincidences and a family rich in love and hope are all part of an intricate and endlessly entertaining adventure. Terrific! (author's note, bibliography)Â (Historical fiction. 10-14)Â
Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)Thirteen-year-old Maks Geless, the oldest son of Danish immigrants, makes eight cents a day hawking The World on Manhattan street corners in 1893. Newbery Medalist Avi tells his story in a vibrant, unsophisticated, present-tense voice (a typical chapter begins, -Okay, now it-s the next day-Tuesday-), and it-s a hard life. Maks-s sister Agnes has TB, the shoe factory where Agnes and Mr. Geless work is suspending operations, and the grocer and landlord want their accounts paid. Then Maks-s oldest sister, Emma, is accused of stealing from a guest at the Waldorf Hotel, where she is a maid. Amid this strife, the good-hearted Gelesses take in Willa, a homeless girl who saved Maks from a street gang. Maks and Willa must prove Emma-s innocence, with the help of an odd, possibly dying detective (he-s coughing up blood, too). The contrasts among Maks-s family-s squalid tenement existence; Emma-s incarceration in the Tombs, the city-s infamous prison; and the splendor of the Waldorf bring a stark portrait of 19th-century society to a terrifically exciting read, with Ruth-s fine pencil portraits adding to the overall appeal. Ages 10-14. (Sept.)
School Library Journal (Mon Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2011)Gr 6-8 Maks Geless, 13, and his family live in a tenement in 1893 New York City. His father and older sister work in a factory; another sister works as a maid at the new Waldorf Hotel; his mother takes in laundry; and his younger brothers are still in school. Maks works as a newsie, selling newspapers on street corners. Lately he has been fighting off a gang that is trying to steal his earnings and he has found an unlikely defender in Willa, a homeless girl his age. After his sister is accused of theft at the Waldorf and awaits trial in prison, Maks, with help from Willa and a mysterious detective, seeks to prove her innocence and defeat the gang. Avi gives his omniscient narrator the voice of an old-time movie tough guy, complete with "ain'ts" and dropped first letters ("'specially," "see 'em," "'bout"). He paints a colorful, exciting picture of city life at the turn of the last century, while not shying away from its hardships. While guests at the Waldorf live in luxury, Maks's family deals with illness, filth, and death. The plot moves swiftly, covering much in just five days. The narrative wraps up, like a gangster movie, with a shoot-out at the Waldorf. An author's note grounds the tale in history, and Avi offers additional reading and viewing options. Ruth contributes several fine pencil sketches of the main characters, placing them nicely in their environments. Geri Diorio, The Ridgefield Library, CT
Starred Review ALA Booklist (Mon Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2011)
Starred Review for Kirkus Reviews
Starred Review for Publishers Weekly
Horn Book (Sun Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2012)
ILA Teacher's Choice Award
Kirkus Reviews (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)
Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)
School Library Journal (Mon Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2011)
Wilson's Children's Catalog
Wilson's Junior High Catalog
1
Amazing things happen.
Look at someone on the street and you might never see that person again—ever. Then you bump into a stranger and your whole life changes—forever. See what I’m saying? It’s all ’bout them words: “luck,” “chance,” “coincidence,” “accident,” “quirk,” “miracle,” plus a lot of words I’m guessing I don’t even know.
But the thing is, I got a story that could use all them words. ’Bout a kid by the name of Maks Geless. That’s Maks, with a k. M-a-k-s.
Now, this Maks, he’s regular height for a thirteen-year-old, ruddy-faced, shaggy brown hair, always wearing a cloth cap, canvas jacket, and trousers, plus decent boots. He’s a newsboy—what they call a “newsie.” So he’s holding up a copy of the New York City newspaper The World,andhe’sshouting, “Extra! Extra! Read all ’bout it! ‘Murder at the Waldorf. Terrible Struggle with a Crazy Man! Two Men Killed!’ Read it in The World! The world’s greatest newspaper. Just two cents!”
Now, not everything gets into the papers, right? But see, the only one who knows what really happened up at the Waldorf is . . . Maks.
You’re thinking, how could this kid—this newsie—know?
I’ll tell you.
This story starts on Monday, October 9, 1893. That’s five days before the day of that headline you just heard. It’s early evening, the night getting nippy. Electric streetlamps just starting to glow. In other words, the long workday is winking.
Not for Maks. He’s still on his regular corner, Hester Street and the Bowery. Been peddling The World for five hours and has sold thirty-nine papers. Sell one more and he’ll have bailed his whole bundle. Do that and he’ll have eighty cents in his pocket.
Now listen hard, ’cause this is important.
In 1893 newsies buy their papers and then sell ’em. So next day’s bundle is gonna cost Maks seventy-two cents. Then he sells ’em for two cents each. Means, for his five hours’ work, he’ll earn a whole eight cents. Not much, you say? Hey, these days, six cents buys you a can of pork and beans, enough eats for a day, which is more than some people gets.
You’re probably thinking, eight pennies—that ain’t hardly worth working all them hours. But this is 1893. These are hard times. Factories closing. Workers laid off. Not many jobs. Housing not easy to find. Fact, people are calling these days the “Great Panic of 1893.” And the thing is, Maks’s family’s rent is due this week. Fifteen bucks! For them, that’s huge.
All I’m saying is, Maks’s family needs him to earn his share, which is—you guessed it—eight cents a day.
Now, most days when Maks finishes selling his papers, he likes staying in the neighborhood to see how his newsie pals have done. Don’t forget, this is New York City. The Lower East Side. Something always happening.
This night all Maks wants to do is to get home and eat. No surprise; he’s hungry twenty-five hours a day, eight days a week. And last time he ate was breakfast—a roll and a bowl of coffee-milk.
So Maks holds up his last newspaper and gives it his best bark: “Extra! Extra! Read all ’bout it! ‘Joe Gorker, Political Boss, Accused of Stealing Millions from City! Trial Date Set! Others Arrested!’ Read it in The World! World’s greatest newspaper. Just two cents! Only two cents!”
Sure, sometimes crying headlines, Maks gets to head doodling that someday he’ll be in the paper for doing something great, like maybe making a flying machine. So The World would pop his picture on its first page, like this here mug Joe Gorker. Then Maks reminds himself that his job is selling the news, not being it. Besides, The World is always laying down lines ’bout Joe Gorker, screaming that the guy is a grifter-grafter so crooked that he could pass for a pretzel.
Anyway, Maks’s shout works ’cause next moment, a fancy gent—top hat, handlebar mustache, starched white collar, what some people call a “swell stiff”—wags a finger at him.
Maks runs over.
The guy shows a nickel. “Got change, kid?”
“Sorry, sir. No, sir.”
I know: Maks may be my hero, but he ain’t no saint. Like I told you, for him, pennies are big. Needs all he can get.
“Fine,” says the swell. “Keep the change.”
“Thank you, sir!” Maks says as he slings his last sheet to this guy.
The guy walks off, reading the headlines.
Maks, telling himself his day is done, pops the nickel into his pocket. Except no sooner does he do that than who does he see?
He sees Bruno.
This Bruno is one serious nasty fella. Taller than Maks by a head, his face is sprinkled with peach fuzz, greasy red hair flopping over his eyes, one of which is squinty, and on his head he’s got a tipped-back brown derby, which makes his ears stick out like cute cauliflowers.
But the thing is, Bruno may be only seventeen years old, but he’s head of the Plug Ugly Gang. Lately, Bruno and his gang have been slamming World newsies, beating ’em up, stealing their money, burning their papers.
So Maks knows if Bruno is giving him the eye, things gonna be bad. And it’s not just ’bout being robbed. If Maks loses his money, he ain’t gonna be able to buy papers for next day. No papers, no more money and the family rent don’t get paid. In other words, no choice. Maks has to get home with his money.
Trouble is, his home is a three-room tenement flat over to Birmingham Street, near the East River. That’s fifteen big blocks away, which, right now, feels as far as the North Pole.
In other words, if Maks wants to keep his money, he’s gonna have to either outrun that Plug Ugly or fight him.
Don’t know ’bout you, but Maks would rather run.
© 2011 Avi Wortis
Excerpted from City of Orphans by Avi
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
Plot twists, big accusations, and plenty of shifty, crooked characters fill the pages of this harrowing adventure from Newbery Medalist Avi.
The streets of 1893 New York are crowded and filthy. For thirteen-year-old newsboy Maks Geless, they are also dangerous. Bruno, leader of the awful Plug Ugly Gang, has set his sights on Maks and orders his boys to track him down. Suddenly Maks finds himself on the run, doing all he can to evade the gang, with only his new friend Willa by his side. And that’s just the start of Mak’s troubles. His sister, Emma, has been arrested and imprisoned for stealing a watch from the glamorous new Waldorf Hotel. Maks knows she didn’t do it—but will he be able to prove it in time?
This is a riveting, quickly paced adventure set against a backdrop alive with the sights and sounds of tenement New York.