Module 13: Trouble for Cecile

[Photo courtesy of Amazon.com]

Summary: Young Cecile is so excited for her summer. Her best friend, Marie-Grace, and her will be volunteering at a shelter, and her brother Armand has finally come home from France. She is sure that it is going to be an adventurous summer; that is until New Orleans is struck by Yellow Fever. The fear begins to mount when the Fever plagues her home. While it may not have been the summer she wanted, Cecile will still have an unforgettable one.

APA: Patrick, D.L. (2011). Trouble for Cecile. New York, NY: American Girl.

Review: "Meet Cecile introduces a dynamic and intelligent young character to the "American Girl" series canon. Cecile Rey, a free African-American girl, lives in New Orleans in 1853. Cecile's family is wealthy and the young girl is used to luxuries including taking singing lessons and eating pralines. Cecile cannot wait until Mardi Gras, when she will attend a fancy ball. She meets a new friend, Marie-Grace, who has recently moved back to New Orleans with her widowed father. The two girls study opera with Mademoiselle Oceane. One day Cecile learns exciting news; her brother Armand, who lives in Paris, will return home in a few months. Cecile cannot wait to see her brother again—and when he arrives she is surprised to see how grown up he appears. Mardi Gras turns out to be an exciting event, and Cecile has the chance to attend two balls. In this unique series, readers can experience the events from the joint perspectives of two best friends. This unusual storytelling feature allows readers to step back in time through two identities, gaining a wider understanding of historical events. "

Citation: Henshon, S. E. (2011). "Meet Cecile" Childrens's Literature. Retrieved from http://www.clcd.com/features/mai_patrick_denise_lewis.php.

Library Use: This book offers insight into the lives of young girls during real life events. This historical fiction follows a young girl in a budding New Orleans. Young readers can read about the life of Cecile and her living through the Yellow Fever Epidemic. They can then interactively immerse themselves in the study of how the plague spread through an iPad center that will allow them to create a timeline of events.