Sawdust in His Shoes

(Paperback)

Publishing Details

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Physical Properties

Description

Award-winner: Author is a 3-time Newbery Honor winner.
Nostalgia market: Classic literature in a classic package appeals to gift buyers and fans of childhood read-aloud titles.
Northwest regional interest: Author lived in Oregon, where the story takes place.

Reviews

"[This] yarn of a boy equestrian with circus in his blood has enough of the old tricks to keep any young person engrossed. Joe Lang, a black-haired gypsy of a boy forced from circus life by the death of his father and taken to an Industrial School, has the dark, brooding appeal of a superior being from a remote, romantic world confined to an unsympathetic grey one. Escaping from the school, Joe is taken in by a saintly farm family who make him one of them by gradually overcoming his fear and distrust of non-circus people.A good, hearty, full-blooded yarn, appealing to both boys and girls."Kirkus Reviews, 1950
"One of the 10 best children's books of 1950."The New York Times
"The allurement of the circus ring and of life under the Big Top has seldom been more clearly indicated than in Sawdust in His Shoes.Each member of the Dawson household is a real person and Joe himself, whose distrust changes into love and loyalty, is admirable drawn. This is a good story."The Horn Book, 1950
"Every character in this book is warm, true and different from the others. The language is racy with circus talk and farm talk. The action is fast, funny and often moving. A good book for children is a good book for any age and Sawdust in His Shoes belongs in that rare category."The New York Times

Author Bio

Eloise Jarvis McGraw (19152000) was an American author of children's books and young adult novels. Her novels were named Newbery Honor Books three times in three different decades: Moccasin Trail (1952), The Golden Goblet (1962), and The Moorchild (1997). A Really Weird Summer (1977) won an Edgar Award for Best Juvenile Mystery from the Mystery Writers of America. McGraw had a strong interest in history, and among the many books she wrote for children are Greensleeves, The Seventeenth Swap, a light-hearted tale for younger children. McGraw also contributed to the Oz series started by L. Frank Baum. Eloise Jarvis McGraw was married to William Corbin McGraw, and had two children, Peter and Lauren. She lived much of her life in Oregon, where her first novel, Sawdust in His Shoes, is set.