From Publishers Weekly
An illiterate child in a mountain community learns to read and write. "Johnston knits this story together with recurring themes, lyrical images and picturesque and convincing dialogue," said PW in a starred review. Ages 4-8. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From School Library Journal
Grade 1-3-A story about learning to read and write that doesn't quite work. Amber lives a solitary life high in the mountains. Then one day a man comes with a crew to build a road, bringing along his wife and daughter, Anna. She teaches Amber to read before the road is completed; Amber learns to write on her own so she can keep in touch after Anna's family leaves. The process of mastering these skills, while shown to be a slow one, seems to be one in which, as Anna says, you just, "Set your whole self to the task." Johnston, who has used poetic language to great effect in previous books, seems to be straining to be descriptive here. One brief page of text, for example, is crammed with figurative language, some of which is cliched. She uses expressions that seem to evoke an Appalachian setting, a place where "folks" might "roll clean off" of a road; where people say "hey" to one another. Duncan's large, lush oil paintings unfortunately confuse the issues of time and place. While the frontispiece painting and the details of housing have an Appalachian look, the mountains have the sharp ridges of the Rockies. (The cover painting of the girls on a grassy hillside in front of imposing peaks even evokes strong images of Heidi.) While the setting includes no modern touches, the two children's wardrobes seem to be directly out of the current L.L. Bean catalog. Eve Bunting's The Wednesday Surprise (Clarion, 1989) and Florence Heide's The Day of Ahmed's Secret (Lothrop, 1990) do a better job of telling the literacy story.Barbara Chatton, College of Education, University of Wyoming, LaramieCopyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
Ages 4-8. Living on a high mountain with Granny, Amber is lonely until a man comes with his family and a crew of road builders. The man fixes on the seemingly impossible task of building a road up the steep slope, while his daughter, Anna, befriends Amber and decides to teach her to read. Bringing love and determination to the task, both girls work hard until Amber can read. Before she learns to write, however, the road is finished, and Anna moves on with her family. Amber slowly teaches herself to write so that she can send letters to Anna. Duncan, illustrating his first picture book, captures the beauty of the mountain setting in full- and double-page oil paintings, sunlit and dappled with color. Johnston's way with words gives this quiet story a certain punch and originality, all the more necessary since there's no real conflict or even a flicker of doubt that Amber will succeed. Carolyn Phelan


From Kirkus Reviews
Amber hasn't had a chance to learn to read; the only schoolmaster who ever came to her mountain home ``left his supplies behind and skedaddled before winter came.'' Will the man who comes to build a road also find his task too difficult? Granny Cotton warns, ``You can't build a road here. Folks will roll clean off it, like walking up a wall.'' Still, the man perseveres, while his equally persistent daughter Anna makes friends with shy Amber and teaches her to read; but before Amber can learn to write, the road is completed and Anna's family departs. Still, Amber struggles along on her own and is finally able to write her dear friend a letter. Johnston's beautifully honed narrative glows with mountain imagery and the warmth of the girls' friendship; Duncan, a Utah native whose fine art celebrates the rural West, makes a fine illustration debut with luminous oil paintings of the remote farmland and ebullient children. An excellent addition to the alternate-ways-to-literacy shelf. (Picture book. 4-8) -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.


Book Description
Amber's mountain is beautiful, but it is a lonely place--until the day Anna arrives, bringing both her friendship and the will to teach Amber how to read. Suddenly, Amber's world is filled with a new magic--and new challenges. But when Anna returns to the city, will Amber be able to keep reading on her own? Heartwarming. -- Publishers Weekly, starred review Tony Johnston's previous books include Grandpa's Song and Yonder (both Dial and Puffin). She lives in San Marino, California. Robert Duncan is a fine artist whose paintings have been exhi-bited throughout the United States. He lives in Midway, Utah.


Card catalog description
Isolated on her mountain, Amber meets and befriends a girl from the city who gives her the determination to learn to read and write.

ANNOTATION

Isolated on her mountain, Amber meets and befriends a girl from the city who gives her the determination to learn to read and write.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Amber￯﾿ﾽs mountain is beautiful, but it is a lonely place￯﾿ﾽuntil the day Anna arrives, bringing both her friendship and the will to teach Amber how to read. Suddenly, Amber￯﾿ﾽs world is filled with a new magic￯﾿ﾽand new challenges. But when Anna returns to the city, will Amber be able to keep reading on her own? Heartwarming. -- Publishers Weekly, starred review Tony Johnston￯﾿ﾽs previous books include Grandpa￯﾿ﾽs Song and Yonder (both Dial and Puffin). She lives in San Marino, California. Robert Duncan is a fine artist whose paintings have been exhi-bited throughout the United States. He lives in Midway, Utah.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

An illiterate child in a mountain community learns to read and write. "Johnston knits this story together with recurring themes, lyrical images and picturesque and convincing dialogue," said PW in a starred review. Ages 4-8. (May)

Children's Literature - Jan Lieberman

"Daddy says you can do almost anything you fix your mind on. I've just fixed mine on teaching you to read." Amber learns to read with the help of Anna, her new friend. The girls "stuck to each other like burrs." Whether they were riding horses or quilting, they always had a book with them. The day that Amber actually reads is a day of joy. When Anna's family moves, we know that Amber will manage. Now she can write letters!

Children's Literature - Emily Ferren

A warm and beautiful story about friendship and determination as told through the words of Amber, who lives on the mountain and meets Anna. Anna teaches her to read. Before Amber can learn to write, Anna and her family must leave the mountain. Amber perseveres and sends a letter to Anna, proving that friendship is never far away. 1998 (orig.

School Library Journal