One Day and One Amazing Morning on Orange Street

February 7, 2011
Rocklin (For Your Eyes Only!) sets her realistic, evocative novel, which features a warm and believable community of adults and children, in a California neighborhood that was once home to an orange grove. One very old Valencia orange tree still sits on an empty lot on Orange Street, and it's the focal point and gathering spot for a band of neighborhood kids: Ali, whose toddler brother is not recovering from brain tumor surgery; Bunny, whose mother travels by plane too often for Bunny's comfort; Leandra, grumpy at the prospect of a new sibling; and Robert, trying to establish himself as a magician. The story, told from each character's point of view, takes place over the course of a day and a half, during which the younger residents—together with the elderly "Ms. Snoops," holder of the street's history—worry about the significance of an orange traffic cone that has appeared in front of the empty lot. Fears about the cone rise and recede as the characters struggle with their individual anxieties, culminating in a confrontation that resolves several mysteries and brings out the best in everyone. Ages 8–12.

March 1, 2011
Does the arrival of a mysterious man in a green car presage a miracle on Orange Street? Does the orange cone in front of the empty lot where the last majestic orange tree stood mean trouble? The tree was rooted in the lives of four kids. Bunny, age nine, has OCD and worries every time her mother flies. Leandra lives at 301½ above the garage with her grandparents because her mother is pregnant. Ali has a toddler brother who has stopped talking after a hospital stay. Lonely Robert is a chubby would-be magician with a crush on Ali. The segments of their lives cluster around the orange tree that holds secrets in the dirt, shelters hummingbird nests and provides California shade. There's also Manny, the dreadlocked nanny for Ali's brother, and Ms. Snoops, whose memory is like a lacy antimacassar, with holes. Unfolding in one day's time, the story recounts how secrets are revealed, curiosity is satisfied and wishing becomes hope because the spirit and ties of friendship and community are resilient and strong. Fully realized characters and setting definitely make this one morning on Orange Street amazing. (Fiction. 8-11)

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

Starred review from May 1, 2011

Gr 4-7-A Day-Glo orange cone has been placed at the curb of the empty lot on Orange Street, and everyone notices it. The neighborhood kids think of the lot and its orange tree as theirs. Its shade provides cool comfort and the lot is their gathering spot. This space becomes the setting for the cast of quirky characters who unveil their worries, wishes, and dreams over the course of one day and the next morning. The importance of the orange tree and the empty lot spans time and intertwines past and present Orange Street residents through their stories. With magic tricks, health issues, a father going off to war, an injured hummingbird, buried treasure, and more, this mulitfaceted story has been polished to simplicity. Fascinating and thought-provoking, the writing has a gentle cadence, richness in detail, and is charged with emotion. The book, like the oranges on the Orange Street tree, presents segments of life that are both sweet and tart and sure to satisfy.-Helen Foster James, University of California at San Diego

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 15, 2011
Grades 3-6 In this neighborhood story set over a day and a half, the kids on a Los Angeles block hang out near an old, thriving orange tree on an empty lot. In moving chapters, Rocklin tells the dramatic story of each child, including grumpy Leandra, 10, and her twin brothers, P. J. and A. J.; Ali, who visits with old Ethel Finneymaker (also known as Ms. Snoops), who remembers playing in the lot when she was nine years old, in 1939; Alis little brother, Edgar, who has returned silent and pale from the hospital; and Robert, who brings a mouse home from the lot and makes him a secret pet. The novel is overcrowded with characters, but the vignettes lend themselves to readers theater; each one is a touching story, beautifully told in multiple viewpoints. The climax helps bring the confusing mix together: a developer is planning to cut down the orange tree, and the details of what will happen to the beloved landmark are a metaphor for the whole neighborhood. Can the kids save their ground?(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2011
Across Orange Street from Ali's house, next door to Bunny, two down from Robert, and diagonally from Leandra is the nearly vacant lot boasting the neighborhood's last surviving orange tree. It's the spot where Robert surreptitiously practices magic tricks and where the Girls With Long Hair Club meets. It's also where Ali's baby brother, Edgar, sits on his plastic swing, silent since his brain tumor operation; where Bunny looks anxiously up into the sky whenever her mother jets off on a business trip; and where Leandra tries to control her fly-off-the-handle temper. On the titular day, an ominous orange construction cone appears on the lot. After some speculation about its purpose ("in nature, orange means good things...But when you paint something orange it usually means something not-so-good"), the kids go about their activities until they're forced, the following morning, to confront the "gruesome details" of what's been planned for their beloved tree -- and to take action. The story is nicely paced, unfolding over seven time periods -- Morning; Afternoon; Evening; Night; Morning, Again; and a coda called And. As the day-and-a-half passes, details about the residents -- both past and present -- of this comfortably insular neighborhood emerge organically. Rocklin touches lightly on such issues as dementia, economic depression, agriculture, ecology, and war. Mainly, though, the story is a snapshot of sticking by your friends, imperfect (or inanimate) though they may be, and standing up for what's right. elissa gershowitz

(Copyright 2011 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

July 1, 2011
An ominous construction cone appears on the lot boasting Orange Street's last orange tree. The neighborhood kids, confronted with "gruesome" plans for the tree, take action. The story is nicely paced; as the day-and-a-half passes, details about the neighborhood emerge organically. Rocklin touches lightly on issues including dementia and ecology. Mainly, though, it's a story about standing up for what's right.

(Copyright 2011 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)