Bauer, J. (2008). Peeled. (1st ed., p. 256). Putnam Juvenile. ISBN: 0399234756
Price :$16.99 hardcover
Reader's Annotation: Hildy Biddle is a teenage investigative journalist who is determined to get to the bottom of the mysterious haunted house in her small town.
Summary: Hildy lives in Banesville, a community of apple farmers. The last few years have seen bad crops, and the growers are nervous. Not to mention, there are strange things happening at the Old Ludlow House. The rumors say the place is haunted. Hildy, who is an investigative reporter isn't buying this story. She begins asking questions that upset some people in her town. A big company wants to buy some of the local apple farms and redevelop. Hildy's school newspaper is shut down. As Hildy continues to search for answers about the Ludlow house and the company seeking to buy orchards, the community becomes more and more divided. With the help of her family and some good friends, though, Hildy continues her quest for the truth.
Genre: mystery, environment, family, fiction, friends, love story
Series : This book is not part of a series, though it will certainly feel familiar to fans of Joan Bauer.
Why it belongs in a Tween Collection: This book has a mystery at its heart, so fans of Nancy Drew and other tween slueths will find it a good fit. Also, Bauer always creates a great main character and supporting cast that will appeal to tween readers.
Readalikes :
- Every Soul a Star by Wendy Mass
- Hoot by Carl Hiassen
Reviews:
from Teenreads.com
Rumors of a haunted house ignite the curiosity of teen reporter Hildy Biddle. She starts investigating the story only to have her school newspaper shut down. What Hildy uncovers and how she overcomes the obstacles that would have her silenced are at the core of Joan Bauer's new book, PEELED.
Bauer regularly writes about adolescents who work. Her Newbery Honor book HOPE WAS HERE is about a teen waitress. RULES OF THE ROAD features a young shoe salesperson. PEELED ambitiously takes on the subject of investigative reporting and responsible journalism.
The book is set in the community of Banesville, which has an economy almost entirely dependent on apple growers. Several bad harvests have the farmers and the town struggling. The mayor keeps promising a community redevelopment project without providing any details. The ensuing conflict --- pitting town farmers against the forces of commerce with an inevitable showdown against a bulldozer --- has a hint of melodrama some readers may have encountered before.
The story's villains --- a turban-wearing psychic, a muckraking journalist who goes by the name of Pen Piedmont, and an unscrupulous mayor --- are also stock characters from melodrama, as is the mysterious “haunted” house at the center of the controversy.
It is the other characters in the novel --- the “good guys” --- who make PEELED worth reading. Hildy's plucky heroism puts her in the company of other teenage sleuths. What makes her unique is her methods of investigation and reporting. Her extensive research and interviewing techniques provide excellent models for effective and responsible investigative journalism. Her journalism teacher --- a man who is clearly far more experienced and talented than his work as an advisor for a school newspaper would indicate --- is also an intriguing, original character.
But Hildy's biggest supporter is Minska, a Polish immigrant who grew up under Poland's repressive Communist regime. Minska tells her about Poland's solidarity movement and the prominent role female journalists played in the underground press:
"'They called the women in the underground press the Dark Circles,' she said. 'because they didn't get enough sleep; they wrote night and day. When you have something so important, something that you'll stay awake for, something you know that you were designed to do, well, it's worth getting a few dark circles, don't you think?'"
Drawing inspiration from Minska's stories about Poland's solidarity movement, Hildy and the rest of her school newspaper's staff run their underground newspaper from the back room of Minska's restaurant. Together they provide the momentum to get other members of the community to stand up for themselves.
PEELED works best as a fable about a community facing a campaign of fear-mongering to influence their behavior to the advantage of those who would control them. The book takes the often tedious work of investigative reporting and makes it interesting and relevant to the experience of young people. It is also a reminder that teens are an important part of every community and that the work they do matters.
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