Orphan Train Girl
This young readers’ edition of Christina Baker Kline’s #1 New York Times bestselling novel Orphan Train follows a twelve-year-old foster girl who forms an unlikely bond with a ninety-one-year old woman.
This paperback includes:
- author’s note
- archival photographs from the orphan train era
- mother-daughter book club questions
Molly Ayer has been in foster care since she was eight years old. Most of the time, Molly knows it’s her attitude that’s the problem, but after being shipped from one family to another, she’s had her fair share of adults treating her like an inconvenience. So when Molly’s forced to help a wealthy elderly woman clean out her attic for community service, Molly is wary.
But from the moment they meet, Molly realizes that Vivian isn’t like any of the adults she’s encountered before. Vivian asks Molly questions about her life and actually listens to the answers.
Soon Molly sees they have more in common than she thought. Vivian was an orphan, too—an Irish immigrant to New York City who was put on a so-called “orphan train” to the Midwest with hundreds of other children—and she can understand, better than anyone else, the emotional binds that have been making Molly’s life so hard.
Together, they not only clear boxes of past mementos from Vivian’s attic, but forge a path of friendship, forgiveness, and new beginnings.
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Community Reviews
Writing: 3
Learning: 3
Characters: 3
Overall Entertainment: 3.5
Book club, my recommendation. I read this book in about 1.5 days, a very quick read that kept my interest. While overall it is a Hallmark channel plot and ending, it generally delivers in the entertainment area (don't all those Hallmark movies?). I found the topic of the orphan trains interesting and new, I had never heard of them before. I found "Vivian's" story more interesting than Molly's, the present-day sections where parts that I just got through in order to get back to the orphan story. The writing was intelligent, but not deep, but also not detractingly sloppy or sappy. There are many topics that are touched on in a cursory manner. I would recommend this book to most of my other reader friends if they wanted a quick and compelling read, nothing that was going to knock their socks off, something that could be read on vacation.
A sub-story chronicles 17-year-old juvi foster-care child Molly and her relationship with a 90-year-old woman for whom she does community service as a punishment for a misdemeanor.
Strong themes of the book is a longing for family, belonging, love, acceptance.
Orphan trains stopped running in 1929 when a more organized foster care system was created. I recommend the book as not overly sentimental with historical facts woven in to some very readable fiction.
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