Picked this book up out of curiosity. A life story written in the form of a poem...interesting. Turned out to be beautiful, vibrant, and thought provoking. Captured my attention immediately and held it tight to the last page. Surprising but realistic. Simple but valuable. This book impressed me. Read it in one day. ( )

A novel in free verse which tells of Ludie, who married young and had six children, watched them grow up, move away, and who grows old and dies. The part where she sends a son off to Vietnam had me weeping. A lovely, quietly lyrical book that I will buy and read again. ( )

One of the best things about my reading this summer is the pleasure of discovering novels in verse. This book of free verse tells the story of Ludie in spare, beautiful words. Ludie is born in poverty in Alabama. When her mother dies and her father remarries a woman with her own children, Ludie's impoverished circumstances are further reduced, and Ludie finds it necessary to steal food from her own table to be sure she would not go hungry. She marries Rupe at 15, not only because he was tall and kind, but because he was a way out. Ludie and Rupe move to the hills of West Virginia where Rupe toils long, dangerous hours in a coalmine, and Ludie raises six children ("five too many"), and just when she thinks she is done raising children, she finds herself raising grandchildren. This quiet reflection of Ludie’s life is beautifully told, and full of the kind of wisdom of living a hard, simple, and full life of not having much, but not needing or wishing for much either. Ms. Rylant, who was raised by her grandparents in West Virginia, offers a rich but spare story that is heartbreaking, unsentimental, and honest. Highly recommended.

Curriculum: I often return to essential questions, and this one raises many. Ludie’s life is simple and poor. She has no big regrets – never wished to be anything other than what she was. She sees her children and grandchildren off, going to college, losing their hillbilly accents, marrying and remarrying, wandering and always seeking. Ludie never tries to improve her lot, or move up in the world. Did she live a successful life? How much do you need to be content? What is the measure of success? Of fulfillment? This would be an excellent model text for students refining their writing, particularly personal narratives. I would think the spare, clean, but moving verse would help students distill their thoughts into simple, clean prose. In addition, this would be an excellent book to read to help students understand the lives of Appalachian coal mining communities.

Rylant, C. (2006). Ludie's life. San Diego: Harcourt.

Excellent short read by a children's author. The verses flowed together. It was about Ludie's life from childhood until her death at age 95 in a nursing home. It was sad at the same time very enlightening. It made me think about my own life and family. How fast time goes by. I will definetly reread this again. ( )

Ludie gets married at 15 and moves to West Virginia with her coal miner husband. She has 6 kids and a full life. This book, written in verse, tells of her life, love and family. ( )