Deza Malone is a lot like me. She is determined, she loves words, and she reads like nobody's business. Deza is one of those characters that you think about even when you aren't reading the book. That is one of the reasons I connected, but the other is that Deza is so much like the 15 million children living in poverty today. That is, as Deza said, "a tragedy, a true tragedy" (You HAVE to READ the afterword). Christopher Paul Curtis did a great job creating this amazing character, but it's even more amazing that he put her in such a marvelous book. The tale of the Malone family and their struggles as the Great Depression rocks there world makes you want to read this book without putting it down. Everyone should read this book now, and I think it might get a Newbery and/or other awards! .
