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Any Small Goodness, a book by Tony Johnston, is a book about a Mexican-American family living in Los Angeles. The book, which was published in 2001, is a book that seems useful for students around fifth grade. The narrator is one of the family members—Arturo—who tells a series of events that took place throughout his life which illustrate that L.A. is really more than just the stereotype that it has come to be portrayed as. Though it isn’t perfect, there is indeed good in this city, and there are many small acts of goodness that happen on a regular basis. The book aims to display that there is good in the world, despite any circumstances that may suggest otherwise, while exposing the readers to Mexican elements, and the culture of Los Angeles. Through its believable narration, and realistic examples, it does a pretty good job at doing so.
The book starts by introducing Arturo, his family, their background, and where they live. Within the first two pages, elements of their Mexican culture start to emerge through the use of different Spanish words and phrases. Johnston does a great job of capturing Arturo’s character’s age and sweet, fairly innocent demeanor. This helps him successfully convey that there truly are good people in the harsh world that we live in. Another way that the author is able to achieve his purpose is through the use of realistic components. He is very good at adding details that help the reader believe that a family like Arturo’s could really exist. From the incident with Arturo’s mom and the cat, to the encounters with the gang members, or cholos, as we learn in the book, Johnston keeps the element of reality present throughout the book. This element makes the all of the kind acts in the book—such as a stranger returning a cat, or a famous basketball player coaching at a high school for just a dollar— a lot more believable.
A good exercise to accompany this book would be one which takes place periodically, in which the students share examples of small, but good events that they have recently experienced.
*Grade Level Equivalent: 5.1
*Interest Level: 4-7
Awards for this book include the Beatty Award (2002)
Johnston, T. (2002). Any small goodness: a novel of the barrio. New York, NY: Scholastic.
ISBN: 978-0439233842
This book would also fall under the category of realistic fiction.
* Information found on scholastic.com
*Interest Level: 4-7
Awards for this book include the Beatty Award (2002)
Johnston, T. (2002). Any small goodness: a novel of the barrio. New York, NY: Scholastic.
ISBN: 978-0439233842
This book would also fall under the category of realistic fiction.
* Information found on scholastic.com