Nine, Ten: A September 11 Story

Nine, Ten: A September 11 Story By: Nora Raleigh Baskin

We all remember where we were on September 11, 2001, but how many of us remember what we were doing the day before? Nine, Ten: A September 11 Story by Nora Raleigh Baskin takes the reader into the lives of four young characters only days before the world changed for everyone, forever.

Will is learning to adjust to life without his father, a truck driver who was killed assisting a motorist. Sergio knows exactly what it feels like to live without a dad because his father is noticeably not in his life. Aimee has just moved to Los Angeles, and is having trouble navigating the California tween scene and getting used to her mom's busy work schedule, which is taking her to New York this week. And then there's Naheed, a Muslim girl who feels just like every other girl her age, but is finding that people treat her differently because she wears hijab.

Baskin follows the four children in the days leading up to 9/11, as they navigate their day-to-day lives. As a reader with the knowledge of what awaits the children on that fateful Tuesday, you feel a foreboding sense of doom as you turn these pages. You know that Naheed will feel even more isolated after those towers fall. You worry for Aimee's mom who has a meeting at 9 AM in the World Trade Center. Will lives in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where Flight 93 ultimately goes down in a field. And Sergio has befriended a young firefighter who is working this week on a day which he is normally off - Tuesday, September 11, 2001.

9/11 was a catalyst for change that has affected every part of our lives as Americans. We have become so used to the way that life is "post-9/11," that we may have forgotten how carefree life was before. Most of us don't possess a memory that allows us to recall September 10, 2001, which makes a novel like Nine, Ten all the more interesting. How many of us would like to capture and preserve those last moments of serenity?

LOVE IT: Being a freshman in college on September 11, 2001, I found it eye-opening to read a story of 9/11 through the eyes of children. LEAVE IT: I feel like the author wrote many of the characters into stereotypes. THE VERDICT: 4 stars – A thoughtful novel to which all Americans can relate

NOVELIST APPEALS

GENRE: Historical fiction

CHARACTER: Culturally-diverse; Religiously-diverse

STORYLINE: Character-driven

TONE: Serious

Nine, Ten: A September 11 Story is available at our South Lafourche, Lockport, & Thibodaux branches, but can always be requested to be sent to a branch near you! Happy Reading!