WARNING: You will need Adobe Flash Player 6 or above to view this website. Click here to download it or here if you know you already have it. Double Dutch Double Dutch mirrors rhythm of life By Allyson Jacob Being a Cincinnatian and a former teacher, it's hard not to love Sharon Draper's work. Her characters walk the halls, ride the streets and talk the talk of Cincinnati -- real Cincinnati, where many public school buildings are crumbling, some kids go to school on empty stomachs, and memories of the 1999 tornado still prevail. That said, it's amazing how well Draper's books cross socio-economic and age barriers. Kids, teens, and adults are avid readers. Suburban students are just as likely to be fans as urban students are, and Draper is a popular speaker across the world, not just in her hometown of Cincinnati. Still, Draper's career as an educator at Walnut Hills High School gave her an inside track into the minds and lives of young adults, whose issues often transcend social and economic boundaries. The secret? Her characters are real -- they talk in language that young adults today understand and respect and they deal with issues that many readers face. Draper doesn't moralize or preach in her writing -- she simply creates characters and tells a story. As a result, her fan base has grown and grown. In her latest novel, Double Dutch, Draper centers her story on half a dozen eighth grade students who come to the table with a myriad of different issues. Delia, the central character in the story, hides a huge secret from her friends, teacher and parents: she can't read. She has become an expert at fooling those around her, until her friend Yolanda (Yo Yo) confronts her and makes her 'fess up to the truth. Delia believes she could continue to live as a non-reader, until several events make her see otherwise. For one, she is a member of a world-class Double Dutch jump rope team, and her school has instituted a new rule: if you don't pass the state-mandated proficiency tests, you don't get to participate in extra-curricular activities. For students in Ohio schools, this is an all-too-real reality, but Draper handles the issue with finesse, allowing Delia to see the importance of the situation without inserting her own opinion about standardized testing. Delia's good friend, Randy, has issues of his own. For one, he is a big guy -- the kind who can polish off four sandwiches, a large bag of potato chips and several packages of Twinkies in one sitting and still be hungry. Randy lives with his father and his cat, but when the story begins, Randy's dad has been AWOL for several weeks, leaving him with a meager sum of money and mounting bills and fears. Randy's character is poignant; he tells Delia that he's "got her back" and will make sure that nothing happens to her, when, as a reader, you wish the same fortune for him, as he beds down for the night, alone, hungry and afraid. For her characters' sake, Draper has built a small community of adults who are ready and willing to help out, if only the students would ask. Delia's Double Dutch coach and the local pawnshop owner both lend Randy a helping hand when he needs it most. Draper's community of students includes a menacing duo, the Tolliver twins, who dress in black and talk a good game. Again, echoes of reality are super-imposed on Draper's tale to lend credibility to the story without being "preachy." When the Tolliver twins strut down the hall and make an appearance on a Jerry Springer-like talk show, readers pick up on hinted similarities between the twins and the rash of school shootings, like that experienced at Columbine. Fortunately for her community, Draper's antagonists are not exactly what they seem, but the fear they instill in the hearts and minds of the students is palpable. Draper's books have been described as "intense" and have earned a listing of "12 and up" because of her usual subject matter. Although Double Dutch is still an intense ride, it's more like The Racer than Son of Beast (to use landmarks familiar to Cincinnatians). As a result, the publishers have deemed the book appropriate for "11 and up." Not that publishers' ratings of books have ever stopped avid readers from reading, but the rating at least gives parents and teachers a "heads up" on what is age appropriate. Although Draper's dialogue is very appropriate for her audience, it is in some of the narrative passages that she really shines as a writer. Her lyricism in describing jumping borders on poetry: "[Her] strong brown legs darted in and out of the ropes as they turned so fast they were spinning shadows, whipping dust as she swiftly and skillfully skipped in and out of the intricate pattern, the rapid sounds of her tennis shoes on the floor of the gym beating in perfect harmony to the drumbeat of the ropes." Just as Draper has captured the rhythm of the rope in the passage, Double Dutch as a whole captures the rhythm of life in the lives of young adults. Double Dutch, like Tears of a Tiger and Forged by Fire before it, is a great read that will entertain and enthrall readers across many socio-economic and age strata. Allyson Jacob is a freelance writer and playwright living just outside of Cincinnati. School Library Journal, June 2002 Delia loves Double Dutch jump roping; she's good enough at it to participate in the world championships being held in her home city of Cincinnati. But Delia has an embarrassing secret that may jeopardize her place on the team: she can't read. She copes in school by relying on her memory, renting videos, doing projects that don't require writing, and behaving well enough not to be noticed. Her friend Randy has a secret, too. His father has been gone for weeks. Has he deserted his son just like Randy's mother deserted them? When the fearsome Tolliver twins, Tabu and Titan, arrive in the eighth grade, the threat of violence puts everyone on edge. The three interwoven stories heat up like the weather. Draper tackles tough problems and explores adolescent concerns. What the author does best is create vibrant, engaging characters with unique voices. While these eighth graders nay be as tough as their problems, they are also are much more complex: sensitive, funny, enthusiastic, and real. Draper adeptly paints a convincing portrayal of how young people think, act, feel and interact with one another. Kirkus, June 2002> Delia is an intelligent creative, eighth-grade student with a secret. Her friend Randy also has a secret: he has not heard from his father, he's running out of money and food, and he's afraid to tell anyone. The details and play-by play of the Double Dutch practices and contests provide the core around which the rest of the story develops. Several other issues are addressed along the way, and are dealt with nicely by the cast of supporting characters. Delia's friend tells fantastic, outlandish stories about herself and her life so earnestly that even her friends are sometimes unable to know when she is telling the truth. The Tolliver twins' threatening demeanor and attitude mask a fear of lass and separation that they manage to overcome heroically during a devastating tornado that hits their school. Even Delia and Tandy's more serious problems have happy, though not perfect, conclusions. Delia and her friends are delightful, and the reader is rooting for them all the way. A fast-paced, multi-layered story. Booklist, September 2002 Eighth-grader Delia may be a star on a Cincinnati Double Dutch team, but she can't read. Thanks to her friends, her excellent memory, and extra-credit projects, she's managed to conceal her secret. Her sweet, thoughtful classmate Randy also has a secret--his father has disappeared, and Randy's been on his own for weeks. Twin students, suspected of plotting against the school, pose another worry. The exciting jump-rope action is constant, and each storyline explores a different side of fear. Draper raises provocative questions about mass hysteria and prejudice, especially in the students' reactions to the angry twins. And she sharply articulates how anxiety seeps in and overpowers "like smoke." Teens will like the high-spirited, authentic dialogue, the honest look at tough issues, and the team workout scenes that show how sports can transform young lives. back to lessons section