''Up a Road Slowly'' is a 1966

coming-of-age novel In literary criticism, a ''Bildungsroman'' (, plural ''Bildungsromane'', ) is a literary genre that focuses on the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist from childhood to adulthood ( coming of age), in which character change is imp ...

by American writer

Irene Hunt Irene Hunt (May 18, 1907 – May 18, 2001) was an American children's writer known best for historical novels. She was a runner-up for the Newbery Medal for her first book, ''Across Five Aprils'', and won the medal for her second, '' Up a Ro ...

, which won the

Newbery Medal The John Newbery Medal, frequently shortened to the Newbery, is a literary award given by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), to the author of "the most distinguished contr ...

for excellence in

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

children's literature Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. Modern children's literature is classified in two different ways: genre or the intended age of the reader. Children's ...

. This book is about a young child named Julie who grows from 7 to 17 years old with her aunt Cordelia and uncle Haskell in the country.

Plot summary

When seven-year-old Julie's mother dies, she is sent to live with her Aunt Cordelia, an unmarried schoolteacher who lives in a large house several miles outside town. Her uncle Haskell lives in a converted carriage house behind the main house. Haskell is an alcoholic who, like his niece, aspires to be a writer (although he never produces a manuscript). Julie's brother Chris goes to boarding school, leaving her alone with Aunt Cordelia. At first, grief-stricken Julie finds Aunt Cordelia stern and strict, but as she grows to young adulthood she comes to love her and to see her house as home. She becomes so attached to her that even when she has the chance to move back with her father, who remarries, she declines. The story follows Julie from the age of seven to seventeen, from elementary school through her high-school graduation, and documents the ordinary events in a child's life: the cruelty of children, jealousy, schoolwork trouble, and first love. Julie also encounters problems in the lives of the adults around her, including alcoholism and mental illness (dementia).

Reception

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Kirkus Media'') is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus (1893–1980). The magazine is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fic ...

'' said of ''Up a Road Slowly'': "The author is adept at distinguishing the genuine from the spurious: Julie is a genuine character, and girls who go up the road with her will share in her growing up." In a retrospective essay about the Newbery Medal-winning books from 1966 to 1975, children's author

John Rowe Townsend John Rowe Townsend (19 May 1922 – 24 March 2014) was a British children's writer and children's literature scholar. His best-known children's novel is ''The Intruder'', which won a 1971 Edgar Award. His best-known academic work is a reference se ...

wrote, "Though not without faults, Julie seems at last just a little too good to be true, and so does the adult world in which she has won her place. That it is not ''our'' world is evident, and is not a just cause for complaint; but was the world ever quite like that?"

References

{{Newbery Medal 1966 American novels 1966 children's books American children's novels Newbery Medal–winning works Novels about orphans