Anne Marie Pace (Children's Literature)
At the turn of the twentieth-century, fifteen-year-old Matti Ojala and his family dream of owning their own homestead. Their new life in a Minnesota mining town is just a step above the meager existence they left behind as Finnish tenant farmers. A family tragedy inspires Matti's father to file immediately for a homestead claim; he takes Matti with him to build their stump-filled, rocky quarter-section into a working farm. This is Matti's chance to establish himself as a man in his father's eyes. The challenges are great; however, with sisu, a Finnish word describing a combination of "strength, courage, and stubbornness all wrapped into one," Matti and his father manage to bring their dreams to fruition and create a home for Matti's mother and his two sisters. Unfortunately, several plot points seem contrived, notably Matti's efforts to bring about a reconciliation between his employer and his employer's wife. Nevertheless, readers who enjoy pioneer history and adventure stories will appreciate Durbin's detailed examination of Finnish-American pioneer life. 2002, Wendy Lamb Books/Random House, $15.95. Ages 10 up.

Michael Cart (Booklist, Oct. 15, 2002 (Vol. 99, No. 4))
The year is 1900, and for new Finnish immigrant Matti Ojala and his family, life on America's "golden shores" means backbreaking labor in a Minnesota iron mine. A tragic accident will provide the necessary catalyst for the Ojalas to demonstrate their sisu (a combination of strength, courage, and stubbornness) by turning their backs on the mine to pursue a dream: homesteading 160 acres of their own on the shore of Lake Sampo. Will it also allow Matti an opportunity to emerge from the shadow of his favored older brother, Timo? The great strength of the story is Durbin's painstakingly realistic depiction of the astonishing hardships that families of a century ago, like the Ojalas, experienced as a matter of daily survival. The novel's verisimilitude is further enriched by the author's careful integration of elements of Finnish character and culture. The book is often slow-paced and it occasionally seems lacking in drama, but it still provides a rich introduction to both an important aspect of the American experience and a memorable and immensely likable family. Category: Books for Older Readers--Fiction. 2002, Random/Wendy Lamb, $15.95, $17.99. Gr. 6-9.