My One Hundred Adventures, Polly Horvath
My One Hundred Adventures, Polly Horvath
List: $15.00 | Sale: $10.50
Club: $7.50

My One Hundred Adventures

Author: Polly Horvath

Narrator: Tai Alexandra Ricci

Unabridged: 5 hr 28 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 09/09/2008


Synopsis

THE WINNER OF a National Book Award, a Newbery Honor, and countless other awards has written her richest, most spirited book yet, filled with characters that readers will love, and never forget.

Jane is 12 years old, and she is ready for adventures, to move beyond the world of her siblings and single mother and their house by the sea, and step into the “know-not what.” And, over the summer, adventures do seem to find Jane, whether it’s a thrilling ride in a hot-air balloon, the appearances of a slew of possible fathers, or a weird new friendship with a preacher and psychic wannabe. Most important, there’s Jane’s discovery of what lies at the heart of all great adventures: that it’s not what happens to you that matters, but what you learn about yourself.

And don't miss Polly Horvath's Northward to the Moon, the sequel to My One Hundred Adventures.

About The Author

Polly Horvath is the highly acclaimed author of many books, including the National Book Award winner The Canning Season, the National Book Award nominee The Trolls, and the Newbery Honor Book Everything on a Waffle. Publishers Weekly has described her writing as “unruly, unpredictable, and utterly compelling,” adding that “Horvath’s descriptive powers are singular . . . her uncensored Mad Hatter wit simply delicious, her storytelling skills consummate.” Polly Horvath lives in Metchosin, British Columbia.


Reviews

AudiobooksNow review by Lisa on 2009-09-09 16:51:10

I'm torn between 2 and 3 stars. As a fan of Polly Horvath's quirky books, I would like it to be better. But I can't distinguish the terrible choice of narrator from the book. Perhaps I shall have to read it. I agree with many of the comments from the 1-star reviewer, but I will focus on the narrator, Tai Alexandra Ricci. Ricci uses a rather adult, cynical voice throughout her narration. You feel quite strongly that she sees the selfishness of the adults around her, with commenting specifically. By the ending, Horvath writes an epiphany, where the protagonist discovers how foolish she has been to believe in these adults. So the entire cynical tone violates the story as written, and makes for an unpleasant reading experience, rather than an enjoyable one.

Goodreads review by Jamie on February 06, 2009

Putting this on the 12-14 shelf was a bit of a struggle. Because the book uses language and concepts that I found were very adult, such as when the 12-year old protaganist is sudddenly crucially aware of the passage of time, and that things will never be the same. Not that 12 year olds might not not......more

Goodreads review by Whitney on January 05, 2009

I had a hard time with this book. As with many books by Polly Horvath, it was hit and miss. On the one hand the story was very engaging. I loved the older female characters in the book, they were eccentric and vivid. On the other hand, the 12 year old narrator did not sound or feel 12 years old. I m......more

Goodreads review by Monica on December 04, 2013

A variation of this review is at my blog here. This is a lovely book. I became a Horvath fan years ago with The Trolls and quite liked Everything on a Waffle. This one has the same episodic quality of these and feels a bit gentler too, somehow. It takes place in an unnamed Massachusetts town where th......more

Goodreads review by Lynn on September 19, 2008

Twelve-year-old Jane is at that tender place we call adolescence, leaving childhood behind, yearning and aching for something she can't yet define. "As if itching and outgrown, my soul is twisting about my body wanting something more to do this summer than the usual wading in shallows and reading an......more

Goodreads review by Kailey (Luminous Libro) on May 28, 2019

Jane and her siblings live with their mother, a famous poet, in a small house by the ocean. A preacher woman, Nellie, ropes Jane into helping her distribute Bibles, and a local woman blackmails Jane into babysitting five children. Jane is pulled into the town drama, and discovers one of her mother’s......more


Quotes

Starred Review, Booklist, June 1, 2008:
“Unconventionality is Horvath’s stock and trade, but here the high quirkiness quotient rests easily against Jane’s inner story with its honest, childlike core.”
Starred Review, Kirkus Reviews, July 15, 2008:
"[A] witty, wise and wonderful novel."

Review, Parenting Magazine, September 2008:
"[T]his tale's full of sweetly memorable moments."

Starred Review, School Library Journal, September 2008:
"This is Horvath's most luminescent, beautifully written novel yet."

Starred Review, Publishers Weekly, August 25, 2008:
"[T]his quietly captivating novel marks a new course for National Book Award-winner Horvath."


Awards

  • Amazon Best of the Year
  • Book Links Lasting Connection
  • Booklist Children's Editors' Choice
  • IRA Children's Choices
  • Kirkus Reviews Best Children's Books
  • Michigan Reading Association Great Lakes Book Award
  • National Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA) Gold Award
  • Parents' Choice Gold Award
  • School Library Journal Best Book of the Year