Diamond Willow

by Helen Frost

Frost, Helen. 2008. Diamond Willow. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.
ISBN 0-374-31776-3.

Diamond Willow is a verse novel, which tells the story of 12year old Diamond Willow. Willow, who sees herself as being an ordinary girl, wants to be likable; she wants her parents to notice that she is growing up, and most of all she wants to mush the family’s sled dogs to Grandma’s and Grandpa’s all by herself. She knows she can do yet, will her parents believe the she can? Upon their approval, Diamond sets out to her grandparent’s home. On her return trip, misfortune strikes. Torn between self guilt and love for her sled dog, Roxy; Willow sets into action a plan to save the family’s best sled dog. Little did Willow know that the plan to save Roxy would also bring to light a past, which will also save her from her own inner confusion.

The rhythm of this verse novel is free verse. The poem is read as a narrative and is presented in diamond-shaped poems. The inspiration for the shapes is taken from forms found in polished diamond willow sticks. When the bark is skinned off and the stick is polished it reveals reddish-brown diamonds. The centers of the diamonds are dark scars where the missing branches were once attached. Representative of these scars; hidden within each diamond-shaped poem is a hidden message emphasized in bold font. The poet also includes prose pieces throughout the poem. These pieces are narrated by Willow’s ancestors or the ancestors of other characters within the poem. The spirits of the ancestors have all taken the form of animals common throughout the area. Through their narrations they provide context for the events throughout the poem. The flow of the poem’s rhythm was extremely easy to follow. Initially, I did not quite grasp the prose pieces as far as the connection between the narrator of the pieces and the animal form. It was not until the third prose piece that I made the connection. Once the connection was made, I was captivated even more.

The language of the poem as a collective whole is beautifully arranged. It comes at you from the perspective of 12year old Willow and there is sadness, fear, joy, happiness, peace, and love. The sound comes together through the use of various styles including onomatopoeia words for instance on page 26, “I stumble; a branch jabs into my leg. Oww!” I do believe that this effortlessness in the use of language and sound coming together is what makes this verse novel such a joy to read. It draws you into the poem, captivating you to the very end. The hidden messages within the poems are like “icing on the cake”. It moves the poem forward and gives the poem deeper meaning. I felt as if a secret was being shared with only me. There are no pictures throughout this verse novel however; the poet’s choice of words and poetic style creates mental images that are as vivid as if they were on paper. I could see Willow behind her pack of dogs riding with such quickness through the snow covered trails. I could hear Roxy’s howl when she was not allowed to go into house and the bond that Willow and Roxy share is beyond words.

AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS:
Lion and the Unicorn Award for Excellence in North American Poetry Honor Book
An Indie Next Kids' List Great Read
Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year
CCBC Choice (Univ. of WI)
Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award
Capitol Choices Noteworthy Titles for Children and Teens
IN Eugene & Marilyn Glick IN Authors
Louisiana YR Choice Book Award Master List
North Carolina Children's Book Award Master List
Texas Lone Star Reading List
Vermont Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award Master List

EDITORIAL REVIEWS:
When a diamond willow's bark is removed, sanded, and polished, it reveals reddish brown diamonds, the dark center of which are the scars of missing branches. Frost has used this image to craft an intricate family story in diamond-shaped verse. In her small Alaskan town, 12-year-old Diamond Willow, named for the tree, prefers to be just "Willow" but muses that if her parents had called her "Diamond," "…would I have been one of those sparkly kinds of girls?" Instead she describes herself as an average, part-Athabascan girl with one good friend, who finds herself more comfortable around her family's sled dogs than with people. Her story takes a heartrending turn on a solo dogsled trip to visit her grandparents, and Willow is soon caught up in an intense adventure that leads to the discovery of a family secret. As she unravels the truth, Willow comes to understand the diamonds and scars that bind her family together. She also gains awareness of her own strength and place in her community. Willow relates her story in one-page poems, each of which contains a hidden message printed in darker type. At key intervals, the narrative is continued in the voices of her ancestors, who take the form of animal spirits—Red Fox, Spruce Hen, Mouse, Chickadee, Lynx—and her sled dogs. Frost casts a subtle spell through innovative storytelling. Her poems offer pensive imagery and glimpses of character, and strong emotion. This complex and elegant novel will resonate with readers who savor powerful drama and multifaceted characters. --School of Library Journal

Set in a remote part of Alaska, this story in easy-to-read verse blends exciting survival adventure with a contemporary girl’s discovery of family roots and secrets. Middle-schooler Willow’s dad is Anglo, and her mother is Athabascan. The girl longs to spend more time with her traditional Indian grandparents even though she knows she will miss computers and other things that are a part of her life. When her beloved dog, Roxy, is blinded in an accident (partly Willow’s fault), and her parents want to put the dog down, Willow tries to take Roxy to Grandma and Grandpa. The two are caught in a raging blizzard, and Willow is saved by the spirits of her ancestors, who live on in the wild animals around her. Frost, who spent years teaching in Alaska, blends the young teen’s viewpoint with a strong sense of place and culture. The casual diamond shape of the poems reflects how precious jewels of wisdom can grow around painful scars. Willow’s bond with Roxy is the heart of the tale. Give this to fans of dog stories and to readers who liked Gary Paulsen’s Hatchet (1987). --Booklist

CONNECTIONS –Related books:
Keisha’s House
Spinning Through the Universe
Crossing Stones
Hidden