Nine Candles

Nine Candles
by Maria Testa (1996)

          Nine Candles offers a child's non-judgmental perspective on his mother's incarceration, and his hope for her release around his ninth birthday. Testa does a lovely job representing the story from a seven-year-old's viewpoint, especially as Raymond tries to grasp why another child is not as excited to be nine as he will be: "I used to think he was lucky because he's already nine. But Tony says he'd give anything in the world to be eleven." This method of counting birthday's until a parent's release from prison is simultaneously heart-wrenching and promising. The overall mood stays positive, though, and Amanda Schaffer's bright, flowing, broad paint strokes really add to the feeling of hope. This book should not be considered controversial, the perspective taken is that of a child with a missing parent, it is not a political take on why his mother is in prison or whether her incarceration helps or hinders society. Testa is bringing to light a reality for many American children -- and it is one that will comfort children in similar situations, and enlighten those who are not.
          I think this book would make a nice read-aloud book for the class. It could easily be integrated into a lesson on different types of families in the United States -- and as Testa points out there are one and a half million children with at least one parent in prison. It is important that children think about the emotional and financial struggles that the children and their parents face with this obstacle. Many children may have strong feelings about 'bad people' being in prison and may not understand why Raymond would miss his mother if she did something wrong. Although complex, it may be possible to bring some discussion of the purpose of prison into the classroom. Is prison just a place to keep all of the bad people? Is it a place for people to 'pay their dues'? Or to help them learn other skills? This discussion would, of course, need to be adjusted accordingly for the age and maturity level of the group.