But somehow she's got to make it through.Īward-winning author Deborah Wiles has created a documentary novel that will put you right alongside Franny as she navigates a dangerous time in both her history and our history.

Franny doesn't know how to deal with what's going on in the world - no more than she knows how to deal with what's going on with her family and friends. I would have to let the students listen to the songs mentioned in the book, before hand, so that when they read about the song they could make an immediate association. Deborah Wiles does a fantastic job including music and trends, which really help this book, come alive. When President Kennedy goes on television to say that Russia is sending nuclear missiles to Cuba, it only gets worse. Countdown by: Deborah Wiles June 5, 2011. It's 1962, and it seems that the whole country is living in fear. Worst of all, everyone is walking around just waiting for a bomb to fall. Her saintly younger brother is no help, and the cute boy across the street only complicates things. Countdown Deborah Wiles, Scholastic Press, 17. But that's hard to get when her best friend is feuding with her, her sister has disappeared, and her uncle is fighting an old war in his head. But somehow shes got to make it through. Scholastic Inc., 2010 - Juvenile Fiction- 377 pages. The story of a formative year in 12-year-old Franny Chapman's life and the life of a nation facing the threat of nuclear war.įranny Chapman just wants some peace. Countdown by Deborah Wiles Book 1 of the The Sixties Trilogy The story of a formative year in 12-year-old Franny Chapmans life, and the life.