A review by shighley
The Beef Princess of Practical County by Michelle Houts

4.0

I was on the Young Hoosier committee that selected this as one of our middle grades titles (after all, it IS set in Indiana!). I enjoyed reading the author's blog and background. (and my husband lived in Warsaw for awhile). I enjoyed the characters, although the Darling girls seemed a bit much at times (but perhaps not for students reading the book). Even Frannie, the four year old, had a fun personality. (I've read that truly gifted children have more than one imaginary friend at a time, although I've never heard of imaginary grandchildren!) I also liked the fact that things didn't always turn out perfectly for Libby, and she did have a wonderful friend in Carol Ann. The first-person narration was well done, and I loved some of the phrases, such as farmers, "measured rainfall on a daily basis year-round, like a supermodel measures fat grams". A few things seemed a bit far-fetched (incidents in the show ring), and the Darlings leaving Ohma by herself after her tragedy.
All in all, a fun read giving some insight into cattle farming. I'd love to know how Nowhere, Indiana became the name of the town. Is this a dig from Ohio?