Dave at Night

Last updated
Dave at Night
Dave at Night (novel).jpg
Author Gail Carson Levine
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Genre Young adult historical fiction
Publisher HarperCollins
Publication date
1999
Media typePrint
Pages281 pp
ISBN 0-06-028153-7

Dave at Night is a young adult, historical fiction novel written by award-winning author Gail Carson Levine in 1999. [1] This book was inspired by leading figures in the arts during the Harlem Renaissance and her father, David Carson, whose childhood was spent in an orphanage.

Contents

Levine bases the setting of her book in the Lower East Side of New York City in the Hebrew community. [2] This gives her the opportunity to include the Yiddish language which is spoken by the character, Solomon Gruber.

Plot summary

Dave Caros, a teenager troublemaker, lost his mother during his birth. More recently, his father dies after falling off a roof of a house he was helping to build. Always having lived under the shadow of his older brother Gideon, he is abandoned by his stepmother Ida while Gideon goes to live with his uncle. Ida sends Dave to a Hebrew orphanage, the Hebrew Home For Boys.

When Dave first arrives at the orphanage, he absolutely hates it. The bedrooms are cold, the food is awful (and is often stolen by bullies) and the superintendent, Mr. Bloom (nicknamed Mr. Doom) is abusive and hits the boys with a yardstick. Mr. Doom takes the only thing Dave has left from his father, a wood carving of his family boarding Noah's Ark. However, Dave enjoys the art lessons and explores his talented, creative side.

Sick of the austere lifestyle, Dave sneaks out of the orphanage in the middle of the night and roams the streets of Harlem. He finds a nearby party and bumps into Solly, an old man who 'reads cards' to get money. He enters the party with Solly and discovers a whole new world of jazz music, money and glamour—the Harlem Renaissance. Dave even meets Irma Lee, a girl to whom he is quickly attracted to although the book does not make it clear if its romantic or not. However, Dave needs to return to the orphanage every morning, but this new lifestyle isn't always what it seems.

Characters

The protagonist, an eleven-year-old Jewish boy known for always getting in trouble and a daredevil [3] who becomes an orphan.
Nicknamed Solly the Gonif, Solomon is the old white man that attends rent parties and tells people their fortune for money. He carries a parrot named Bandit on his shoulder which can repeat several words for emphasis.
A twelve-year-old girl that Dave meets during his first rent party, she is home schooled and lives in a reddish stone, three stories tall house which has well-known leisure class parties. [4] She has a cousin named Emmie, whose rent party is the first ever that Dave attends.
Irma Lee's "Mama"; Irma Lee's real mama's cousin, she adopted Irma Lee when her parents died. Her house parties are so exclusive that even the prince of Sweden couldn't get in. [5]
One of Dave's buddies from HHB who has the twitches that constantly makes him jumpy. He spends most of his time drawing violins.
Another buddy from HHB with the hoarse voice and the know-it-all attitude, Dave is not fond of him at first but when he finds out that Harvey has his back he feels better about him.
Tall, skinny boy he's been at HHB since he was seven years old when both of his parents died.
Another eleven-year-old buddy of Dave's, he has a bad case of consumption that causes him to leave HHB and move upstate where he would be able to get fresh air and a wholesome diet to get better.
Dave's older bully, he always eats Dave's food before eating his own during meals, his only weakness is that he's very superstitious. [6]
Nicknamed Mr. Doom, Bloom is the superintendent at HHB, his version of disciplining the boys is to beat them viciously with a yard stick until they are able to get away or he breaks one of their limbs. [7]
The man that works there in charge of the elevens at the orphanage, who is not as mean as Mr. Doom.
Nicknamed Mr. Cluck, Gluck is Dave's teacher who lectures more on how the boys are worthless, good-for-nothings, and how stupid they are, than on actual learning topics. [8]
The art teacher at HHB and the only teacher that Dave actually likes, he teaches Dave several drawing techniques and encourages him with art, he introduces Dave to a passion and gift that he never knew he had before.
Dave's fourteen-year-old brother who was always in the library or studying, the opposite of Dave. [9]
A woodworker who made cabinets for the sultan of Turkey before he moved to New York City, he died on Tuesday, October 26, 1926 when he fell off of a roof. [10]
One of Solly's regular customers, she's very gullible and tends to believe anything Solly tells her. [11]
A waiter and a frequent customer of Solly. [12]
The janitor at HHB that lives in the basement.
The mean old guy.
The neighbor from across the hall at the house where Dave lived when his Papa was alive.
Dave's family includes his stepmother, Ida, who made lady blouses at the house before Papa's death and worked at a sewing factory afterwards, and Aunt Sarah and Aunt Lily. Aunt Sarah is Papa's sister while Aunt Lily is Mama's sister, who lives with Sarah. Dave's Uncle Jack lives in Chicago and is Gideon's favorite relative. Jack also adopted Gideon after Papa's death, but he constantly has headaches and works as a bookkeeper at a printing press. Dave's mother, Mama, died when giving birth to him.

Yiddish definitions

Boychik- a little boy

Landsman- a fellow Jew

Mazel Tov- congratulations

Gonif- somebody who fools people out of their money

Shayneh shvartzeh maidel- pretty black girl

Meshuggeneh- a crazy person

Alrightnik- someone who forgets that he wasn't born a doctor, a judge, or a businessman; he forgets that a lot of people made it possible for him to get so high-and-mighty

Comparison to reality

Dave Caros was inspired by Levine's father David Carasso who later changed his name to Carson to be a "real American". [13]

The Hebrew Orphan Asylum was the name of the actual orphanage that Levine's father grew up in, not the Hebrew Home for Boys. The Hebrew Orphan Asylum took in boys and girls and the process to enter was done in a more legal manner than simply signing papers for the children as the book created.

The rent parties were fictional; however there were parties and salons during the Harlem Renaissance on the 1920s and '30.

Awards

ALA Best Book for Young Adults

New York Public Library Best Children's Books of the 20th century

Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award 2000-2001 Masterlist (1 of 30)

"Outstanding Achievement" Honor Book for 1999 by Parent's Guide to Children's Media

One of Amazon.com's 1999 Top Ten Best Books for ages 9–12

School Library Journal Best Book

Book Sense Pick [14]

Other editions

Denmark

Germany

Italy

France [15]

Related Research Articles

<i>Stuart Little</i> 1945 childrens novel by E.B. White

Stuart Little is a 1945 American children's novel by E. B. White. It was White's first children's book, and became recognized as a classic in children's literature. Stuart Little was illustrated by the artist Garth Williams, also his first work for children.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Armistead Maupin</span> American writer

Armistead Jones Maupin, Jr. is an American writer notable for Tales of the City, a series of novels set in San Francisco.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ehud</span> Israelite described in the biblical Book of Judges

Ehud ben‑Gera is described in the biblical Book of Judges chapter 3 as a judge who was sent by God to deliver the Israelites from Moabite domination. He is described as being left-handed and a member of the Tribe of Benjamin.

<i>Ella Enchanted</i> 1997 novel by Gail Carson Levine

Ella Enchanted is a fantasy novel written by Gail Carson Levine and published in 1997. The story is a retelling of Cinderella featuring various mythical creatures including fairies, elves, ogres, gnomes, and giants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gregory Maguire</span> American novelist (born 1954)

Gregory Maguire is an American novelist. He is the author of Wicked, Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, and several dozen other novels for adults and children. Many of Maguire's adult novels are inspired by classic children's stories. Maguire published his first novel, The Lightning Time, in 1978. Wicked, published in 1995, was his first novel for adults. It was adapted into a popular Broadway musical in 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A. B. Yehoshua</span> Israeli novelist, essayist, and playwright (1936–2022)

Avraham Gabriel "Boolie" Yehoshua was an Israeli novelist, essayist, and playwright. The New York Times called him the "Israeli Faulkner". Underlying themes in Yehoshua's work are Jewish identity, the tense relations with non-Jews, the conflict between the older and younger generations, and the clash between religion and politics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gideon Hausner</span> Israeli jurist and politician

Gideon Hausner was an Israeli jurist and politician. Between 1960 and 1963, he served as Attorney General and was later elected to the Knesset and served in the cabinet. Hausner is most widely known for heading the team of prosecutors at the war crimes trial of Adolf Eichmann in Jerusalem in 1961.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I. L. Peretz</span> Yiddish language author and playwright

Isaac Leib Peretz, also sometimes written Yitskhok Leybush Peretz was a Polish Jewish writer and playwright writing in Yiddish. Payson R. Stevens, Charles M. Levine, and Sol Steinmetz count him with Mendele Mokher Seforim and Sholem Aleichem as one of the three great classical Yiddish writers. Sol Liptzin wrote: "Yitzkhok Leibush Peretz was the great awakener of Yiddish-speaking Jewry and Sholom Aleichem its comforter.... Peretz aroused in his readers the will for self-emancipation, the will for resistance against the many humiliations to which they were being subjected."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yehoshafat Harkabi</span> Chief of Israeli Military Intelligence

Yehoshafat Harkabi was chief of Israeli military intelligence from 1955 until 1959 and afterwards a professor of International Relations and Middle East Studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Carson</span> Canadian-American actor (1910–1963)

John Elmer Carson, known as Jack Carson, was a Canadian-born American film actor. Carson often played the role of comedic friend in films of the 1940s and 1950s, including The Strawberry Blonde (1941) with James Cagney and Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) with Cary Grant. He appeared in such dramas as Mildred Pierce (1945), A Star is Born (1954), and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958). He worked for RKO and MGM, but most of his notable work was for Warner Bros.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gail Carson Levine</span> American writer (born 1947)

Gail Carson Levine is an American author of young adult books. Her first novel, Ella Enchanted, received a Newbery Honor in 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walter Dean Myers</span> American childrens book author (1937–2014)

Walter Dean Myers was an American writer of children's books best known for young adult literature. He was born in Martinsburg, West Virginia, but was raised in Harlem, New York City. A tough childhood led him to writing and his school teachers would encourage him in this habit as a way to express himself. He wrote more than one hundred books including picture books and nonfiction. He won the Coretta Scott King Award for African-American authors five times. His 1988 novel Fallen Angels is one of the books most frequently challenged in the U.S. because of its adult language and its realistic depiction of the Vietnam War.

<i>The Wish</i> (novel) 2000 novel by Gail Carson Levine

The Wish is a 2000 children's novel by Gail Carson Levine, the Newbery Honor winning author of Ella Enchanted. The novel tells the story of Wilma, who wishes to be the most popular girl at her school, Claverford, forgetting that she will graduate in three weeks and move to a new school.

<i>By the Shores of Silver Lake</i> 1939 novel by Laura Ingalls Wilder

By the Shores of Silver Lake is an autobiographical children's novel written by Laura Ingalls Wilder and published in 1939, the fifth of nine books in her Little House series. It spans just over one year, beginning when she is 12 years old and her family moves from Plum Creek, Minnesota to what will become De Smet, South Dakota.

<i>Little Town on the Prairie</i> 1941 novel by Laura Ingalls Wilder

Little Town on the Prairie is an autobiographical children's novel written by Laura Ingalls Wilder and published in 1941, the seventh of nine books in her Little House series. It is set in De Smet, South Dakota. It opens in the spring after the Long Winter and ends as Laura becomes a school teacher so she can help her sister, Mary, stay at a school for the blind in Vinton, Iowa. It tells the story of 15-year-old Laura's first paid job outside of home and her last term of schooling. At the end of the novel, she receives a teacher's certificate and is employed to teach at the Brewster settlement, 12 miles (19 km) away.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hebrew Orphan Asylum of New York</span> Closed Jewish orphanage in New York CIty

The Hebrew Orphan Asylum of New York (HOA) was a Jewish orphanage in New York City. It was founded in 1860 by the Hebrew Benevolent Society. It closed in 1941, after pedagogical research concluded that children thrive better in foster care or small group homes, rather than in large institutions. The successor organization is the JCCA, formerly called the Jewish Child Care Association.

Marc Brettler is an American biblical scholar, and the Bernice and Morton Lerner Professor in Judaic Studies at Duke University. He earned his B.A., M.A., and PhD from Brandeis University, where he was previously Dora Golding Professor of Biblical Studies. He researches biblical metaphors, the Bible and gender, biblical historical texts, the book of Psalms, and the post-biblical reception of the Hebrew Bible, including in the New Testament. He is a co-founder of the website thetorah.com, which integrates critical and traditional methods of studying the Bible.

John Leland is an author and has been a journalist for The New York Times since 2000. he began covering retirement and religion in January 2004. During 1994, Leland was for a stint editor-in-chief of Details magazine. He was also a senior editor at Newsweek, an editor and columnist at Spin magazine, and a reviewer for Trouser Press.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Muscular Judaism</span> Philosophy of developing mental and physical strength among Jews

Muscular Judaism is a term coined by Max Nordau in his speech at the Second Zionist Congress held in Basel on August 28, 1898. In his speech, he spoke about the need to design the "new Jew" and reject the "old Jew", with the mental and physical strength to achieve the goals of Zionism. Nordau saw Muscular Judaism as an answer to Judennot.

"The Fairy's Mistake" is the first story in a two volume set of six stories called The Princess Tales by Gail Carson Levine. Published in 1999, two years after her Newbery Honor winning novel Ella Enchanted, "The Fairy's Mistake" follows along the same lines by taking the well-known fairytale Diamonds and Toads and turning it on its head. The story focuses on identical twin sisters Rosella and Myrtle, whose respective rewards and punishments end up doing exactly the opposite of what was intended.

References

  1. "Gail Carson Levine Home Page".
  2. "Every Month is Black History Month".
  3. Levine, Gail Carson (1999). Dave at night. New York: HarperCollinsPublishers. p. 15. ISBN   0-06-028153-7.
  4. Levine, Gail Carson (1999). Dave at night. New York: HarperCollinsPublishers. pp. 154–155. ISBN   0-06-028153-7.
  5. Levine, Gail Carson (1999). Dave at night. New York: HarperCollinsPublishers. p. 155. ISBN   0-06-028153-7.
  6. Levine, Gail Carson (1999). Dave at night. New York: HarperCollinsPublishers. p. 41. ISBN   0-06-028153-7.
  7. Levine, Gail Carson (1999). Dave at night. New York: HarperCollinsPublishers. pp. 101–102. ISBN   0-06-028153-7.
  8. Levine, Gail Carson (1999). Dave at night. New York: HarperCollinsPublishers. p. 34. ISBN   0-06-028153-7.
  9. Levine, Gail Carson (1999). Dave at night. New York: HarperCollinsPublishers. p. 3. ISBN   0-06-028153-7.
  10. Levine, Gail Carson (1999). Dave at night. New York: HarperCollinsPublishers. p. 1. ISBN   0-06-028153-7.
  11. Levine, Gail Carson (1999). Dave at night. New York: HarperCollinsPublishers. pp. 79–82. ISBN   0-06-028153-7.
  12. Levine, Gail Carson (1999). Dave at night. New York: HarperCollinsPublishers. pp. 84–85. ISBN   0-06-028153-7.
  13. Levine, Gail Carson (1999). Dave at night. New York: HarperCollinsPublishers. pp. Afterword. ISBN   0-06-028153-7.
  14. "Dave at Night kudos".
  15. "Gail Carson Levine Home Page".