Reprinted by the wonderful Persephone Books, this is a novel for children originally published in 1938. It's not brilliantly written, and it begins very shakily indeed - five childen are left 'home alone' when their parents receive a telegram informing them that the children's grandmother is seriously ill. That the parents of children ranging in age from 7 to 13 would simply leave them to fend for themselves for an unspecified period of time beggars belief, but if you can swallow that there are treats in store. The novel gets substantially better once the necessary-but-incredible plot devices are dealt with (the parents' aeroplane seemingly 'lost' en route; the landlord who decides to sell the house as the children are unable to pay the rent). The children are offered a barn to live in by a local farmer. The locals are an odd bunch - class prejudice plays a part, as the family is neither poor nor very rich. Some of the villagers seem either not to notice or care that the children have been left on their own. Others try to interfere, with a view to having them put into an orphanage. But there are also many instances of kindness - the farmer, one of the teachers at the children's school, and local shopkeepers who accept chores/odd jobs in exchange for food and supplies. The children don't run wild without parental restraints - they make up their own rules to make their new way of life possible. It's a freedom of a sort, but most of the burden for looking after the children falls on the eldest child, Sue, who has to manage a household and keep up with her school work. Suffice to say there is a happy ending, but the plot mechanics are less interesting than watching the children cope and interact without their parents. [August 2004]

My Mother recommended that I read this book when I was younger, but warned me that the final two pages had been ripped out. It took me 14 years to source another copy and I am so glad I did. It is a fabulous book that I would recommend to anyone, particularly as it is a tale without violence and hate that so many contemporary stories have. ( )

This a sweet little cosy read - which I finished very quickly. The children are engaing in an old fashioned way, and the situation they find themselves in - while it feels unrealistic to an adult - would read like a huge adventure to a child reader I suppose. I always find with books originally written for children from this sort of period - that they're written in such a different way to modern children's books, wordier with greater depth, and better description. Its this which probably make them more accesible to adults, than many modern childrens books would be. Highly enjoyable - loved it! ( )

I first read this book when I was a child and was very taken with the idea of living in a barn with no parents. Reading it as an adult I find the whole premise of it quite amazing - parents just disappear and children pretty much left to get on with it. Worth reading for its curiosity value. ( )