Honey Bunch: Her First Visit to the Seashore (1924)

In book two Honey Bunch visited her father's sister and Aunt Julia's husband and children in New York City. In book three Honey Bunch visisted her father's brother and Uncle Rand's wife and daughter at their farm. Book four allows Honey Bunch to visit her relatives on her mother's side. Like Mr. Morton, Mrs. Morton has a brother and a sister. Honey Bunch's cousin Julia is the daughter of her mother's sister, Norma, who married a man named Fred Somerset. Although Julie has been to the Mortons' house, Honey Bunch has never met her Aunt Norma before (Uncle Fred is away during this visit.)

Mrs. Morton's younger brother, Peter, is in college. Perhaps that's why he can visit the Mortons as often as he does. He's quite a tease. I enjoyed the way he insisted that Honey Bunch's cat join them at the breakfast table and the silly questions he asked Lady Clare about her visit at washerwoman Mrs. Miller's house. (Uncle Peter calls Edith Morton 'Edie'.) Mrs. Morton remark about expecting her husband and daughter to start singing at their meals if Peter stayed for a month or two reminded me of how often my parents told me not to sing at the table.

Remember the verse Uncle Rand came up with for Mrs. Miller to say whenever she burned her thumb? He also made up another one to cheer that lady up when it rains on wash day.

Norman Clark has a bigger role in this book. School hasn't started yet and the new boy in the neighborhood is lonely. Kind-hearted Honey Bunch invites Norman to the dolls' tea party she's having for her girl friends. Norman doesn't have a doll, so he brings a lead soldier. After all, the party includes ice cream cones! (I liked the way Mrs. Morton gave party favors this time.)

The Mortons may be well-to-do, but not everyone is. During the drive to Glenhaven, the seashore town where the Somersets live, the Mortons encounter two ragged girls who live in the pine woods three miles from Glenhaven. The girls sell wildflowers to passersby. Jane and Sarah are given the leftovers of the big lunch Mrs. Miller packed. That's not enough for Honey Bunch. She wants to do so much more for those girls.

In spite of some not very nice boys who play a trick on Honey Bunch and a somewhat obnoxious girl named Anne, the little blonde from Barham has a lot of fun with her cousin Julie. A pony ride doesn't go as smoothly as Julie expected, but the lifeguards were a big help.

Mr. Morton can't stay during the week because he has to work, but he does come down for a weekend. Thanks to Julie, we get to see a 1920s amusement park. Mr. Morton is nice to a boy who doesn't have the money to ride the merry-go-round. Thoughtful little Honey Bunch brings a present back for her Aunt Norma's helper, Pauline.

Honey Bunch does get her wish about meeting Jane and Sarah again. What Mrs. Morton and Aunt Norma do for them was more than just a handout, thank goodness.

Uncle Peter comes to Glenhaven, too, and takes Honey Bunch and Julie fishing. He sees no reason why little girls can't go fishing as well as little boys. Honey Bunch makes a surprising catch.

I'll leave you to discover what Honey Bunch and Julie do in Glenhaven's annual pageant. (I snickered over what the girls thought Anne Wade's float depicted.)

One of the ads in the back is for Grosset & Dunlaps' 'The Children of All Lands' series, which were illustrated with photographs. The books so far involved an Indian weaver (India? Native American?), a Scoth (sic) piper, a Swiss wood carver, a Dutch tulip girl, a French girl named Jeanne, an Irish boy named Shaun O'Day, a Belgian boy named Phillipe, a Mexican donkey boy, a Canadian girl named Anne, Mitz & Fritz of Germany, an Italian boy named Tony, an English boy named Tom, a Spanish dancer, a Swedish boy named Erik, a Danish girl named Greta, a Finnish girl named Lauri, and a Central American boy named Pepito. (What, one child to represent all the countries of Central America????) I wonder why some books had names in the titles and others had occupations.

Honey Bunch's visit to the seashore is another nice entry in the series. ( )