Bernice Thurman Hunter (1922–2002)

Beatrice Thomson, better known to her friends and family as Booky, returns in this second installment of Bernice Thurman Hunter's trilogy of children's novels - begun in That Scatterbrain Booky, continued here, and concluded in As Ever, Booky - devoted to her experiences growing up in Depression-era Toronto. Opening the summer that Booky is sent from her home on Veeney Street, in the Swansea neighborhood - so-named because its settlers (Booky's extended maternal family) hailed from Swansea, show more in Wales - to the Muskoka farm of her paternal grandfather, With Love from Booky chronicles the ups and downs of its heroine's life, as she gradually moves from child to young woman. Booky's letters to and from home, her close family ties and friendships, her first job and first date, are all detailed here, in a narrative every bit as humorous and heartwarming as the first.

The charm of With Love from Booky is owing, in no small part, to the narrator herself, whose perceptive appreciation (despite some natural naivete) of the people around her makes her world truly come alive for the reader. I don't think I have read any work, intended for children, that gives a better sense of the real suffering and hardship of the Great Depression, than this book, and its predecessor. But despite the ever-present reality of need - which is, admittedly, a little less harsh in this volume, as Booky's father is (mostly) employed - the story still manages to feel lighthearted, probably due to its focus on those childhood and adolescent experiences common to so many young people, despite economic circumstance. There is humor here, and pathos - not least of all, when Booky's Grampa Cole unexpectedly dies, leaving her with all the regrets of the young, who, having thought they had all the time in the world to spend with loved ones, instead discover true loss for the first time. Highly recommended, to all those young readers who enjoy historical fiction, and tales with strong female characters. Just be sure to start with the first volume of Booky's adventures! show less

Originally published in 1981, this slender little paperback packs quite a punch! The first of a trilogy of books depicting a young girl's experiences growing up in Depression-era Toronto - it is followed by With Love From Booky and As Ever, Booky - it is by turns humorous and heartbreaking, never shying away from depicting the disturbing realities of life during that tumultuous time, but also giving full expression to the joys and pleasures of childhood, and of family life. Chronicling the show more adventures of Booky (Beatrice) Thomson, and the trials and tribulations that she and her family endure from 1932 through 1933, when her father is (despite all his better efforts) unemployed, and her family is continually being evicted by the bailiff, That Scatterbrain Booky is a record of hunger - the book opens as Booky hands her mother a note from the school nurse, to the effect that she (Booky) is more than twenty pounds underweight, and therefore qualifies for free government milk - and the unhappiness caused by want; but it is also a loving portrait of a family that, despite the strains put upon them by their real and pressing need, is bound together by the ties of love.

Booky is a engaging narrator, with a distinctive (and distinctly amusing) voice all her own, and watching events unfold through her eyes is both hilarious and poignant - often all at once. Her little asides, and ruminations on the people around her are quite amusing, as are her innocent observations and unasked questions: Where do babies come from? If Uncle Charlie sends his baby girl "back," because he wants a son instead, where would she go back to? Impressively, Bernice Thurman Hunter manages to include some terribly devastating episodes - a family fight in which Booky's father strikes her mother; an overheard conversation, in which Booky's mother considers giving up her unborn child for adoption, because she cannot afford to feed the four children she already has - in her story, and still preserve the essentially carefree feeling of the book as a whole. This is because she really is telling the story through a child's eyes - her own eyes, as I understand these books are largely autobiographical.

Compulsively readable, immensely enjoyable, and greatly moving, That Scatterbrain Booky is a title that I highly recommend, to all young readers who enjoy historical fiction, and to anyone interested in Depression-era Toronto. I had no sooner set it down, then I was reaching for the second installment of Booky's story, With Love From Booky. show less

Booky (Beatrice) Thomson meets her idol, famed Canadian author L.M. Montgomery, in this third and final novel devoted to her childhood and adolescence in Depression-stricken Toronto, an event that has a great influence on her development as a writer. A child in That Scatterbrain Booky, and a young 'tween' in With Love From Booky, our insouciant heroine is finally a teenager here, embarking on an exciting phase of life. From dating to working, there are new worlds opening up before Booky, not show more least of them the prospect of what she wants to do with her life, once high school is over. Will Montgomery's constructive criticism - meant well, but crushing to the sensitive Booky - prevent her from picking up her pen again? Or will the results of an essay contest - The Bravest Man I Know, which Booky writes about her Aunt Aggie ("The Bravest Man I Know Is a Woman") - convince her that she has important stories to tell...?

As with the first two titles in the Book trilogy, I greatly enjoyed As Ever, Booky, which managed to pull me in entirely, during the course of my reading. Booky is an engaging heroine, and makes for an excellent narrator. The authenticity of her world - the reader feels that she is truly moving through 1930s Toronto - is owing, in no small part, to the heavily autobiographical nature of her story. The black and white images - photographs of people in the story, and of places in Toronto, advertisements for goods used by the characters - that are included (they are included in all three of the Booky stories) further blur the lines between fact and fiction, and add to that sense of historical reality. I genuinely liked this heroine, I found her story both believable and entertaining, and I came away with a better appreciation of the harsh realities of the Depression. Highly recommended, together with it two predecessors, to all young readers who enjoy good historical fiction! show less

A beautifully told story of a Canadian family living through deep poverty during the Depression. From the viewpoint of a young girl, we learn of her feelings toward all her siblings, her parents as they struggle and fight, told in intimate detail. I confess loving much of it because of the memories it brings me of my own childhood, minus the terrible hunger. From Eaton's Santa Claus parade to the linoleum on the floor, Hunter invites us, with all our senses, into the life of an ordinary show more child with a big heart. show less