Margaret Sidney (1844–1924)

I really tried hard to finish this, but some books just make it so difficult to like them. This is the second book in the series, supposedly taking place five years after the first. But the characters feel like they haven't aged, especially Phronsie who in many ways still behaves like a four year old. It's almost as if the author forgot that children grow up. And I didn't care for any of the characters, particularly Mr King, who does a thorough job of dominating his African American cook in show more the first chapter.
I didn't care for the author's writing either. There are abrupt jumps in plot without explanation and other idiosyncrasies that frustrated me. And I know this was written in the Victorian era, but it really annoyed me when the author said crying is weak.
Reading this book in the published order makes me wonder what was going through the author's mind. Obviously she had had her own ideas of what occurred in the intervening years, but she forgot to let the reader in on the secret, and this makes the jump between the books abrupt and somewhat confusing. The author eventually wrote other books to fill in the gap and I suggest that readers interested in this series follow the chronological order rather than publishing order. show less

This was fairly typical fare for its era: poor child melts the heart of a crotchety old rich man, with lots feel good moments and unlikely coincidences. I enjoyed the first part of the story the most, the Pepper family were resourceful and very likeable. Once they became entwined with the King family I found it less enjoyable. I just didn't like Mr King; I found him controlling and manipulative. However I enjoyed it enough to go on to the sequel.

This is one of my favorite books from childhood and, in a fit of readerly nostalgia, I decided to re-read it for the first time in decades.

You can't go home again.

I could see why I loved this book as a child but, oh does it have some issues. There are two single-parent households with no explanation as to what happened to the missing parents. Characters drop into the story with no introduction, just all of a sudden "Bob" is there and you're wondering who the hell "Bob" is. My largest issue show more with this book, though, lies in the idea of the rich older man swooping in and "rescuing" the Peppers from their poor-but-happy existence because he has a deep affection for a four-year-old. (I'm not sure if he offers to marry Mrs. Pepper or hire her as his housekeeper. Maybe they're one and the same to him. And I really don't want to think too deeply about his deep, immediate affection for Phronsie.)

I'm not giving this a star rating because grade school me gives it five stars with sparkles and rainbows and adult me would be feeling generous to give it two stars. show less

I had downloaded this old favorite some months ago, and decided to reread it as a light contrast to my other current read.

While I did enjoy reading again about Polly and Ben and all, it was evident that this story had lost something over the years: I found it just a little too simple and lacking in je ne sais quoi. Perhaps it is just me.

Maybe this was simply one of those childhood favorites that doesn't translate well into an adult read...too bad.

I would recommend this as a child's read, show more like "The Bobbsey Twins". show less