The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street

Karina Yan Glaser delivers a charming family story and a delightfully heartwarming Christmas tale with her debut children's novel, The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street. When the five Vanderbeeker siblings - twelve-year-old twins, Isa and Jessie, nine-year-old Oliver, six-year-old Hyacinth, and four-year-old Laney - discover that they are in danger of losing their home, they are terribly dismayed. They have always lived at the brownstone at 141st Street, in New York City's Harlem, and they have always had a close relationship with all of their neighbors. Can they convince Mr. Beiderman - the notorious recluse and misanthrope who owns their building, and who stays shut in his apartment on the top floor - to renew their lease, or will this show more Christmas be their last at 141st Street...?

Comprised of six sections, one each devoted to the days ranging from December 20th through December 25th, The Vandebeekers of 141st Street reads like a contemporary update of some of the classics of American children's literature. The eponymous family is biracial, and their circle of friends is diverse, but this is dealt with in a matter-of-fact way, and never feels like the focus of the story. There is a warmhearted goodness to this tale of family and community, and I enjoyed pretty much everything about it. The children feel like believable characters, their concerns and brief quarrels relatable and sympathetic. Mama and Papa make for appealing parents, and the family pets are adorable (although the cat-lover in me would have liked more about the feline George Washington). I appreciated the fact that this was set in a contemporary New York City, but not a gritty, grim one. The conclusion of the story, in which the explanation for Mr. Beiderman's behavior is revealed, and the issue of the Vanderbeekers' home happily resolved, is entirely appropriate for a Christmas tale, making me wish I had read this one at that time of year. Highly recommended to anyone in the market for new family stories for the middle-grade set! show less

I've never been to New York City but I've always wanted to live there in a neighborhood where everyone knows you (I mean, not as an adult, but doesn't it sound lovely for a kid). It reminded me a lot of The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy -- possibly because I just finished it, too. Sibling stories always get me, I love to see the sibling interactions. I especially love seeing the Vanderbeekers come together to save their home.

I think this title, The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street by Karina Yan Glaser was automatically recommended to me after I read the Penderwicks series and I now can see why. Lots of similarities between the two series: wholesome, large family of kids with various strengths in the arts, science, music, sports and all around cuteness. And adorable family pets!
This series takes place in Harlem, has an interesting multi-racial family (I don't believe the races are actually mentioned nor does the cover art give any clues, which I found endearing), a interesting neighborhood of friends, sweet family dynamics, a mean landlord and a problem to solve regarding the brownstone that they have lived in for many years.
This juvenile fiction is also the show more first of a series. On to the next adventure with this lovely family! show less

The first thing that takes you in Karina Yan Glaser's first middle school novel, The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street, is the colorful cover illustration. Looking at the figures in the windows of the bright red townhouse makes you want to look inside the book to find out who these people are. You want to be inside this building.

Once inside, you will be enchanted by the interesting Vanderbeeker family. Mama likes to bake and share her treats with the neighbors. Papa maintains the building, owned by Mr. Beiderman who keeps to himself. The Vanderbeeker children are not your typical plugged-in kids- 12 year-old Isa loves to play the violin, her twin brother Jessie creates scientific experiments, 9 year-old Oliver writes poetry, 6 year-old show more Hyacinth is an animal lover and 4 year-old Laney loves to draw, and they all love to read books. There is nary a cell phone in sight; instead, there are lots of pets.

When Mr. Beiderman tells the family that they must move after Christmas, the family is devastated. This is the only home they have known. They love their neighborhood- the bakery owned by the family of a boy who has a crush on Isa, the deli, the coffee shop, the library and City College. What if they have to leave the neighborhood and move far away?

The kids get together and come up with a idea to make Mr. Beiderman change his mind and let them stay, but it doesn't go as planned.

The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street is the kind of book you want to share with everyone in your family- it would make a wonderful book to read aloud. The Vanderbeekers are a lovely family, kind to each other, but in a realistic way. It's refreshing to see children who respect their parents, and who help Mom cook and set the table without (too much) complaint.

The secondary characters are interesting too- the upstairs neighbors who are so sad to be losing their friends, and as someone who had a basset hound, Franz the basset hound warmed my heart. Even Mr. Beiderman's story is moving.

The theme of the book can be best summed up by a speech Papa makes at a farewell Christmas dinner:
"I have always believed that raising kids means more than just being a good parent and trying to do the things," Papa went on, his voice beginning to wobble. "It means surrounding your kids with amazing people who can bring science experiments and jam cookies, laughter and joy, and beautiful experiences into their lives. From every part of my being, I want to thank you for giving me and my family the gifts of friendship and love."
The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street brings this wonderfully vibrant New York City neighborhood alive, and I can't wait for the next book in the series. I love the Vanderbeekers and all their friends and family and neighbors! If you have children or grandchildren in your life, you'll want to read this to them. And if you know a teacher, this would be a great addition to their classroom library. show less

Papa Vanderbeeker has lived in the same brownstone on West 141st Street in Harlem his entire life; the same goes for his five children. Now their curmudgeonly landlord (whom the kids call The Beiderman) wants them out by the end of the month. Did I mention that month is December?

Twins Isa and Jessie, brother Oliver, Hyacinth and Laney do all they can in Operation Beiderman to persuade their misanthropic landlord to relent. Will they be successful? The ending was so poignant that it caused my eyes to tear up, although the novel was never twee or cloying. This award-winning middle-grade novel isn’t just for children, as adults will love it just as much, if not more. Even more so if they listen to the novel read by narrator Robin Miles, show more who captures each little Vanderbeekers and that mean Mr. Beiderman perfectly. show less

A new book for my favorites shelf! Also I wrote it in and voted for it for Best Children’s Book and for Best Goodreads Debut Author book for the opening round of the 2017 Goodreads Choice Awards. I don’t know that it will move on to further rounds, given that so far not too many readers have read it, yet, but I hope that it does. I also hope and assume that it will eventually be widely read.

To all the usual suspects, my friends that enjoy children's novels, I'm highly recommending this one!!!

This book is a true gem and I believe it’s destined to become a classic. It reads like a classic.

I had a feeling that I’d thoroughly enjoy it when I read the author’s bio section on the inside back cover and it included the line “one show more of her proudest achievements is raising two kids who can’t go anywhere without a book.” Love it! Also, the two quotes that act as a frontispiece before the start of the book are from the Melendy book Spiderweb for Two and from Anne of Green Gables; that was another promising sign that this book would be a winner.

The story is memorable, charming, heartwarming, humorous, entertaining, absorbing, and sweet, but not too sweet. I loved the kids, the parents, and almost all the characters. Even the minor characters were given depth. The various relationships are believable and interesting.

For me it was an ideal comfort read.

I’ve always loved books about large families so this story was my cup of tea. (As an only child I’ve gotten a lot of vicarious pleasure while reading books about families with many children.) This family has 2 parents, 5 children, including a set of twins (another of my interests) and a dog, a cat, and a house bunny. It’s a great sibling story. I loved all the characters. They’re all distinct individuals, and the 5 kids are all a joy. I loved all of them. I felt as though I got to know everybody well within the first several pages. This is also a marvelous neighborhood story. Harlem is a character too, and an interesting one; at times the story felt like a love letter to Harlem.

The story is a fine story about family, and also about friendships and neighbors/community and it has an extraordinarily good sense of place. It’s a story about home, about belonging and about what makes a home a home.

I appreciate that the kids have advanced vocabularies and so the book does too, but it’s not at all too challenging for middle grade readers. The story has just the proper number of times some kids might have to look up a word. Kids won’t mind at all, and because all the words are in context most readers will be able to figure out the meanings of unfamiliar words.

For me the storytelling was perfect and the story nearly so. I’m not sure that I loved the epilogue, at least not exactly as it was, but I still enjoyed it.

I’m perplexed about why some Goodreads members have shelved this book on their “fantasy” bookshelves. This book is realistic fiction.

For readers who enjoy seasonal books, this book would be a fine choice to read just prior to or during the Christmas holidays. Most of the book’s events take place during the few days leading up to Christmas and then on Christmas Day.

This would have definitely been a favorite book of mine when I was 9 and 10, and 11 and maybe 8, and I have no doubt that I would have reread it many times. Even reading it as an adult I adore it and consider it a special book. I inhaled it and never wanted to put it down; that would have been even more true when I was in elementary school.

The story is greatly enhanced by the delightful illustrations and the map of the family’s neighborhood. I am fond of maps in books and this one was excellent. There is also a floor plan of the family’s apartment/apartment building. I love floor plans and used to read books containing nothing but floor plans. So this illustration was great fun for me. The illustrations throughout the book were lovely and pleasing and informative and contribute a lot to the story. The cover illustration is drawn incorrectly though. Floor 2 seems to be missing. Also, the text on page 216 doesn’t seem to match the map. These are incredibly minor quibbles though. I noticed the discrepancies only because I paid great attention to all the illustrations, really savoring them.

I might buy this book, even though unfortunately I’m not buying books these days. (I notice that it’s possible to get a signed edition at a wonderful NYC independent children’s bookstore I know of because I have a friend who works there. Very tempting!)

Highly recommended for readers ages 9 (maybe 8) and all the way up, anyone who enjoys children’s novels, family stories, NYC stories, stories with biracial characters, humorous stories, reading about characters who are musicians and/or artists and/or writers, reading about companion animals, reading about food in books, or just about everyone who enjoys children’s novels.

It’s so hard to write reviews for books I love the most. I cannot do this book justice via my review.

There is going to be a companion book coming out in 2018 and I’m looking forward to reading it. show less

The Vanderbeekers (interacial family; five children, one boy, four girls; ages five through twelve; including two twins) live in a brownstone in Harlem and love both the house and the community they are a part of in the their neighborhood. When their reclusive landlord, "The Beiderman," declines to renew their lease in the weeks before Christmas, the children decide to change his mind. Adventures ensue wherein the kids try to convince Mr. Beiderman to like them and thus renew the lease. I enjoyed the kids and especially the setting, though the middle dragged just a bit for me. The ending, where we find out what's up with "The Beiderman," is a bit of a gut punch. Appropriate for older kids, I think. It made me cry. Recommended, show more especially to fans of [The Penderwicks]. show less