The Penderwicks on Gardam Street

The Penderwicks return in this second of five middle-grade novels devoted to their adventures, this time back home on Gardam Street, in Cameron, Massachusetts. As the girls - motherly eldest sister Rosalind, fierce tomboy-scientist Skye, dreamy authoress Jane, and animal-loving baby of the family Batty - start a new school year, they each face new experiences and challenges. Rosalind must confront her mixed feelings about next-door-neighbor Tommy, who clearly has an adorable crush on her; Skye is brought low by both her temper and her stage fright; Jane discovers that she has a talent for acting, as well as writing; and Batty is terrified by the "Bug Man" she keeps seeing on Gardam Street. Most of all though, the Penderwick sisters must show more confront the idea of their widowed father dating again...

I found The Penderwicks on Gardam Street absolutely delightful - every bit as appealing and heartwarming as the first book, The Penderwicks - and continue to think that Jeanne Birdsall has a real gift for characterization. Her four sisters all feel like distinct and real people, rather than just types, and she captures their inner lives beautifully. There were many moments of humor here, and a number of new characters - Aunt Claire; newly moved-in next-door-neighbor Iantha and her baby, Ben; the football-obsessed brothers, Tommy and Nick - that I took immediately to heart. Although I saw the resolution of the central dilemma concering Professor Penderwick's dating coming from a mile off (like Batty, I immediately knew he was meant to be with Iantha!), it was still immense fun watching the story get there. Recommended to anyone who enjoyed the first book about this family - for my part, I plan on starting the next installment of the series, The Penderwicks at Point Mouette, as soon as I get home tonight! show less

I can't be entirely sure if the Penderwicks series are only the kind of books I think, now, in my thirties, would have been the sort of thing I would have loved to bits and read over and over if it had been around when I was ten or if it really would have been the sort of thing I read over and over when I was ten. I'm leaning toward the later, but I'm not sure it matters. I love this series to bits now, and it's like a lovely breath of childhood to read them as an adult. The children characters are lovely and real, the world they inhabit is safe but never sterile, and the adventures they have are fun, touching, and important without ever being preachy. A beautiful second installment in this modern old-fashioned series.

Although my six-year-old and I are pretty far from the target audience of Birdsall's Penderwicks books, we love them as read-alouds. (I admit to a little strategic skipping and condensing as I read: the dating stuff so strongly highlighted in this book is a little over a younger child’s head but totally fine by me, but the prologue that takes us years into the past to make us sad about the girls' dying mother is just not something this kid needs at the moment. Also, the many little references to human sacrifice ...)

The second installment in the series takes us to the Penderwicks' neighborhood and lets us meet their Aunt Claire and their new neighbors, a gorgeous and kind (and conveniently widowed!) astrophysicist and her baby, who show more only says "duck." It's a funny and gentle story of layers of generally-well-meaning deceit, with quite a climax. It's a book about girls that includes some romance but also shows them as definitely active and strong and interesting: there's about as much soccer-playing and football drills as anything else. It's the sort of book where we end up talking about the characters as though they were real people, acquaintances of ours.

And I just love Batty. show less

{second in Penderwicks series; childhood, adventures, growing up}

The Penderwicks on home ground; after their summer holiday at Arundel, the girls and Hound and, of course, their father return home to start the school year and yet more adventures await them.

This has a different ambiance from the first book (autumn term rather than summer holiday) but it's just as good, sweet and strong. There were some heart-touching moments. I love the illustration which accompanies each chapter heading of the girls running pell mell, in the same style as those in the first book, which captures the magic of a childhood thoroughly lived and enjoyed. My kids are teens and the eldest Penderwick is twelve but I think she writes the children - and Hound - show more believably. And the adults are all caring and nurturing. Of course, the girls aren't saints and get into scrapes but they do their best for the sake of the Penderwick family honour (and I think that appeals to my inner knight-in-shining-armour).

I love the dialogue and the banter; the way, for instance, none of their adult neighbours recognise them in their Hallowe'en outfits especially four year old Batty who is a different dinosaur every year (wink, wink, nudge, nudge). This had me giggling hysterically:

'Jane,' she said, climbing down from the chair. 'Remember last year when I built that model wind tower for you and you wrote those poems for me?'
'And you said you'd never switch homework assignments with me again.'
'For good reason. My teacher had a hard time believing I wrote Tra-la the joy of tulips blooming, Ha-ha the thrill of bumblebees zooming. I'm alive and I dance, I'm alive though death is always looming. When I finally convinced her that I had, she asked me if I needed to talk to the school counselor.'

There were some moments where I had tears in my eyes (and you know that I'm unsentimental); for example the prologue hits you hard, even though you've known from the beginning of the first book.

Batty is, perhaps, a bit coherent for a four year old but she's as charming as her sisters and not sickly-sweet. The children are portrayed realistically - although they're not absorbed by electronic devices as my children seem to be; mind you, the Penderwicks are younger and the book was written about a decade ago. And that's one of the things that charm me about these books - the girls have adventures without being mind-numbed by devices. Though twelve is a bit young to be dating, this parent feels. (I'll think about it when my kids turn 35. Thirty if they're very responsible. (Hah!))

As timeless as the first though it's set in the 21st century. This is a lovely book to read as an adult. And go on - share the joy with your children too.

(July 2024)
5 stars show less

The Penderwicks have returned to their home on Gardam Street and settled back into the routine of school and day care. But when their Aunt Claire arrives for a weekend visit bearing a letter from their deceased mother to their father, the status quo gets overturned slightly. For their mother wanted Aunt Claire to encourage their father to start dating and the Penderwick sisters are appalled at the idea of a stepmother. And so they come up with the Save Daddy plan in which they will ensure that he only goes on terrible dates so that life at home will remain the same.

Just a perfect read at a perfect time. I love how largely timeless these novels feel (although based on some references, I think I've pinned it down to the early 90s) and how show more wonderfully crafts each chapter from the Penderwick sisters different perspectives. The challenges are never too big to be overcome, the lessons learned are always valuable, and the changes for the Penderwick family in this volume are all delightful. Highly recommended. show less

The Penderwick sisters and their father are home on Gardam street when Aunt Claire drops a bombshell in the form of a letter from the girls' mother. Before her death, Elizabeth Penderwick knew that her husband would be lonely, but would probably not venture into dating again on his own, so she and Claire formulated a plan. Now, several years after Elizabeth's death, Claire is putting the plan in motion. Naturally, the girls have mixed feelings about this -- particularly Rosalind who, as Oldest Available Penderwick, is used to mothering her younger sisters and having her own way in the kitchen. So, the Penderwicks hatch a plan of their own, to "save" their father by setting him up on a series of dreadful blind dates! And of course that's show more not all that's going on in the busy family: Jane and Skye switch homework assignments with hilarious and disastrous results, Batty becomes obsessed with the "Bug Man," a mysterious stranger who may be lurking around Gardam Street, Rosalind finds her feelings for a boy confused once again, and all four sisters find a charming confidante in their new neighbor, a single mother named Iantha.

This second book in the series is just as charming and gentle as the first, and the audiobook narration is, once again, stellar. I recommend the whole series, for though this book could be read on its own, it does occasionally reference characters and events from the previous volume. show less

Back at home on Gardam Street in Cameron, MA, after their idyllic summer at Arundel, the Penderwicks are thrown by Aunt Claire's arrival and her presentation of their mother's deathbed letter asking their father to date again. Mr. Penderwick isn't excited about the prospect, and eldest daughter Rosalind worried enough to come up with the "Save Daddy Plan" to find the absolute worst women for him to date so he'll be turned off from the idea altogether.

B-plots include Jane and Skye switching homework assignments to rather disastrous effect (Skye is cast to perform a leading role in "her" play, Sisters and Sacrifice), Rosalind and Tommy realizing their awkward early romantic attraction, and Batty being vigilant for "Bug Man" in the show more neighborhood.

Even semi-alert readers will probably notice that the perfect candidate for wife/stepmother moves in next door to the Penderwicks early in the story: widowed astrophysics professor Iantha, her young son Ben, and their cat, Asimov. An epilogue provides a HEA. show less