the penderwicks at point mouette by jeanne birdsall

Like Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy, the girls’ personality quirks occasionally raise hackles among themselves, but they nevertheless accept and value each other for those very quirks. The plot may seem a little quaint, but it’s well told and most of the characters are nicely developed (Jeffrey’s mother and her boyfriend are a bit stereotypical).

Will he be forced to go to military school? Or will the Penderwicks help him change his all-but-certain destiny? But Jeffrey is a musician in his heart and soul. Mother is determined that the Interesting Boy (okay, his name is Jeffrey) follow in the footsteps of his illustrious grandfather, General Framley. The Interesting Boy lives next door-or more accurately, in the lavish home of his wealthy single mother who never listened to him much and listens to him even less now that she has a caddish boyfriend.

Their personalities are different but complementary: Rosalind is sensible and thoughtful, Skye is impulsive and tomboyish, Jane is imaginative and literary, and Batty is the baby, cute and shy, who never goes anywhere without her butterfly wings. The premise is classic: with their widowed father and a hound called Hound, the four sisters travel to a cottage in the Berkshires for summer vacation. Leave out the occasional mention of a computer or video game, and it could have happened any time within the last sixty years. Recommended For: ages 8-10 and up, especially girlsīottom Line: The Penderwicks, first in a series, delightfully introduces readers to the four Penderwick sisters, their widowed father, and a hound named Hound.įrom its pastel yellow-and-blue cover to the silhouetted chapter headings, everything about this book shouts, “Throwback!” A throwback to an earlier era of children’s literature, that is, which of course is no bad thing. The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy, by Jeanne Birdsall.

The penderwicks at point mouette by jeanne birdsall