“Eight Cousins” by Louisa May Alcott

Eight Cousins, 
or, The Aunt-Hill

(Rose Campbell Dulogy, #1)

by Louisa May Alcott

Synopsis: 
Rose Campbell, tired and ill, has come to live at “The Aunt Hill” after the death of her beloved father. Six aunts fussing and fretting over her are bad enough, but what is a quiet 13-year-old girl to do with seven boisterous boy cousins?

My Review:

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ & ❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎

5+ stars & 7/10 hearts. I love this book because it’s so sweet and real and beautiful and funny... and full of excellent advice on raising girls. I love how Dr. Alec moulds Rose’s character. The characters are wonderful... funny and real and upright. There’s really quite a lot of humour in this book! One of my favourites of Alcott’s books. <3

A Favourite Quote: “‘Is she accomplished?’ began Rose in a wondering tone, for this great-aunt of hers had seemed the least cultivated of them all.
“‘In the good old-fashioned way she is very accomplished, and has made this house a happy home to us all, ever since we can remember. She is not elegant, but genuinely good, and so beloved and respected that there will be universal mourning for her when her place is empty. No one can fill it, for the solid, homely virtues of the dear soul have gone out of fashion[.] Let her teach you how to be what she has been,—a skilful, frugal, cheerful housewife; the maker and the keeper of a happy home, and by and by you will see what a valuable lesson it is.’”
A Favourite Humorous Quote: “‘Now I shall preach a short sermon[.] Jack can't always drive[,] and Willie may as well make up his mind to let Marion build her house by his, for she will do it, and he needn't fuss about it. Jamie seems to be a good boy, but I shall preach to him if he isn't[.]. Now you must all remember what I tell you, because I'm the captain, and you should mind me.’
“Here Lieutenant Jack spoke right out in meeting with the rebellious remark,—"Don't care if you are; you'd better mind yourself, and tell how you ... kept the biggest doughnut, and didn't draw fair when we had the truck.’
“‘Yes, and you slapped Frank; I saw you,’ bawled Willie Snow, bobbing up in his pew....
“‘I shan't build my house by Willie's if he don't want me to, so now!" put in little Marion, joining the mutiny....
“Captain Dove looked rather taken aback at this outbreak in the ranks; but, being a dignified and calm personage, he quelled the rising rebellion with great tact and skill by saying, briefly,—‘We will sing the last hymn ... and then we will go and have luncheon.’”

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“All Fall Down” by Jean Little

All Fall Down:

The Landslide Diary of Abby Roberts 

(Frank, District of Alberta, 1902)

by Jean Little

Synopsis: 

A young girl survives the deadliest natural disaster in Canadian history - but a family secret could call into question everything she thought she knew about her life before the tragedy.

After her father dies, Abby and her family move west to live with relatives who run a hotel in the mining town of Frank, Alberta. Abby keeps busy helping out at the hotel, being chief caregiver to her little brother with Down Syndrome, and learning Morse code at the telegraph office. 

When the devastating Frank Slide buries much of the town, Abby must do all she can to help. But a long-buried family secret emerged just before the disaster - and now she will have to wait for the dust to settle before getting the answers she so desperately wants. 

Inspired by two of her own relatives, one who helped run a telegraph office in the late 1800s and another who shares Abby's story (and her family secret), Jean Little crafts a compelling story rich with emotion and historical detail.

My Review:

⭐⭐⭐ & ❤︎❤︎❤︎

3 stars. I think Davy’s and Abby’s relationship draws me most to this book. I have a little sister who is handicapped and I am very protective of her too, and I identified with Abby well because of that. There is a mention of a young man kissing servant girls; a euphemism or two; and when the landslide happens Abby (who is in shock) gets dressed in the crowded hotel hall. It was also kind of complicated with a harsh father and some nasty attitudes, but I liked John and Olivia after a while, when they became nicer. And Mark was really sweet. In short, this isn’t my favourite Dear Canada book, but it’s pretty good, and my sister really likes it—so my indifference to it might be merely personal inclinations.

A Favourite Humorous Quote: “Today was April Fool’s Day. I tricked Mother. I told her what was left of the snow had all melted away in the night.

“She went to the window and pulled the curtain back.

“‘[Y]ou’re right, Abby,’ she said.

“I ran to look and as I came up behind her, she swung around and said, ‘April Fool yourself, Miss.’”

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“Sarah, Plain & Tall” by Patricia MacLachlan

Sarah, Plain & Tall 

by Patricia MacLachlan

Synopsis: 
This beloved Newbery Medal–winning book is the first of five books in Patricia MacLachlan's chapter book series about the Witting family.
Set in the late nineteenth century and told from young Anna's point of view, Sarah, Plain and Tall tells the story of how Sarah Elisabeth Wheaton comes from Maine to the prairie to answer Papa's advertisement for a wife and mother. Before Sarah arrives, Anna and her younger brother Caleb wait and wonder. Will Sarah be nice? Will she sing? Will she stay?
This children's literature classic is perfect for fans of Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House on the Prairie books, historical fiction, and timeless stories using rich and beautiful language. Sarah, Plain and Tallgently explores themes of abandonment, loss and love.

My Review:

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ & ❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎

4.5 stars & 5/10 hearts. This is such a sweet, lovely book. It’s written simply enough for first-graders to read but it’s beautiful enough and written well enough for any age to read and enjoy. I loved the descriptions, the gentle pathos and humour... it was so sweet. I am so eager to read the next books in the series.

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“The Would-Be-Goods” by Edith Nesbit

The Would-Be-Goods:

Being the Further Adventures of the Treasure Seekers

(The Treasure Seekers, #2)
by Edith Nesbit

Synopsis: 

The children are eventually banished to the country, where they form the society of the Would-Be-Good to aid all of mankind and themselves in the bargain. 

My Review:

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ & ❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎

4.5 stars & 5/10 hearts. This sequel is even funnier than the first book. The children are so naïve and clever and bookish, and I love Uncle Albert! I remember laughing so hard the first time I read it, and even now I laughed aloud several times. I particularly love all the bookish allusions. ;)

A Favourite Quote: “It is impossible to go on being cross when your feet are in cold water; and there is something in the smooth messiness of clay, and not minding how dirty you get, that would soothe the savagest breast that ever beat.”
A Favourite Humorous Quote: “Oswald was attired in red paint and flour and pyjamas, for a clown. It is really IMPOSSIBLE to run speedfully in another man’s pyjamas.”

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“The Great Lab Escape” by Perry Elisabeth Kirkpatrick

The Great Lab Escape

(The Kitten Files Book 0)
by Perry Elisabeth Kirkpatrick

Synopsis: 

What do you do when you discover you're the first cat to learn to read?
You run!
Before Mia was the remarkable detective cat, she was a test subject at Caput Laboratories. When she begins to notice words jumping off the page, she's determined not to spend the rest of her life in the lab.
Everything goes awry when her plan to intentionally fail her test backfires —badly. Can she make her escape with only her wits and her newfound reading skills? And will she make it in the big world outside the lab's walls?
This is a short story prequel to The Kitten Files mystery series, and takes place several weeks before "The Case of the Tabloid Tattler." Average read time is approximately 20 minutes.

My Review:

⭐⭐⭐⭐ & ❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎

3.5 stars & 4/10 hearts. Perry Kirkpatrick did it again. This story is even more cattish and it's quite funny. Keith is super nice. :) The clompy-sandles-toddler line is hilarious. xD My only objection is Mia kinda prays twice, and she's not very reverent about it. It's a fun read though, and goes well with the series.

A Favourite Humorous Quote: “I'd followed a group of kids home from the elementary school, and we'd gotten to know each other a bit on their front porch. They seemed like a nice, fun bunch until, in his excitement, the littlest one accidentally stomped my tail with his clompy sandals.
“I couldn't help the yowly noise I'd made.
“I think it scared the kids—and their mom. No kids in clompy sandals for me.”

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