My husband thinks that this book should be about the girl written from the dog’s perspective. But it’s not. It’s a book about the girl. The dog is involved in the plot, but does not play a major narrative role. Just to set things straight.
Caddie Woodlawn is based on the memories of the author’s grandmother, a girl living on the edge of civilization with her pioneer family. The story is similar in feel to the Little House books, but unlike Laura, Caddie is a tomboy. Caddie spends her time with her two mischievous brothers. Each chapter usually involves the three in some sort of scheme (not always naughty). The writing is somewhat episodic, but there are several larger threads, including the father’s childhood in England, and Caddie’s role in the family. The book is forward-thinking in its gender roles. The mother wants Caddie to settle down and be more of a “lady”, and when Caddie takes some interest in quilt-making, her brothers follow suit and start to learn quilting as well. It’s very well-written. No wonder it won the Newbery.
The thing that attracted me to this book, frankly, was the cover. Isn’t it nice? From its appearance, I thought that it would be a chick lit-type book, which I enjoy, but it really wasn’t. It’s a portrait of a girl’s experience in high school, told from her point of view. She spends all of her boarding school experience on the perimeter of things, afraid to get too close to her classmates. Although Lee was outgoing and loud and pretty much totally different back home in Indiana, she becomes very self-contained and closed off at boarding school. One of the main threads is her obsession with a boy named Cross, which does not come to fruition until their senior year. He becomes something more than a crush, but isn’t quite a boyfriend. This relationship is the most poignant part of the book, because, underneath the facade, Lee wants a full, open relationship with Cross, but doesn’t ask because she tells herself that Cross would reject her. We don’t know if he would, but if that were the case, he would not be good enough for her. Lee can’t see her own worth enough to stand up for herself in the relationship.
I have been wanting to read this book for a long time, and not only because the author has such an interesting name. It also has an interesting title. It is true. The premise of the book is that underneath platform 13 at King’s Cross station in London there is a gump. A gump, you say? What the heck is that? Well, a gump is a passage way to Avalon where is there is an Island with a king and queen and all sorts of mythical characters. Well, one day the son of the king and queen is kidnapped by a greedy and awful person named Mrs. Trottle. Since the gump is only open every 9 years for only 9 days, the king and queen have to wait 9 years to get their son back. Most of the action of the book takes places over that 9 day segment when the rescue team that is sent in tries to get the prince back. Despite the passing similarity to the Harry Potter books with the platform 9 3/4 bit, and the fact that they are both fantasy, The Secret of Platform 13 is quite different in the story. It is, of course, very well written (do I ever seem to read anything that isn’t?) and another one I didn’t want to put down.
I have been meaning to get around to this review, since I finished the book weeks ago, but real life in the form of wedding plans and house-buying plans has intervened. Anyway, this book is an interpretation of the Cinderella story. It is told from the point of view of mostly the Cinderella character (Bella). It is very well written – the kind of book I was picking up every spare moment to read a little more. In this retelling, Bella is sent away when her mother dies to be raised by nursemaid, and grows up believing she is a peasant. She befriends the prince, who was nursed by Bella’s foster mother, who (of course) turns up later in the book for the Prince Charming character. There are some twists that liven up the familiar story, especially in the gender role area. Bella is a strong, smart female character who is a joy to read. Even the stepsisters and mother are given voices in the book, which make the reader empathize more with their situation. Excellent book. Now I can return it to the library so I stop getting overdue notices.
