I think I like this one even more than Betsy-Tacy. Maud's descriptions are balm to my soul. For example: “It was June, and the world smelled of roses. The sunshine was like powdered gold over the grassy hillside” (p. 4). Such a beautiful turn of phrase. I also really love all of her descriptions of wildflowers and sunsets. :)For some of the things they did, like the flying (Chapter 2 and 3), I thought that it seemed a bit odd that eight-year-olds wouldn’t know that you can’t fly. But perhaps they were just really innocent and had not ever been told otherwise. Maybe kids today are a bit more cynical because of the media and so many other outside influences? I don’t know. Poor Tib! I kind of dislike that her dad says she can’t be an architect. There’s nothing at all wrong with being a housewife, but I just feel sorry for her that that option was imposed on her at the exclusion of any other career ambitions (p. 49). The "Everything Pudding" story (Chapter 5) is fun but am I the only one who cringes at the waste of food? (p. 64) Haha, I'm such a miser. I still love the story, though. I feel kind of the same way about the haircutting thing. I can relate to their mothers’ reactions on that one! They all have such beautiful hair. But…I actually did something very similar when I was little (cut off half my hair—just one braid), but for decidedly different reasons. My plan was more premeditated and not at all sentimental; I just really wanted a haircut!I thought it was interesting that the girls liked to talk about God. It did bother me a little that their view of faith was so, well, depressing. There is truth in what Betsy and Tacy say (that we are “born bad”, (p. 100) etc.) but they don't mention the hope in Jesus’ redemption! Christianity is not a dour religion. I wish the girls understood that more. They seem very receptive to things of a spiritual nature, and I think that is true of a lot of children. I just wish that instead of deploring their bad actions, they had tried to do GOOD things and reward those. But, I suppose the whole story about the stones (Chapter 8) wouldn’t be quite as entertaining that way. :) I understand that, but I also think that kids have a great potential—an underestimated one—to really do good and be holy. I think the sentence at the end of Chapter 8 really expresses this: “In silence the three of them looked at the sunset and thought about God.” I find that really beautiful and sweet. :)It's interesting to first read these as a kid and then come back many years later and read them when I am older. And guess what? I still love them! (Though I may be over-thinking some things here a little.) Children's books or not, this is one of the most delightful series you could ever hope to read.
Okay okay! I'll admit it. I'm a 42 year old man, and I'm a Maud Hart Lovelace/Betsy-Tacy fan. Heck, I might even load the Amanda and the kids in the car, drive an hour from the Twin Cities to Mankato/"Deep Valley", and spend a day or two fanboying in the footsteps of MHL.Seriously though, these books are PERFECT for dad/daughter readalongs. The innocently irreverent chapter on God and being good is divine. The imaginitive games - especially the Mirror Palace and The Christian Kindness Club - seem like such fun! And the three girls' gesture of mingling locks of their hair in personal lockets so they can remember each other should one die unexpectedly makes for a bittersweet, heartfelt moment. I loved everything about it. And if Sigourney's complete attention and pointing at the pictures is any indication, she's an MHL groupie too.Sweet, clever, old-timie stories that aren't afraid to talk about things like diphtheria and the deaths of young people. Highly recommended!
What do You think about Betsy-Tacy And Tib (2015)?
Maybe even better read as an adult than as a child. The prose is clear and beautiful. The moments are deep with meaning but not saccharine. The chapter where Tacy is recovering from diphtheria and the girls decide to cut off their hair to remember each other by is so powerful. The tears in the mother's eyes when they hear what the girls have done cannot be fully understood and appreciated by a child. This was a favorite. Hoping to give our daughter a new one each year so she can grow up with Betsy, Tacy, and Tib.
—Rose
There is something that this series reminds me of, or a compilation of somethings. But I haven't quite figured it out, yet. I do have reminiscence of the books I read in 3rd-5th grade. This second in the series is, again, a telling of a few tales, but this time in a friend trio instead of a duo. At the beginning of the book, I was only so-so about them. But by the end, I just couldn't help finding them endearing. The writing is not bad, but it's not the greatest I've encountered. It's the characters and their adventures and interactions that make this series for me (so far). It was funny to read (on my lunch break) the Everything Pudding chapter. Even a Heidi meal is not that bad. And reading it as an adult who has cooked more than my 7-year old self, reading what all they were putting it was out-and-out hilarious. And the hair for the lockets? Yep--one reason I flinch when anyone is near me and using scissors. And even though my mouth was agape in shock, it was also hilarious.
—Heidi
I have no idea where I got these books, but I had the whole series -- starting from when Betsy, Tacy and Tib were in first grade, and ending with "Betsy and the World" where she's a famous journalist, and she's travelling the world alone, on a steamer ship, because she just broke off her engagement ... well, I don't want to give it all away. These books are soooo fun, and simple and innocent, but the girls are always having a great time. They really inspired me, especially to write, when I was younger.
—Beth
