What do You think about Emily's Runaway Imagination (2008)?
Emily Bartlett is a little girl growing up in the 1920's in a small town out west. She has a healthy, vivid imagination and a happy home life with her parents on their farm. Her grandparent's own the general store, so Emily is the only girl in the town allowed to go behind the counter. Emily's cousin Muriel lives in Portland, Oregon, so when she tells Emily about the wonderful books she gets from the library, Emily wishes her town would get it's own library someday. Mama has what it takes to make that happen. Full of humorous episodes, including when Emily accidentally gets all the hogs drunk, this book is sweet and entertaining. A nice look at life in another time.
—Patricia
I started reading this to my daughter but finished reading it on my own because I couldn't wait. It is a story of Emily who lives in a rural Oregon town and yearns for a library. She also has many small-town adventures during the year that are perfect in their lack of drama for anyone but Emily. A person's imagination can make life interesting, and Emily's certainly does that.It is not my favorite Beverly Cleary book, but a sweet collection of stories to read when drama reads have sapped all your emotional energy and you need your faith and joy for humanity restored; Ms. Cleary is excellent with this.
—Jill
It's hard to say how a child would perceive this book, but as an adult reading it for the first time, I loved it. Beverly Cleary captures the inner life of a child so perfectly: more than anything else, Emily just wants the adults in her life to take her seriously. I totally remember that feeling, and not understanding why grown-ups always felt the need to chuckle at things I said. Cleary also expertly depicts how children see adults--they catch all the meaningful looks we exchange over their heads. Reading this book reminded me how it feels to be a child.
—Vanessa
