I forgot about this little treasure until this evening. I should have mentioned it when I was blogging about Raggedy Ann. These books were published in 1925 and are still going strong. Amanda, 11, read our entire series of four books when she was 8 or 9 and they were her favorites then. I think they have been sitting our bookshelf since then. Bethany, 6, was looking for a new bedtime book for us to read together this evening and pulled this off the shelf. I was so excited to read it to her. As we started in on the first chapter, Amanda meandered in and sat and listened. She immediately remembered Little-Friend-Susan, her favorite character.
Milly-Molly-Mandy's full name is Millicent Margaret Amanda. Since her family can't say "Millicent Margaret Amanda" everytime they need her, they have shortened her name to "Milly-Molly-Mandy". Bethany thought that was quite hilarious: her 'short' name. Once again, this is a favorite because of the good old-fashioned stories about a sweet little girl and her adventures with her family and friends.
When the Glosbrenner family decided to move west, each child was given the opportunity to choose something special to bring along. They are moving in a covered wagon, so there isn't much room, but everyone gets one item. Sarah Samantha, the middle sister, chooses a small apple tree named Miss Appleseed. Her goal is to eventually make an apple dumpling from an apple from Miss Appleseed's branches. As Miss Appleseed grows, so does Sarah Samantha. She learns that she can be brave and she shares her adventures with her tree-friend. Because we couldn't read so much about apple dumplings and not try them, we learned to make this delicious dessert several years ago. It is still a favorite in the fall when the apples are ripe.
Ella, Henny, Sarah, Charlotte, and Gertie live with their parents in New York City at the turn of the century (the twentieth century). They work and play and celebrate together all year round. They are a Jewish family, so it is especially fun to hear about how the family celebrates the Sabbath, Purim, Passover, and Succos. But, we also get to come along as they celebrate Papa's birthday, the Fourth of July, and have family vacation because, after all, they are also very much Americans. My favorite story involves dusting while searching for hidden buttons. I have got to remember to use that trick with my own children! But the best surprise of all comes at the very end of the book......
I really do continue to read adult books, too. I have several in the process right now-that is the problem. When I feel really busy and I have a lot of different projects going on I get books going on all different topics all over the house. I really will get a few wrapped up here soon and blog about them, too. And, someday I'll talk about my favorite 'boy books' as well...
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