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I recently read my way through all of the books
nominated for the 2005 National Book Award in the Young People's Literature
category. The result of my little project is that I agree precisely with the
award judges that the chosen winner, Jeanne Birdsall's The Penderwicks,
is the best of the lot.
The story is set in August in the Adirondacks as the Penderwick family - four
sisters, botanist father, and dog - take a vacation cottage on the edge of a
grand estate. Their stay hasn't a hope of being uneventful because the sisters
are far too interested in the goings-on in the nearby mansion and formal gardens
not to go looking for adventure.
The Penderwick girls are a lovely crew of characters: Rosalind, the oldest,
tries to keep the others in order, but they're a handful. Skye likes to work
algebra problems and tell it like it is, no frills; Jane is a terror on the
soccer field and a budding writer with an uncanny habit of narrating the
sisters' adventures as they're happening; and little Batty, the youngest sister,
wears costume bug wings as a security blanket and is at her happiest when
talking to the dog.
These lovable, admirable girls tumble through a score of brave undertakings and
gentle dangers during their summer holiday. Their greatest endeavor comes in
befriending Jeffrey, the lonely young boy who lives in the sprawling mansion.
His greatest wish is to be a concert pianist, but his brittle society mother
wants to send him to (horrors!) military school. Penderwicks to the rescue!
Birdsall's story is a childhood idyll filled with "summer and magic and
adventure and all that's wonderful in life." She's written a book that should be
happily added to the reading lists and libraries of imaginative kids who love
reading, animals, and adventure. "The Penderwicks" will fit neatly on the shelf
that holds Narnia, Wilder, Alcott, and Anne of Green Gables. It's a treat
not to be missed.
The Penderwicks is highly recommended for readers ages 8-12.
Review by
Mark David
Bradshaw
Reviews of the other National Book Award Nominees:
Each Little Bird That Sings by Deborah Wiles:
http://www.watermarkbooks.com/review1205-012.html
Where I Want to Be by Adele Griffin and Inexcusable by Chris
Lynch:
http://www.watermarkbooks.com/review1205-010.html
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