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The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy (Penderwicks (Quality))

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Manufacturer: Yearling
List Price: $6.99
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Average Ratings:

This summer the Penderwick sisters have a wonderful surprise: a holiday on the grounds of a beautiful estate called Arundel. Soon they are busy discovering the summertime magic of Arundel’s sprawling gardens, treasure-filled attic, tame rabbits, and the cook who makes the best gingerbread in Massachusetts. But the best discovery of all is Jeffrey Tifton, son of Arundel’s owner, who quickly proves to be the perfect companion for their adventures.

The icy-hearted Mrs. Tifton is not as pleased with the Penderwicks as Jeffrey is, though, and warns the new friends to stay out of trouble. Which, of course, they will—won’t they? One thing’s for sure: it will be a summer the Penderwicks will never forget.

Deliciously nostalgic and quaintly witty, this is a story as breezy and carefree as a summer day.


From the Hardcover edition.


DESCRIPTION:

Binding: Paperback
EAN: 9780440420477
ISBN: 0440420474
Label: Yearling
Manufacturer: Yearling
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 272
Publication Date: 2007-03-13
Publisher: Yearling
Reading Level: Ages 9-12
Release Date: 2007-03-13
Studio: Yearling


SIMILAR ITEMS:

• The Penderwicks on Gardam Street
• The Mysterious Benedict Society
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• From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler


CUSTOMER REVIEWS:

Customer Rating:
Summary: A Pleasant Read, Perhaps Overpraised
Comment: My daughter (10 when she read this) and I thoroughly enjoyed The Penderwicks. My daughter loaned our copy to a younger neighbor (9) who also enjoyed it, and both loved the sequel as well. As others have noted, this is an old-fashioned story. The pacing is slower and the plot more gentle than many contemporary middle-grade novel. If you happen to enjoy this sort of novel, you will probably enjoy Penderwicks.

Some reviewers feel that the Penderwick girls are too mature, too articulate, for their supposed ages. While their dialog isn't slangy or hip, it's also not, to my mind, that of an adult trying to sound like a child. Those of us who were, or who know, very articulate children who are also avid readers probably will recognize the speech style and accept it as childlike. There are certainly some passages that miss the mark, but overall I found it believable.

Another frequent criticism of this book is that it should have been set in the past; that the characters aren't believable as modern Americans. I mostly disagree with this; not everybody lives the kind of hectic, overprogrammed, suburban lifestyle portrayed on television as typically American. Yes, the family is very privileged, and so are able to take a long summer holiday and, generally, have few of the worries that beset many real families. However, the way the sisters interacted with each other and with the people they meet didn't seem at all unusual to me, and I have 3 children of my own and live in a city neighborhood with lots of other children, none of whom seem so terribly different from the Penderwicks, except in the matter of wealth.

One problem I did have with this book is that the adult characters are a little hard to swallow. Since the book is centered on the children, I didn't mind very much. But the father is a little too absent, the mother next door a little too evil, and the housekeeper a little too jolly and plain-spoken, with a heart of gold. Very stock characters, indeed!

Overall, this book is a very enjoyable one if you like old-fashioned stories, and I don't believe it is as anachronistic as it's detractors seem to think. On the other hand, I just don't see it as being quite as wonderful as it's most enthusiastic supporters think either. It will appeal to a certain kind of child, who will identify with the sisters, and is probably more appealing to adult readers who fondly remember Anne, the March sisters, the Moffats, the 'One-Of-A-Kind' family, and the denizens of Klickitat street. I'd have given it 3.5 stars out of 5, or 7 of 10 if I could, but I can't and my practice is to 'round up' so I give The Penderwicks 4 stars.

Customer Rating:
Summary: My daughters and I loved it!
Comment: It seems this book hasn't been reviewed in a while and I was just recently recommending it to someone so thought I should add a review here as well. I read this book aloud to my two daughters when they were about 8 and 10. We absolutely loved it. We adored the characters and their adventures, we laughed out loud and we shared great quality time together while reading this book. We followed it up with the second in the series and thoroughly enjoyed that one as well. We even had the pleasure of meeting the author at a book signing for The Penderwicks on Gardam Street (the second in the series) and each of my girls now has a signed copy of one of her books. They loved hearing about how she created these delightful characters.

My girls are now 11 and 13 and continue to be avid readers. They still count The Penderwicks among their very favorites! We highly recommend this book and it's a wonderful one to enjoy in the summer with your children!

Customer Rating:
Summary: A Funny, Sad, Nice Book
Comment: The four Penderwick sisters are Rosalind, Skye, Jane & Batty and their dog is named Hound. One of the exciting parts of the book is in the beginning. Batty the youngest Penderwick sister wears butterfly wings. Batty went under the gate to pick flowers and while she was picking flowers she started to sing about kangaroos. Then a bull comes out. Batty doesn't know that there is a bull. Jane started to scream. Jane screams often, so Batty knows it's Jane screaming. Then Batty looks up and sees the bull. Batty knew that the bull was not a horse. So she says to herself that she shouldn't have gone under the fence in the first place. She is wishing that Hound and her daddy were there. Jane is jumping up and down to distract the bull. Skye went under the gate and their new friend Jeffery went under the gate too. Skye went to help Batty, and Jeffery went to distract the bull. This is a book I would recommend to people who like funny, sad and nice books.

By Zulma



Customer Rating:
Summary: children's book
Comment: Ordered this book for my granddaughter, now I will order the rest of the series... arrived in great condition!! Will use seller again.

Customer Rating:
Summary: Time will tell whether a classic - I doubt it (3 stars is generous)
Comment: I can't believe the number of people who compare this to Little Women - we're reading Little Women (as we did The Penderwicks, aloud, with the kids) and there is NO comparison and I mean none. My kids read a lot and read a lot of classics - I don't see how this could be called one - this was an entirely forgettable story. I agree with the reviewer that talked about the disconnect between the story line (things that would appeal to older readers) and those that would actually be reading the story (younger readers) and also about how it seems out of sync with the times (would have been better set years ago). There were so many annoying things I don't even know where to start. One are the many references to the dead mother which I read when my kids were maybe 5, 8, and 10 - why exactly would I want to even put that thought in their heads (repeatedly as it comes up throughout the story). Not that we haven't had deaths (and missing parents/etc.) in books, but not like this. And the romance - we'll get there soon enough - why at these ages, targeted for a young audience? In summary, there are many better alternatives to spend your reading time.

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