Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

My 10 yr. old daughter received this book as a gift. The back cover is filled with glorious praise, comparing it to books by the likes of Elizabeth Enright. Since our family has completely enjoyed the Melendy books, I started reading this one out loud. Mistake. This book has four motherless children and a dad that isn't around much. Oh, and a sympathetic cook/housekeeper type. The comparisons end there. Elizabeth Enright's books are sweet and entertaining, even educational. The Penderwicks are so totally full of themselves, rude to each other and others, irresponsible and obnoxious. Of course, it's all portrayed as being cutesy and funny. The author wants us to forgive their shortcomings and see their noble intent ("saving" a poor fatherless boy from the evils of a stepfather and a military academy). To be sure, I sometimes see the same type of behavior in my own girls. We don't really need to read about it in other families. As another reviewer has noted, the girls are overtly feministic and a law unto themselves. They regularly disobey, sneak around, spy and eavesdrop. They completely disregard the wishes and rules of the woman who owns the property they are renting for a few weeks. They justify their behavior, and never apologize to those they have offended (well, maybe at the end they do. I don't think we'll make it that far). The oldest of the sisters, who is 12, is obsessed with an 18 year old gardner. That alone would be enough for me to toss this book. SO. From a conservative, home schooling family perspective, don't bother with this book. Instead, pick up any or all of the Melendy Family books by Elizabeth Enright (the first of which is called The Saturdays). Or, if you want other books about sisters, try All of a Kind Family by Sydney Taylor.