- neighbor friends (1 boy, 1 girl) do life with gusto, their adventures always leaving their mark in mostly-comical ways
- set in a small community on a cove in Norway
- convo: an older man and his sister don opposite-gender clothing*, a few mentions of an uncle’s girlfriend, a single mom begins seeing a man (this element ends well and is always appropriate), mentions a dad running off before his baby was born, a girl is disrespectful to adults multiple times, an older child has his own phone, mentions a slot machine, kids keep secrets from parents, girl is often mean to boy, boy is always “searching his feelings” about things, general “women are stronger than men” message in how various parents interact with each other, a few grief-filled chapters, some cultural superstitions, mentions tobacco
- language: x8 stupid, some name calling, x1 heck, x1 flipping, x2 idiot, x1 gosh, x2 fart, x1 thank G*d
Type: chapter book
Ages: 7-10
Author: Maria Parr
*In context, it was made to be humorous since there was no one else to fill those roles in an annual cultural tradition. Furthermore, it was clearly necessary, physically, because the dress didn’t fit the woman.
This book is such a popular read-aloud I’ve seen on book lists many times over the years. I get why (the clever word craft and humor)…yet, ehh (that girl!). Sure, a wild child who does what she wants, is never very nice to her supposed best friend, and who is never reprimanded for her naughtiness makes for hilarious book content! …But it also gets old.
Fortunately, on the flip side, there was still merit to discover. With a plot twist I didn’t expect, Parr handles grief for young readers in a truly lovely way. The sadness is palpable but not too heavy. Other events “sober” the tone of the story, but beautiful things happen relationally between a few characters.
Side thought: I can’t help but wonder if there was less crassness in the original version. Wish I could read Norwegian!
In conclusion, weighing all my notes, I couldn’t give this more than a 3-star rating on Goodreads but I’ll let my older kids (12, 10.5) read it. They’ll get a kick out of it for sure.
Hope this helps!