friend #3: Five Little Peppers and How They Grew

            It’s funny how, as a child, the world and everything in it is just a little bit bigger than as an adult. When I was young and reading about the adventures of the Five Little Peppers (five siblings ages 3-11), they seemed quite grown up and mature. When I read it now, the children in the story seem younger, and I marvel at their maturity beyond their age. I think that’s part of why I like this book. It’s not that I grew up with the Five Little Peppers, I grew up around them. And, as they haven’t aged a day since I first opened this book, their stories are still every bit as charming to me now as when I was obliged to look up to these remarkable children—come to think of it, I still look up to them!

Margaret Sidney, Five Little Peppers and How They Grew, Lothrop Publishing Co., 1881.

            The five little Peppers (Phronsie, Davey, Joel, Polly & Ben, youngest to oldest) live in a little brown house with their mother, Mamsie. Since their father has died, they all do their part to eke out a living—Mamsie sews, assisted by Polly, and the boys all hire themselves out for odd jobs. Theirs is a plain and simple, but jovial existence. Perhaps because of their poverty, this family is extremely close-knit, and they protect and defend one another in every way possible. The book follows the family through a series of everyday adventures, including Polly’s eyes going bad from sewing in dim light (she recovers, thanks to much tender loving care from the rest of the family), and Phronsie’s wandering after an organ monkey which leaves her lost and far away from home. She is found by a boy named Jasper King and his dog, Prince, and this encounter brings a new friend into the Peppers’ lives.

            Soon Jasper is practically another Pepper, and his elderly, wealthy father takes a shine to the Peppers, especially Phronsie, who calls him “grandpa”. With Jasper’s help, the little brown house has a Christmas for the first time. When the Kings move away to their other residence to be with Jasper’s sister and her three boys, Jasper becomes so forlorn that Polly is sent for, and while staying with the Kings she is given music lessons, to her utmost delight. However, Polly soon becomes homesick for her family, and so, in secret, Phronsie is brought to the great house, to both sisters’ rejoicing. Finally the rest of the little brown house comes to visit, and soon afterward Mr. King proposes that Mrs. Pepper stay and oversee his house. The Peppers will live with the Kings, and the children will receive the education their mother has been so desperately wishing for. The book ends with the Peppers’ discovering that Jasper’s brother-in-law is actually a cousin to Mrs. Pepper, which results in a loud and joyous family reunion.

            Five Little Peppers has the extraordinary ability to draw the reader into these children’s lives, and makes one wish to be a fellow resident of the little brown house. The adventures the Peppers have are both simple and enthralling, and it’s a very easy book to want to read over and over again. Much to my delight, I have recently discovered that Margaret Sidney actually wrote twelve books chronicling the lives of the Peppers, after her original intention of four books was overwhelmingly contradicted by her fans. Because these books were written at the turn of the 20^th century, they have a unique charm that transports the reader to a simpler age, where one’s siblings were one’s best friends, and where the word “whockety” was considered “dreadful”. Unfortunately, to my knowledge this book is currently out of print, but many libraries still carry the series, and I just found one of the books very cheap on eBay. Trust me, they’re worth getting a hold of. Happy reading!

friend #2: Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH

            One of my favorite childhood traditions was gathering the family in the living room after dinner and listening to my dad read aloud (who always knew the perfect voice to bring a character to life). Many of the books I loved reading as a child were introduced to me this way (including, multiple times, the Narnia series…we’ll see if I get to that in this blog. I’d be tempted to write WAY too much about them) and as a result of hearing them, I still hear those voices in my mind when I read the book to myself. One of these books was Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, a story about a family of field mice who, in an emergency, turn to an extraordinary group of rats for help. This is another Newberry award winner (that might be a theme in these reviews…), and one—yes, of many—of my favorite kid’s books. 

Robert C. O’Brien, Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, Atheneum: 1971.

            Mrs. Frisby is a field mouse who lives, with her four children, under a cinderblock in the corner of Mr. Fitzgibbon’s garden. Each year when it comes time for the farmer to plow his garden, the Frisbys move to their summer home far from the humans, on the edge of a stream. However, one year the youngest Frisby, Timothy, gets sick with pneumonia just before plowing time, and cannot be moved out of bed. Mrs. Frisby, in desperation, seeks advice from an old owl deep in the forest, who tells her to solicit the help of a colony of rats who live under a giant rosebush in the Fitzgibbons’ yard. Fearful, yet with a mother’s stoic heart, she ventures into the rosebush, and finds that this is no ordinary rat pack. These are the rats of NIMH: large, highly intelligent beings who have built an underground home for themselves with running water and electricity who can also read and write.

            Mrs. Frisby is directed to speak with Nicodemus, who tells her the story of the colony’s beginnings. He, along with his family and friends, lived on the streets and scavenged for garbage until he was captured by a team of scientists and brought to a lab called NIMH. There he and many other test subjects were given a series of injections, and put through many different kinds of intelligence tests, including mazes and speech recognition. They soon surpassed the scientists’ expectations, and were eventually able to escape from the lab. After some wanderings, they found the Fitzgibbon’s yard, and have been living there for many years. The rats agree to help Mrs. Frisby, and propose that moving the cinderblock a few feet to place it behind a large rock will leave it out of reach of Mr. Fitzgibbon’s plow. This plan succeeds, and the Frisbys are all kept safe, thanks to the rats.

            This is a clever, engaging book that is just as interesting a read for adults as it is for children. These characters are adults with adult problems, and O'Brien simply uses talking animals to tell their story. It’s not a fantasy story per se, but has enough adventure to be as entertaining as if it did contain dragons and princesses in addition to talking mice. Now I have nothing against a good fantasy; this story simply appeases my “common-sense” side that I often have to put on hold while reading children’s literature. This is a wonderful novel for all ages, and a great book to read aloud (character voices required). As with The Whipping Boy, look for this one in the kid’s section with other award-winners. Happy reading!


**Side note: there are two sequels to this book, written by the author’s daughter (Jane Leslie Conly). Although they are not quite Mrs. Frisby’s equal, they are still great reads and very entertaining. They are: Rasco and the Rats of NIMH and R-T, Margaret, and the Rats of NIMH.

friend #1: The Whipping Boy

           Well! I absolutely love to write, and I love reading great books, so what could be better than writing about great books? Welcome to allmypaperfriends, in which I will introduce you to the many, many friends I've made in the world of literature. By doing this I hope to convince you to read *almost* anything and everything you can get your hands on. There are certainly books this world could do without, but in my very limited experience I’ve read a lot of good ones and those are the ones I’d like to tell you about.

           I want to start with a section (possibly a very long section) about books I’ve known and loved my whole life. So many of the books I read as a child are still every bit as captivating now as they were then, with a touch of nostalgia to boot. One of these that I never, ever get tired of is the adventurous story of The Whipping Boy.

Sid Fleischman, The Whipping Boy, Scholastic Inc.: 1986. 

            The Whipping Boy is a bite-sized, lighthearted romp following two runaway boys through palace, forest, city fair and sewer maze. It begins, “The young prince was known here and there (and just about everywhere else) as Prince Brat.” The prince deserves this nickname on account of his spoiled and arrogant nature, and his spiteful pranks, which include greasing the saddles of his father’s guards and tying guests’ wigs to their chairs during a formal dinner. Despite the prince’s antics, “it was forbidden to spank, thrash, cuff, smack, or whip a prince.” When the situation does call for punishment, the prince’s whipping boy, Jemmy, is brought out and punished in the prince’s place. This situation, obviously, teaches the prince nothing.

            One day the prince decides he’s bored with princely life, and, taking Jemmy with him, runs away from the palace. A series of misadventures follows, not the least of which is the boys’ falling into the hands of famous outlaws. In the end, Jemmy’s quick wit and street smarts keep the boys safe, and the prince learns what it means to have a friend. Upon their arrival back at the palace, the boys are dealt with graciously by the king, who asks to be taken along the next time the boys have an adventure.

             This book is an outstanding piece of children’s literature, and was recognized as such when it won the Newbery Medal. It’s a short book, and reads very easily, making it accessible to young children. However, the straightforward writing and exciting story are enough to capture an older audience as well. I enjoy this story anew every time I read it. It’s adventurous and although it never gets preachy, it has a lot to say about friendship and trust. It’s one of those rare stories that subtly leaves the reader a slightly better person for having read it. Pick up this book the next time you get the chance. You’ll find it in the children’s section of any bookstore or library, often with other award-winners. It’s short enough to read without taking it home, but you may want to in order to read it more than once. Happy reading!