Reviews

Pollyana by Eleanor H. Porter

Only show reviews with written explanations

mariahistryingtoread's review against another edition

3.0

I love a good ‘girl enriches the lives of those around her by being herself’ classic. I find it unbelievably charming to watch her melt the ice cold hearts of those around her. On top of my normal warm, gushy feelings for these kinds of books I have a lot of fondness for Pollyanna specifically as I loved the Hayley Mills Disney adaptation growing up.

Pollyanna is similar to Anne of Green Gables in that it is a collection of tales all primarily centered around the protagonist getting involved in some fashion. While Anne is prone to troublemaking due to her impulsive nature, Pollyanna is a girl who rarely causes problems; in fact, her whole purpose is actually to solve them.

Pollyanna grew up the only child to a single minister father after her mother's untimely demise when she was little. As being a minister yields very little by way of income, they had to live off of the charity of the nearby Lady's Aid to receive certain amenities such as clothes or toys. After a particularly devastating disappointment in one of their charity hauls - Pollyanna wanted a doll badly but they receive what is donated and dolls are a pipe dream in that regard - her father came up with a 'game' to cheer her up. The Glad Game is to put a stop to your bad mood or disposition or thoughts by choosing to be glad instead for whatever the silver lining is. Like in the example above instead of a doll what came in the charity bucket was a set of crutches. So her father pointed out that she could be glad for she did not need crutches.

Every aspect of Pollyanna's life is filtered through the lens of this 'game' and it's amusing to read about how in her guileless, fanciful manner she manages to spin awful situations into something wonderful or at the very least bearable for those in her community.

There are a few long term arcs that weave their way underneath Pollyanna’s other casual exploits. This includes the mystery behind Aunt Polly’s bitterness, what Mr. Pendleton’s connection to Pollyanna is and trying to find a family for Jimmy Bean.

As far as classics go this isn’t too bad. Pollyanna is eleven, but she often comes off as if she’s no more than four or five which can grate on occasion. Despite the hardships she’s gone through she’s definitely still a very sheltered child - to an arguably unrealistic degree. While I can understand it to a certain extent, it did not do her any favors in terms of likeability. Her supporting cast is serviceable, if not a little flat. Few characters are developed enough for me to care all that deeply about them and the ones that were often had negative characterization that made me dislike them.

I wouldn't recommend this as I would not necessarily say it’s good in the most modern sense of the word. For better or worse, it’s a book of its time. Do with that what you will.

rattledragons's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

gloriazthompson's review against another edition

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hopeful inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

lisakerd's review against another edition

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2.0

I love Disney’s 1960 film of Pollyanna, but its origin novel fell flat for me. The narration was melodramatic, and the dialogue was dated and indulgently saccharine.