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jgintrovertedreader's review
5.0
Beezus is a responsible nine-year-old who enjoys helping her mother with chores; attending her painting class; sewing; and playing checkers with her neighbor, Henry. Her younger sister, four-year-old Ramona, is a whole different personality. Ramona is noisy and opinionated and not shy in the least. She loves to follow Beezus around but she’s always causing trouble! Beezus is horrified to realize that she doesn’t always love her sister.
I’m 42 as I write this so it’s been 30 – 35 years since I read any of Beverly Cleary’s books. I always enjoyed them as a child, and can clearly picture exactly where they were on my local library’s shelves. I called it a good library day when I found a new one. Who am I kidding? Every library visit was a good library day, but those were exceptional library days. I was amazed by how much of this book actually came back as I read it. The birthday cake, the party, the apples, the visit to the library…. These books are still very much present in my subconscious.
In thinking back to the Ramona books, I always remember Ramona and her antics most clearly. She’s a little firecracker. She still had me laughing out loud on this re-read, all these years later! I’ve always associated Ramona with my younger sister and I still see the two in each other. My sister was a handful too! Beezus as a character never stood out as much in my memory but I’m definitely a Beezus, the quiet girl who doesn’t want to make waves.
As an older reader, I find it astonishing how much freedom these young children had. Beezus would take Ramona to the park and leave her in the sandbox, completely unsupervised, while she was in her art class. They wandered freely for quite a distance from home. What a difference in social norms between those days (1950s and ‘60s) and these.
If you’ve never had the pleasure of reading Beverly Cleary’s books, give any of them a try. This one is a great place to start. If, like me, you need some comfort reading, rest assured that these old favorites have stood the test of time and they’re ready to bring a little childlike joy back to you.
I’m 42 as I write this so it’s been 30 – 35 years since I read any of Beverly Cleary’s books. I always enjoyed them as a child, and can clearly picture exactly where they were on my local library’s shelves. I called it a good library day when I found a new one. Who am I kidding? Every library visit was a good library day, but those were exceptional library days. I was amazed by how much of this book actually came back as I read it. The birthday cake, the party, the apples, the visit to the library…. These books are still very much present in my subconscious.
In thinking back to the Ramona books, I always remember Ramona and her antics most clearly. She’s a little firecracker. She still had me laughing out loud on this re-read, all these years later! I’ve always associated Ramona with my younger sister and I still see the two in each other. My sister was a handful too! Beezus as a character never stood out as much in my memory but I’m definitely a Beezus, the quiet girl who doesn’t want to make waves.
As an older reader, I find it astonishing how much freedom these young children had. Beezus would take Ramona to the park and leave her in the sandbox, completely unsupervised, while she was in her art class. They wandered freely for quite a distance from home. What a difference in social norms between those days (1950s and ‘60s) and these.
If you’ve never had the pleasure of reading Beverly Cleary’s books, give any of them a try. This one is a great place to start. If, like me, you need some comfort reading, rest assured that these old favorites have stood the test of time and they’re ready to bring a little childlike joy back to you.
susanb53's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
sparklethenpop's review against another edition
5.0
So much fun to read this with my own little Beezus and Ramona! :)
jencafardi's review against another edition
3.0
Beezus is trying to be a good big sister but Ramona makes it challenging.
melonpaper's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
lattelibrarian's review against another edition
5.0
This is actually the first time I've ever read anything by Beverly Cleary, if I'm remembering correctly. We had to read a Ramona book for my humor class, and so naturally I went with the first one, being rather unfamiliar. What lay in store was complete and utter hilarity. I thought I'd be amused, elicit a chuckle here and there, but I was full on laughing in the library. I mean, who thinks of this stuff? Beverly Cleary, of course.
I just...some of this stuff, man. And then she goes on to write even more Ramona books! I don't know how she does it. Maybe it's because writing about a three year old means you can get away with defying a lot of social norms. Maybe it's the fact that this was written in the late fifties? Or maybe it's the fact that Beezus and Ramona are sisters who happen to get on each other's nerves, something many people can relate to. Either way, Cleary does her job well.
On a more academic note, having just recently read The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan makes me REALLY want to analyze their mom and how she's constantly housekeeping and raising these two girls while their father is off at work. There's so much to be said about all of these characters, and I can't wait to read the other books, too.
Review cross-listed here!
I just...some of this stuff, man. And then she goes on to write even more Ramona books! I don't know how she does it. Maybe it's because writing about a three year old means you can get away with defying a lot of social norms. Maybe it's the fact that this was written in the late fifties? Or maybe it's the fact that Beezus and Ramona are sisters who happen to get on each other's nerves, something many people can relate to. Either way, Cleary does her job well.
On a more academic note, having just recently read The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan makes me REALLY want to analyze their mom and how she's constantly housekeeping and raising these two girls while their father is off at work. There's so much to be said about all of these characters, and I can't wait to read the other books, too.
Review cross-listed here!
juliasilge's review against another edition
5.0
My daughter (1st grade) is finishing up this series and has been really, really taken by Ramona. This is probably the first time a series with more literary merit (i.e. not Magic Tree House or Junie B. Jones) has engrossed her, which is encouraging to me. :) She thought [b:Beezus and Ramona|91244|Beezus and Ramona (Ramona, #1)|Beverly Cleary|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1171227884s/91244.jpg|933852] was pretty OK but once she got to [b:Ramona the Pest|78039|Ramona the Pest (Ramona, #2)|Beverly Cleary|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1170914054s/78039.jpg|1284999] and the following installments, she loved them. She literally cried when Picky-Picky died in [b:Ramona Forever|91249|Ramona Forever (Ramona, #7)|Beverly Cleary|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1266470149s/91249.jpg|2494398]. It is such a joy to see her move out of the absolute-beginner chapter books into this level of reading.
kaceyjoy's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0