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3.88 AVERAGE
3.88 AVERAGE
“Ole Golly says there is as many ways to live as there are people on the earth and I shouldn’t go round with blinders but should see every way I can. Then I’ll know what way I want to live and not just live like my family.”
"Don't mess with anybody on a Monday. It's a bad, bad day."
"How could she get married? Would Mr. Waldenstein come to live with us then? They could put their child in my room if they wanted to. I wouldn't mind. I don't think. Unless it was a very noisy child who tried to read my notebooks. Then I would smash it."
" Something is definitely happening to me. I am changing. I don't feel like me at all. I don't ever laugh or think anything funny. I just feel mean all over. I would like to hurt each one of them in a special way that would only hurt them."
" She always said that people who try to control people and change people's habits are the ones that make all the trouble. If you don't like somebody, walk away, she said but don't try make them like you."
"Don't mess with anybody on a Monday. It's a bad, bad day."
"How could she get married? Would Mr. Waldenstein come to live with us then? They could put their child in my room if they wanted to. I wouldn't mind. I don't think. Unless it was a very noisy child who tried to read my notebooks. Then I would smash it."
" Something is definitely happening to me. I am changing. I don't feel like me at all. I don't ever laugh or think anything funny. I just feel mean all over. I would like to hurt each one of them in a special way that would only hurt them."
" She always said that people who try to control people and change people's habits are the ones that make all the trouble. If you don't like somebody, walk away, she said but don't try make them like you."
My cousin gave me this book when I was about nine. I read it once and never even picked it up again (although I still have it somewhere). I thought the plot was weird and unrelatable, and Harriet was pretty much a brat, to say nothing of a complete jerk. I have to say that I don't really understand the book's appeal, have odd memories of it, and will probably never read it again. And it had no influence on my journaling habits whatsoever.
I, like many other girls, have identified with Harriet - the love for notebooks, writing and observing - but what nobody ever seems to mention is how most of the book is actually about bullying and depression, which I find pretty fascinating. I had a lot of fun re-reading this classic. 90% of it stands the test of its 50 years. Harriet's got spunk, is wise beyond her years and knows what it means to hold onto passion. Some of the bullying and depression parts were hard to read, very saddening, but she overcame the problems and all the kids were happy again! Yay!
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
I loved this book when I was a kid. I wanted to be a spy. I even bought a notebook to record all of my spying adventures. Turns out my life wasn't as exciting as Harriet's. But I still love this book!
I just read this for the first time since I was about 8 or 9, and it is amazing! I felt the gamut of emotions, but I think what I felt the most was pity for Harriet. I don't know if I picked up on just how lonely her childhood was or the depth of her depression (after Ole Golly leaves and the children are so vicious to her) when I read this the first time. This was pretty revolutionary stuff when it came out in the 1960's, I am sure - it shows children with a real complexity of emotions, as they really are.
It's a classic worth the reread- but two things: can we notice Harriet is still a bitch by the end of the book? and is this an early version of mean girls?
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
