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3.88 AVERAGE
3.88 AVERAGE
This was a really, really tricky one for me. My daughter loved it, and not just because her name is Harriet. But...I'm not sure if the book just doesn't hold up well in 2021 or if I'm being a stick-in-the-mud, but I had such a hard time with the way Harriet treated people, particularly the way she treated the cook. On one hand, I found the whole middle section of the book unpleasant to read, with so much sadness, so much anger, disrespect, despair and outright meanness (especially the meanness). And then on the other hand, I really respect the fact that the hero of our story is rather unlikeable and seems to be repeating the same mistakes over and over again because it's real life. I also really appreciated this book as an example of what can happen when grief comes out sideways. And the last couple of pages were fantastic. It was an absolutely perfect ending...not a fairy tale ending...not even close, and that made it so perfect...beautifully understated. I had to give it only three stars though, just because the whole middle section was so brutal.
adventurous
medium-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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
adventurous
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Villain origin story. This girl is a menace. My favorite part is when she gets her comeuppance; her classmates march a whole a## 'we hate Harriet' parade in front of her. I would march in that parade.
Perhaps this should be read by older kids, or at least ones mature enough not to take the ending as a license to lie all willy-nilly. Also good for adults who have a disposition toward schadenfreude.
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I grew up watching the 90s movie version of this story. I didn’t realize this book is from the 60s. That said, I don’t think it’s an enduring “classic”. While I can acknowledge that the differences in parenting can be mostly attributed to the time period, Harriet’s parents are absent and more than a little negligent. That aside, Harriet is a brat who doesn’t experience a growth arc or learn any lessons. She’s STILL doing the things that got her in trouble in the first place at the end of the book. That, along with some insensitive language (referring to a white woman as a “Chief” because she blushed, a mention that Harriet raised her hand “like a Nazi salute”), makes this a 2 for me. It’s not the worst book I’ve read, but it’s not one I’m jumping to recommend, either.
I was excited to find this available for kindle at the library. Rereading this after probably 23 years :)