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nvciel's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
izzys_books2023's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
4.5
melissaj09's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
darkfantasyreviews's review against another edition
5.0
This Book Has Been Written Amazingly. It Was Published Sometime In 1881 And Then Retold By So Many People. This Book Is About The Life Of Heidi Among The Beautiful Mountains, And In The Cozy Little House Of Grandpa. I Have been a huge fan of "Heidi" since I was a young child. This book was utterly charming and adorable! It's truly one of the sweetest and most wholesome stories I have ever read. It Is All About The Life Of Heidi And How A Little Girl Struggled So Much. This Book Can Be Read Both By Children And Adults. Whenever I Read This Book I Start Imagining Myself In Those Beautiful Mountains And The Friendship Between Heidi And Peter And Heidi And Clara Have Been Written Very Nicely. The Relationship Between Heidi And Peter's Grandma Has Also Been Written In A Fantastic Way.
coinchantal's review against another edition
4.0
What a delightful and enchanting little story. I had only seen the movies a couple of times in my life, I never had read the book until now. I really enjoyed Heids personality, it is very playful, light and sparkly. The book was a very easy read and overall a beautiful book. The writer has a way with words and every child would love this book. A well deserved 4 points from me.
liliya_klein's review against another edition
3.0
I love the simplistic story; but the resolutions are a little too neat.
perilous1's review against another edition
5.0
Absolutely heartening and delightful.
Set (and written) in the late 1800s, this is an arrestingly atmospheric Alpine tale about a cherubic little orphan girl and all the lives she affects for the better as she grows.
Heidi, raised to the age of 5 by her aunt, is hauled off to an isolated mountainside and left with the cantankerous grandfather she's never yet met. The villagers below all believe this to be a terrible idea, but none intervene or check up on the girl (outside of the priest, who pleads with the old man to allow the girl to go to school, but fails.) So when the aunt returns three years later and hauls the child away again--this time to volunteer her as the companion to the crippled only child of a wealthy man in Frankfurt--the villagers are surprised to see the girl is healthy and well cared for.
In Frankfurt, Heidi gets on well with her new friend Claire--though there are many challenges for her to face in this strange, crowded, and less-than-scenic city. Though she does receive some education, she languishes in homesickness for her mountainside. When she's finally allowed to return, it becomes clear just how much improved her grandfather's and nearest neighbor's lives are improved by her kind, big-hearted presence. The melancholic doctor friend who escorted her home is touched by a combination of the fresh air and charming rustic life... which leads to Claire eventually being sent to stay with Heidi, and has a remarkable impact on the invalid child.
One thing becomes clear very early on: the author was absolutely in love with the Swiss Alps. And frankly, who could blame her? If the place is half as enchanting as she describes, I feel I have no choice but to add it to my bucket list!
Despite the age of this classic, Spyri's prose is so skilled as to become easy reading early on. And while Heidi is the picture of awed innocence and altruism, it's hard to feel annoyed with her seemingly unwitting perfection. There are numerous flawed side characters to make up for her angelic virtue. (Not the least of which is the goat-herd boy, Peter, who I spent a good deal of time wanting to slap.)
I see why this is considered such a treasure of a book. There are numerous morals and positive messages offered to young readers. An emphasis on wonder for the natural world, depictions of the benefits of kindness, subtle commentary on classism, gentle promotion of learning and literacy, and an organic thread of child-like faith.
I sincerely wish I'd come across it as a child. But I DO intend to remedy this oversight with my own children.
Set (and written) in the late 1800s, this is an arrestingly atmospheric Alpine tale about a cherubic little orphan girl and all the lives she affects for the better as she grows.
Heidi, raised to the age of 5 by her aunt, is hauled off to an isolated mountainside and left with the cantankerous grandfather she's never yet met. The villagers below all believe this to be a terrible idea, but none intervene or check up on the girl (outside of the priest, who pleads with the old man to allow the girl to go to school, but fails.) So when the aunt returns three years later and hauls the child away again--this time to volunteer her as the companion to the crippled only child of a wealthy man in Frankfurt--the villagers are surprised to see the girl is healthy and well cared for.
In Frankfurt, Heidi gets on well with her new friend Claire--though there are many challenges for her to face in this strange, crowded, and less-than-scenic city. Though she does receive some education, she languishes in homesickness for her mountainside. When she's finally allowed to return, it becomes clear just how much improved her grandfather's and nearest neighbor's lives are improved by her kind, big-hearted presence. The melancholic doctor friend who escorted her home is touched by a combination of the fresh air and charming rustic life... which leads to Claire eventually being sent to stay with Heidi, and has a remarkable impact on the invalid child.
One thing becomes clear very early on: the author was absolutely in love with the Swiss Alps. And frankly, who could blame her? If the place is half as enchanting as she describes, I feel I have no choice but to add it to my bucket list!
Despite the age of this classic, Spyri's prose is so skilled as to become easy reading early on. And while Heidi is the picture of awed innocence and altruism, it's hard to feel annoyed with her seemingly unwitting perfection. There are numerous flawed side characters to make up for her angelic virtue. (Not the least of which is the goat-herd boy, Peter, who I spent a good deal of time wanting to slap.)
I see why this is considered such a treasure of a book. There are numerous morals and positive messages offered to young readers. An emphasis on wonder for the natural world, depictions of the benefits of kindness, subtle commentary on classism, gentle promotion of learning and literacy, and an organic thread of child-like faith.
I sincerely wish I'd come across it as a child. But I DO intend to remedy this oversight with my own children.
catrad's review against another edition
3.0
Not as good as I remember it being when I read it as a kid. A lot heavier on the Christian message than I recall too. Oh, and can someone please give Peter a good slap for me? What a selfish, jealous little brat. Rather too good a counterpoint to the perfect little saccharin-sweet Heidi. Ok, maybe I'm being harsh, and maybe the 'he doesn't go to church, he must be horrible, let's say mean things about him behind his back' ethos of the villagers peed me off somewhat, but I was disappointed with this book. I'd probably been looking at it with rose-tinted glasses, and probably a lot of the religious stuff had passed over my head as a kid, but still. Oh well.
lgpiper's review against another edition
3.0
Every once in a while, I figure I should read a book which was considered to be a childrens' classic back when I was a child, but which I missed for some reason. Things like Little Lord Fauntleroy, Anne of Green Gables, The Wind in the Willows, and now, Heidi.
So,we begin with Heidi as a 5-year old. Her Aunt Deta is taking her up the mountain to dump her at her grandfather's cottage. Grandfather is a grumpy old guy with whom no one has had contact for years, at least not willingly so. Deta wants to go to town to get a job and be able to afford fine clothes, and taking care of her late sister's daughter was a hindrance to her. So, Heidi gets dumped.
It turns out that the old guy is either not so bad, or else that Heidi is such a force of sweetness and light, that she mellows him. Whatever, the two of them get along just fine. Heidi makes friends with Peter, the local goat herd, and spends much time among the flowers and goats in the pastures up the Alp. It's a wonderful life.
A few years later, Aunt Deta comes back to reclaim Heidi. She has a scheme to dump Heidi in the household of a rich man with a disabled daughter, Clara, to become Clara's companion. So, Heidi finds herself in the city and is miserable. No stars, no flowers, no goats.
Clara's grandmother shows up for a while and schools Heidi in Christian forbearance and so forth. This book is full of old-fashioned Christian piety from an earlier generation. Being an elderly, repressed Calvinist myself, a lot of it sounded familiar, so it didn't much bother me. It might, possibly bother more modern readers.
Anyway, because this book was meant to be extraordinarily uplifting, Heidi's sweetness and light burns brightly and vanquishes the shadows of darkness and all live happily ever after...or something.
I rather liked this book, but it was pretty saccharine in parts, and might not make much sense to modern youngsters.
So,we begin with Heidi as a 5-year old. Her Aunt Deta is taking her up the mountain to dump her at her grandfather's cottage. Grandfather is a grumpy old guy with whom no one has had contact for years, at least not willingly so. Deta wants to go to town to get a job and be able to afford fine clothes, and taking care of her late sister's daughter was a hindrance to her. So, Heidi gets dumped.
It turns out that the old guy is either not so bad, or else that Heidi is such a force of sweetness and light, that she mellows him. Whatever, the two of them get along just fine. Heidi makes friends with Peter, the local goat herd, and spends much time among the flowers and goats in the pastures up the Alp. It's a wonderful life.
A few years later, Aunt Deta comes back to reclaim Heidi. She has a scheme to dump Heidi in the household of a rich man with a disabled daughter, Clara, to become Clara's companion. So, Heidi finds herself in the city and is miserable. No stars, no flowers, no goats.
Clara's grandmother shows up for a while and schools Heidi in Christian forbearance and so forth. This book is full of old-fashioned Christian piety from an earlier generation. Being an elderly, repressed Calvinist myself, a lot of it sounded familiar, so it didn't much bother me. It might, possibly bother more modern readers.
Anyway, because this book was meant to be extraordinarily uplifting, Heidi's sweetness and light burns brightly and vanquishes the shadows of darkness and all live happily ever after...or something.
I rather liked this book, but it was pretty saccharine in parts, and might not make much sense to modern youngsters.