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kibbles15's review against another edition
emotional
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
triscuit807's review against another edition
3.0
One of the earliest Newbery Honor books, The Windy Hill is the story of two teens (Oliver and Janet) learning about their family's history via stories told by the mysterious Beeman while they stay with an uncle who is under some kind of duress. Overall, this is the most moralistic of the books from the 1922 Newbery cycle. I read this for my 2017 Reading Challenge "read a book published between 1900 and 1950" (Read Harder) and my Newbery Challenge.
mrskatiefitz's review against another edition
2.0
Amy from Hope is the Word is once again hosting her wonderful Newbery Through the Decades challenge. Each month, from January to October, participants read Newbery medal and honor books from each decade in which the award has been given. January's focus is on the 1920s. This is a tough decade because some of the books are hard to find and others seem dreary and difficult to read. Still, last year, I read Downright Dencey, which wound up being excellent once I got into the language, and prior to participating in the challenge, I also read The Trumpeter of Krakow, which is one of the best children's books I have ever read from any decade. This year, after some deliberation, I chose to read The Windy Hill by Cornelia Meigs, which received a Newbery Honor in 1922. (This book will also count toward the Newbery Reading Challenge at Smiling Shelves and my own Old School Kidlit Reading Challenge.)
In the story, Oliver and his sister Janet are spending the summer with Cousin Jasper, who seems aloof and troubled for reasons the kids can't quite figure out. One day, in the midst of attempting to run away after a disagreement with Jasper, Oliver meets the Beeman, who begins telling him stories. As Oliver and Janet try to puzzle out what might be causing Jasper to be so standoffish and unhappy, they also begin to see that the Beeman's stories are not just tales of long ago and far away, but that they are perfectly relevant to all that is happening here and now.
This is an odd book. The opening chapter is very engaging, but the story loses momentum every time the Beeman tells a story. Though the connections between the present-day action and the stories does eventually become clear, they are so tenuous at first that by the time the reader realizes it was actually important to pay attention to the stories, the opportunity to do so has passed. The chief problem of the story, which winds up focusing mainly on law and real estate documents, also is not really the kind of thing that engages kids' imaginations. The concerns of the story all seem very grown up, and when the great mystery of what is bothering Cousin Jasper is revealed, it is nothing nearly as exciting as kids are likely to have imagined for themselves.
I can see from the writing in this book that Meigs has an engaging style and a knack for developing interesting characters, so I'm not done with her work just yet, but the plot was muddled, and in many places, just boring. The Sherwood Ring by Elizabeth Marie Pope (1958) is actually similar in a lot of ways to this book, but more engaging, and decidedly more straightforward and accessible. Meigs could write; I'm just not convinced yet that her books were really written for children.
This review also appears on my blog, Read-at-Home Mom.
In the story, Oliver and his sister Janet are spending the summer with Cousin Jasper, who seems aloof and troubled for reasons the kids can't quite figure out. One day, in the midst of attempting to run away after a disagreement with Jasper, Oliver meets the Beeman, who begins telling him stories. As Oliver and Janet try to puzzle out what might be causing Jasper to be so standoffish and unhappy, they also begin to see that the Beeman's stories are not just tales of long ago and far away, but that they are perfectly relevant to all that is happening here and now.
This is an odd book. The opening chapter is very engaging, but the story loses momentum every time the Beeman tells a story. Though the connections between the present-day action and the stories does eventually become clear, they are so tenuous at first that by the time the reader realizes it was actually important to pay attention to the stories, the opportunity to do so has passed. The chief problem of the story, which winds up focusing mainly on law and real estate documents, also is not really the kind of thing that engages kids' imaginations. The concerns of the story all seem very grown up, and when the great mystery of what is bothering Cousin Jasper is revealed, it is nothing nearly as exciting as kids are likely to have imagined for themselves.
I can see from the writing in this book that Meigs has an engaging style and a knack for developing interesting characters, so I'm not done with her work just yet, but the plot was muddled, and in many places, just boring. The Sherwood Ring by Elizabeth Marie Pope (1958) is actually similar in a lot of ways to this book, but more engaging, and decidedly more straightforward and accessible. Meigs could write; I'm just not convinced yet that her books were really written for children.
This review also appears on my blog, Read-at-Home Mom.
angielisle's review
3.0
I re-read this book as part of my goal to read all the Newbery Medal and Honor books. As a child, I remember this book being a breath of fresh air after reading Hendrik Willem van Loon's The Story of Mankind. That didn't change as an adult.
This story chronicles the dynamics of an extended family, with one character, known as The Beeman until readers figure out who he is, doling out family stories to the main character, Oliver Peyton, and his sister, Janet. The Beeman's information becomes important as the story progresses and readers start to connect the dots. This book is built around the notion that children can figure out details on their own. For instance, this book starts without telling us when or where we are in time. I assume 1920s because of publication date; as for location, several clues like "by the sea" and "great Atlantic rollers , tumbling in upon the beach" point readers to the general area. The Beeman's first story is about Native Americans and gives us a better idea of location with the name of a medicine man: Secotan, a former tribe of North Carolina.
And that sets the theme - readers are encouraged to use their heads to figure out the mystery before the end of the book reveals all.
The writing reminds me of Mary Stewart (The Moonspinners, The Arthurian Saga), with passive prose and lovely descriptions of nature/gardens weaving around a mystery.
This book isn't PC by today's standards but, for parents who plan ahead, this book offers an opportunity to begin discussion about changing stereotypes and the history of both racism and misogyny with their kids (example, the use of the highly-offensive word squaw to describe Native American women). This book documents the history of changing attitudes within American society, opening a door to talk about these issues and how the past affects today - which is another theme of this book: the past builds the present which builds the future. I advise parents to read this book with their kids for just that reason - they are our future and they can't change it for the better if they don't understand the past.
This story chronicles the dynamics of an extended family, with one character, known as The Beeman until readers figure out who he is, doling out family stories to the main character, Oliver Peyton, and his sister, Janet. The Beeman's information becomes important as the story progresses and readers start to connect the dots. This book is built around the notion that children can figure out details on their own. For instance, this book starts without telling us when or where we are in time. I assume 1920s because of publication date; as for location, several clues like "by the sea" and "great Atlantic rollers , tumbling in upon the beach" point readers to the general area. The Beeman's first story is about Native Americans and gives us a better idea of location with the name of a medicine man: Secotan, a former tribe of North Carolina.
And that sets the theme - readers are encouraged to use their heads to figure out the mystery before the end of the book reveals all.
The writing reminds me of Mary Stewart (The Moonspinners, The Arthurian Saga), with passive prose and lovely descriptions of nature/gardens weaving around a mystery.
This book isn't PC by today's standards but, for parents who plan ahead, this book offers an opportunity to begin discussion about changing stereotypes and the history of both racism and misogyny with their kids (example, the use of the highly-offensive word squaw to describe Native American women). This book documents the history of changing attitudes within American society, opening a door to talk about these issues and how the past affects today - which is another theme of this book: the past builds the present which builds the future. I advise parents to read this book with their kids for just that reason - they are our future and they can't change it for the better if they don't understand the past.
lieslindi's review
Strongly moral and gung-ho for capitalism with individual restraint: unsurprising early Newbery fodder. It features the only land transaction between a native American and an immigrant one that was mutually understood, agreed upon, kept to, and, get this, financially honest, that I have ever come across in fact or fiction. Propaganda, ahoy!
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