Scan barcode
crizzle's review against another edition
3.0
First published in 1881 - vintage girl reading! Reread after 20 years, this time with my daughter, who was as delighted with it as I was a couple decades ago. Reading it now I find it's like a fairytale look at poverty... it makes being poor seem enchanting. Also, as an adult, it's sad to see little Polly having the burden of parenting on her ten year old shoulders. Where is her childhood? Not to mention Ben's, but Polly is kind of the star. But it's made to look kind of magical and as a kid you're left wishing you had little siblings to mother and food to bake with few ingredients.
bluebird_5's review
4.0
Classic feel-good children's story about a humble family living in a sweet Little Brown House and how they befriend a lonely visitor. Best for fans of Little House and Mandy type books.
amynbell's review against another edition
3.0
I'm not having very good luck reading my favorite books from childhood lately. This one was lovely during about the first half, but then it became dreadfully boring during the second half.
The five little Peppers are 5 poor brothers and sisters ranging in ages 4-9 who live with their widowed (we assume) mother in late 1800s America. For some reason that I don't quite grasp, Polly, the 9-year-old, seems to be all the children's mother of choice. It's implied that the 8-year-old works for a living. And the 4-year old runs off with an organ grinder and his monkey and then gets lost again wandering off to the post office by herself. The interesting thing is that the 4-year-old is never admonished not to run off alone or with strangers after these incidents. Instead, the blame is placed on people not watching her. I'm guessing that she must get full-out kidnapped in future books since they've never bothered to talk with her about what she's been doing wrong. It really would serve them right.
To be fair, this is probably a more enjoyable read for a child who isn't analyzing the storyline from the viewpoint of being a mother. It is definitely a great book for children to become acquainted with what it's like for children who grow up so poor that they've never even had a Christmas. And there are parts of the story that I remember fondly from childhood like the hard-of-hearing grandmother, the thrill of having raisins for a cake, decorating a Christmas tree with strings of popcorn (which I insisted that we do the first time I read this as a child), and the organ grinder's little monkey. All of these are in the first half of the book, of course. I'd give 5 stars for the first half of the book and 2 stars for the last half of the book, averaging it out to a nice 3.5 stars, rounded down to 3.
The five little Peppers are 5 poor brothers and sisters ranging in ages 4-9 who live with their widowed (we assume) mother in late 1800s America. For some reason that I don't quite grasp, Polly, the 9-year-old, seems to be all the children's mother of choice. It's implied that the 8-year-old works for a living. And the 4-year old runs off with an organ grinder and his monkey and then gets lost again wandering off to the post office by herself. The interesting thing is that the 4-year-old is never admonished not to run off alone or with strangers after these incidents. Instead, the blame is placed on people not watching her. I'm guessing that she must get full-out kidnapped in future books since they've never bothered to talk with her about what she's been doing wrong. It really would serve them right.
To be fair, this is probably a more enjoyable read for a child who isn't analyzing the storyline from the viewpoint of being a mother. It is definitely a great book for children to become acquainted with what it's like for children who grow up so poor that they've never even had a Christmas. And there are parts of the story that I remember fondly from childhood like the hard-of-hearing grandmother, the thrill of having raisins for a cake, decorating a Christmas tree with strings of popcorn (which I insisted that we do the first time I read this as a child), and the organ grinder's little monkey. All of these are in the first half of the book, of course. I'd give 5 stars for the first half of the book and 2 stars for the last half of the book, averaging it out to a nice 3.5 stars, rounded down to 3.
asey's review against another edition
4.0
Another favorite books from when I was in grade school. My fifth grade teacher introduced me to the Peppers and I have loved them ever since. Great for grades 5-8.
dwheeler11's review against another edition
4.0
Wholesome classic. While the goodness (and hysterics) of the Peppers can be a bit grinding, the sentiments are all good.
ashleygsiler's review against another edition
4.0
This is a really sweet, straight forward simple family story that champions family closeness, kindness, and generosity. The Pepper family is very poor, but kind and humble, and is always helped out by their friends and neighbors. Their sweetness of spirit means everyone loves them and wishes to help them, so the dangers they face never seem to put them in real peril. Though it’s easy to get swept up in the sweetness of this book, it was striking to me to realize the depths of the Pepper’s challenges—they all get measles, they are all on the cusp of starvation, they don’t ever get to celebrate holidays, and were it not for a close community network and a long lost wealthy cousin to support them, their story would have ended very differently. This book seems to say that if you work hard, and are always kind, and always loving to your family and neighbors, things will work out for you, which is a sweet sentiment but perhaps one that hasn’t aged very well. Nevertheless this is a charming book, and definitely one worth reading.
cmbohn's review against another edition
3.0
What a difference between children's stories in Victorian time and today. The characters are just so perfect in this one, their plight so tragic, their home life so inspiring, they are so full of pluck and good old-fashioned virtue that you'd think I'd want to hurl. But I finished it anyway. Totally dated, but somehow appealing in spite of, or maybe because of that. I definitely would not want a steady diet of this, but it was a pleasant read.
storiesforhisglory's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
This was a re-read, but it's been literally years since I've had the pleasure. Still heart warming and delightful to read. The Pepper children are a delight. I love them all: Ben, Polly, Joel, Davie, and Phronsie! And the rest of the story was just as much fun as I remembered.
doogysmom's review against another edition
4.0
Loved reading this old-fashioned story of Mamsie and her 5 children.