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hannahkate_nelson's review against another edition
5.0
I adored this book as a child!!! I will forever love it.
k_gregz's review
3.0
Oh you know...just two pre-teen girls stranded on an island with 5 babies. One of the sisters (the older one, go figure) is the perfect little mother who is delighted to inherit all of these babies. The other, more interesting sister, suggests that they throw one of the babies overboard because his name is Jonah and takes to a monkey instead of a baby. Overall, it is a ridiculously fluffy Robinsonade. I grew tired of Mary's obsession with babies, grammar, and moral reform, but it provides an interesting contrast to more modern female castaway stories like Island of the Blue Dolphins.
pussreboots's review
4.0
I picked this book up from the Dublin library discard shelf around the time that Harriet was a newborn. Feeling a little overwhelmed by how much attention and care she needed those first couple months, I picked up the book. It had an absurd title and was short enough to finish quickly. From the cover art, I was under the impression that Baby Island was written in the 1960s or early 1970s. Actually though it was first published in 1937.
Mary and Jean on a ship bound for Australia where their father has relocated for work. They have befriended the parents of the youngest passengers and have been the on-board baby sitters. In the middle of a huge storm, they end up on a lifeboat with four babies: the toddling twins Elijah (Blue) and Elisha (Pink), Ann Elizabeth (age 1) and Jonah (age 4 months).
The story is a classic desert island / shipwreck adventure akin to the first half of Robinson Crusoe or the horrible Swiss Family Robinson except from the perspective of a group of children. While the necessities of food and water are covered in the plot, along with the need for a safe and dry shelter away from the tide, nothing is mentioned about the infants numerous diaper changes. There is some hinting at the problem with the many times Mary and Jean are washing Pink and Blue's outfits but it's done in such a saccharine way that being stuck on an island with a handful of young children and limited supplies seems like such a magical adventure.
After the initial at sea disaster where the children were genuinely scared and aware of how much danger they were in, the book began to bore me. Mary and Jean are so busy having fun that they never stop to think of the ramifications of their situation. Nor do they seem to care for the children beyond seeing them as cute (and hungry) play things.
Mary and Jean on a ship bound for Australia where their father has relocated for work. They have befriended the parents of the youngest passengers and have been the on-board baby sitters. In the middle of a huge storm, they end up on a lifeboat with four babies: the toddling twins Elijah (Blue) and Elisha (Pink), Ann Elizabeth (age 1) and Jonah (age 4 months).
The story is a classic desert island / shipwreck adventure akin to the first half of Robinson Crusoe or the horrible Swiss Family Robinson except from the perspective of a group of children. While the necessities of food and water are covered in the plot, along with the need for a safe and dry shelter away from the tide, nothing is mentioned about the infants numerous diaper changes. There is some hinting at the problem with the many times Mary and Jean are washing Pink and Blue's outfits but it's done in such a saccharine way that being stuck on an island with a handful of young children and limited supplies seems like such a magical adventure.
After the initial at sea disaster where the children were genuinely scared and aware of how much danger they were in, the book began to bore me. Mary and Jean are so busy having fun that they never stop to think of the ramifications of their situation. Nor do they seem to care for the children beyond seeing them as cute (and hungry) play things.
craftmomma55's review
4.0
I read this when I was about 10. I'm sure it is the most improbable story ever written, but I LOVED it. I read it over and over until it finally got lost when we moved from California to Oregon. I've wanted to find a copy ever since so I could revisit it. And really, It's by the same author as Caddie Woodlawn, how truly terrible can it be?
mrskatiefitz's review
5.0
Mary and Jean are on an ocean liner traveling to Australia when disaster strikes: the boat is about to sink! Concerned about the babies on board the ship, the two girls collect them all in a lifeboat, which is then set loose in the ocean with only the children aboard. The girls and their four baby charges end up on a desert island, where they immediately set up camp, search for food, and begin to care for the babies as best they can. As the book progresses, they also meet a monkey and a reclusive man who inhabits the island, with whom they form friendships.
This 1937 novel by the author of Caddie Woodlawn (1935) fulfills the fantasy of every little girl who loves babies. While the descriptions of baby behavior might not be as realistic as what you'll find in the What to Expect series, they are perfectly in line with the way little girls imagine babies in their pretend play, and that is all that matters. This book is essentially one long indulgence in make believe, combining the best elements of adventure stories with the desire children have to be in charge of those younger than themselves. The illustrations by Helen Sewell are also great fun! They capture the whimsical mood of the story perfectly.
My husband and I took turns reading this aloud, and our older two girls (ages 3 and 5) really loved it. It was just the right combination of unlikely adventure and wish fulfillment to keep them completely hooked. Though they might have understood it a bit more if they'd been familiar with Robinson Crusoe, their lack of understanding of who "Friday" is did not prevent them from thoroughly enjoying the book. I imagine they'll read it again on their own when they get older, but it was a great success as a read-aloud at these ages.
This review also appears on my blog, Read-at-Home Mom.
This 1937 novel by the author of Caddie Woodlawn (1935) fulfills the fantasy of every little girl who loves babies. While the descriptions of baby behavior might not be as realistic as what you'll find in the What to Expect series, they are perfectly in line with the way little girls imagine babies in their pretend play, and that is all that matters. This book is essentially one long indulgence in make believe, combining the best elements of adventure stories with the desire children have to be in charge of those younger than themselves. The illustrations by Helen Sewell are also great fun! They capture the whimsical mood of the story perfectly.
My husband and I took turns reading this aloud, and our older two girls (ages 3 and 5) really loved it. It was just the right combination of unlikely adventure and wish fulfillment to keep them completely hooked. Though they might have understood it a bit more if they'd been familiar with Robinson Crusoe, their lack of understanding of who "Friday" is did not prevent them from thoroughly enjoying the book. I imagine they'll read it again on their own when they get older, but it was a great success as a read-aloud at these ages.
This review also appears on my blog, Read-at-Home Mom.
bookwormmichelle's review against another edition
3.0
Fun little book. Kind of kitschy ending but it was cute enough who cares. :-)
serendipitysbooks's review against another edition
3.0
I have very clear memories of reading this in the school library when I was 11ish and a teacher commenting unfavourably on it. When I stumbled across it again recently I felt a reread was in order. I can certainly identify some reasons why 11 year old me wanted to read this. The two lead characters were brave, resourceful, take charge and competent. The fact that we shared a name connection helped. Since there was a shared name obviously I could lay claim to those characteristics as well.! On the downside it was first published in 1937 and that shows. It’s dated. Certainly the holding up of caring for babies as the best thing for girls to do doesn’t sit well with my feminist self any more. And the language and tone is some didactic and prissy.
melerihaf's review against another edition
4.0
I spent the winter I was seven curled up with this book. I ordered it from a book order, and I loved it! I was a bit confused by it because it was written in the 1930s and people carry handkerchiefs and think chocolate is a major treat. I always thought it came from a different country. But anyway, that's neither here nor there. Two girls are stranded on an island with four babies. They eventually find and befriend a grumpy man who came to the island to get away from babies. Not great literature or anything, but a good adventure story, especially for someone who has two baby siblings.
dreamerf641c's review against another edition
5.0
This was the most popular book in my second grade class for like a solid six weeks. I have no idea how I'd like it now, but it WAS amazing
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