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A review by piburnjones
Happy Birthday, Addy!: A Springtime Story by Connie Rose Porter
5.0
Rereading as an adult, here's what stands out:
The thing I most remembered about this one was the streetcar escapade, and I had in my head that it was a "you were just told NOT to do that" situation - which it isn't, exactly. It must have really worried me as a kid that (a) Addy or Sarah would get hurt (b) they'd get back and M'Dear would be dead or (c) the girls would get in BIG TROUBLE. And... exactly none of those things are true. Anxious inner rule-follower, calm down.
M'Dear only shows up in this one story, which is a shame, because she's delightful. And unlike the Samantha series, Porter has the Addy books pretty tightly plotted, so safe to assume that's a carefully made choice. As Addy settles in, it's really nice to see her connecting with someone outside her family or school group - and she gets a wealth of wisdom and perspective on everything from Double Dutch to dealing with racism.
Overall, this book is a push/pull between "Oh, look how good Addy has it now!" and "Poor Addy has it really rough." Even Addy sees it that way. She looks at all the things that would have seemed impossible only a year ago - school, salaries, friends. She and her parents have a better place to live - no more snow coming in the stuck window! They have a picnic in the park one weekend. She's starting to have a community of people who care about her at the boarding house. And all of these things are worth celebrating! But just before you can be lulled into thinking her life is great, Porter reminds you that this better home is still one room, her family is still separated, and Philadelphia is still rife with racial prejudice.
The thing I most remembered about this one was the streetcar escapade, and I had in my head that it was a "you were just told NOT to do that" situation - which it isn't, exactly. It must have really worried me as a kid that (a) Addy or Sarah would get hurt (b) they'd get back and M'Dear would be dead or (c) the girls would get in BIG TROUBLE. And... exactly none of those things are true. Anxious inner rule-follower, calm down.
M'Dear only shows up in this one story, which is a shame, because she's delightful. And unlike the Samantha series, Porter has the Addy books pretty tightly plotted, so safe to assume that's a carefully made choice. As Addy settles in, it's really nice to see her connecting with someone outside her family or school group - and she gets a wealth of wisdom and perspective on everything from Double Dutch to dealing with racism.
Overall, this book is a push/pull between "Oh, look how good Addy has it now!" and "Poor Addy has it really rough." Even Addy sees it that way. She looks at all the things that would have seemed impossible only a year ago - school, salaries, friends. She and her parents have a better place to live - no more snow coming in the stuck window! They have a picnic in the park one weekend. She's starting to have a community of people who care about her at the boarding house. And all of these things are worth celebrating! But just before you can be lulled into thinking her life is great, Porter reminds you that this better home is still one room, her family is still separated, and Philadelphia is still rife with racial prejudice.