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A review by actuallyjusthanne
The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street by Karina Yan Glaser
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Have you ever read a book and been sad that it didn't exist while you were younger? This was that book for me. It is so wholesome, and feels like a story that I would have been OBSESSED with when I was about 12, though it didn't come out until I was 17. The quotes opening the book are from Spiderweb for Two by Elizabeth Enright and Anne of Green Gables from L. M. Montgomery, as a sign of how wholesome this book is.
This book was split up so that each day leading up to Christmas had its own section, and the whole book felt really festive. This was the book I was reading on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and that made it feel so special. The flyleaves are maps of the neighborhood, and there are little illustrations throughout of the brownstone and letters and such, relating to the story, and it was just all really sweet.
The Vanderbeekers are a family of 5 kids and 3 pets living in a brownhouse in New York, who have been informed that their landlord is not renewing their lease 4 days before Christmas. When they are informed of this, the kids start concocting a plan to change their landlord's mind and let them stay in their home that they love. Because they are children, they come up with solutions, that, while not the most practical, are very sweet.
There was so much I liked about this book: the sense of community throughout, the children and how they interacted with the world, the animals, the shops, neighbors, friends, music, and growing up that they did, even over the few days that this book took place over. There are so many sections that reminded me of my own childhood (the REP [Roof of Epic Proportions] and the bag of supplies and the water wall was so reminiscent of the "clubs" I would start when I was young). They have just the right amount of adult supervision--family who cares deeply about them, but with too many siblings to focus their attention on--and the love and kindness that radiate throughout the whole book was so lovely.
The closest thing I can think of to relate this series too is the "All of a Kind Family" books by Sydney Taylor, but modernized. It is so cute and I am so excited to read the rest of the books in the series!
This book was split up so that each day leading up to Christmas had its own section, and the whole book felt really festive. This was the book I was reading on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and that made it feel so special. The flyleaves are maps of the neighborhood, and there are little illustrations throughout of the brownstone and letters and such, relating to the story, and it was just all really sweet.
The Vanderbeekers are a family of 5 kids and 3 pets living in a brownhouse in New York, who have been informed that their landlord is not renewing their lease 4 days before Christmas. When they are informed of this, the kids start concocting a plan to change their landlord's mind and let them stay in their home that they love. Because they are children, they come up with solutions, that, while not the most practical, are very sweet.
There was so much I liked about this book: the sense of community throughout, the children and how they interacted with the world, the animals, the shops, neighbors, friends, music, and growing up that they did, even over the few days that this book took place over. There are so many sections that reminded me of my own childhood (the REP [Roof of Epic Proportions] and the bag of supplies and the water wall was so reminiscent of the "clubs" I would start when I was young). They have just the right amount of adult supervision--family who cares deeply about them, but with too many siblings to focus their attention on--and the love and kindness that radiate throughout the whole book was so lovely.
The closest thing I can think of to relate this series too is the "All of a Kind Family" books by Sydney Taylor, but modernized. It is so cute and I am so excited to read the rest of the books in the series!