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A review by dlberglund
The Curious World of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly
3.0
I received an ARC of this book from Follett, in exchange for an honest review.
The Curious World of Calpurnia Tate is a sequel to an earlier, similarly-titled book, which I have not read. "Callie" is the lone girl in a family of boys, most of whom are only thinly developed in this book. She has an eager mind and is always studying the natural world around her, often with the assistance of her grandfather. Curiously, Granddaddy is an enigma to everyone else in the house, but shows favoritism to Callie due to her interest in many facets of science. He seems to be barely on speaking terms with the rest of the family, although he alludes to great adventures and intrigue in his past that took him through multiple wars (including the War of Northern Aggression) and other brushes with fame. This characterization was curious indeed.
The novel is written in an old-fashioned style, clearly emulating novels of the time, which is just past the turn into the 20th century. Callie is chafing a bit under the expectations of girls (“Why should you go to college? You’re only a girl. You don’t hardly count,” says her brother), because she wants to follow her scientific heart rather than a domestic path. The overall content, however, is very age appropriate and almost tame. The exploits and situations they all get into remains solidly G, or maybe PG, rated. The voice and tone are consistent throughout the book, with many grounding details of period language and setting. The book seamlessly weaves in the history and norms of the time and place. This is a great strength of the writing, though this may limit its appeal to some readers.
The opening chapters read almost like separate vignettes about the same family. It felt like the book took a while to gain speed and start moving toward a coherent story arc. The ending section, however, welded together the strands of the important secondary characters, and left us with the still steady child-wisdom of Callie.
I read the book with a blank slate, wondering whether it would stand well on its own. For the vast majority of the time, it did. Only rarely did I feel that I was missing some piece of information or development from the earlier book. What more often made my reading stutter, however, were the long expositions about a tangent such as the Comanche War, followed by a neat “‘That is more than enough reminiscing for one day,’ [said Granddaddy]”. Chapters began or ended several times with obvious prediction or summary sentences that felt unnecessary.
Callie is an engaging character who is smart, spunky, and well-developed. Her thirst to understand the world around her is contagious, and it is fun to follow her on her investigations of animal behavior, body systems, and astronomy. No question is too big, no experiment too gory, and no case hopeless. Not exactly Pippi Longstocking or Anne of Green Gables, she carries with her a bit of their spirits. Overall, a title worth reading at middle school level, likely an excellent book group/lit circle selection for adolescents.
The Curious World of Calpurnia Tate is a sequel to an earlier, similarly-titled book, which I have not read. "Callie" is the lone girl in a family of boys, most of whom are only thinly developed in this book. She has an eager mind and is always studying the natural world around her, often with the assistance of her grandfather. Curiously, Granddaddy is an enigma to everyone else in the house, but shows favoritism to Callie due to her interest in many facets of science. He seems to be barely on speaking terms with the rest of the family, although he alludes to great adventures and intrigue in his past that took him through multiple wars (including the War of Northern Aggression) and other brushes with fame. This characterization was curious indeed.
The novel is written in an old-fashioned style, clearly emulating novels of the time, which is just past the turn into the 20th century. Callie is chafing a bit under the expectations of girls (“Why should you go to college? You’re only a girl. You don’t hardly count,” says her brother), because she wants to follow her scientific heart rather than a domestic path. The overall content, however, is very age appropriate and almost tame. The exploits and situations they all get into remains solidly G, or maybe PG, rated. The voice and tone are consistent throughout the book, with many grounding details of period language and setting. The book seamlessly weaves in the history and norms of the time and place. This is a great strength of the writing, though this may limit its appeal to some readers.
The opening chapters read almost like separate vignettes about the same family. It felt like the book took a while to gain speed and start moving toward a coherent story arc. The ending section, however, welded together the strands of the important secondary characters, and left us with the still steady child-wisdom of Callie.
I read the book with a blank slate, wondering whether it would stand well on its own. For the vast majority of the time, it did. Only rarely did I feel that I was missing some piece of information or development from the earlier book. What more often made my reading stutter, however, were the long expositions about a tangent such as the Comanche War, followed by a neat “‘That is more than enough reminiscing for one day,’ [said Granddaddy]”. Chapters began or ended several times with obvious prediction or summary sentences that felt unnecessary.
Callie is an engaging character who is smart, spunky, and well-developed. Her thirst to understand the world around her is contagious, and it is fun to follow her on her investigations of animal behavior, body systems, and astronomy. No question is too big, no experiment too gory, and no case hopeless. Not exactly Pippi Longstocking or Anne of Green Gables, she carries with her a bit of their spirits. Overall, a title worth reading at middle school level, likely an excellent book group/lit circle selection for adolescents.