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A review by actuallyjusthanne
Meet the Austins by Madeleine L'Engle
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I was recommended this book by Hailey: I read A Wrinkle in Time when I was in middle/high school and didn't like it, and haven't felt like picking up another Madeleine L'Engle book since, but she recommended it to me so strongly that I picked it up!
The book opens with a tragedy that changes the trajectory of the Austins' life, and they are going to be taking in a child from another family: Maggy, who was raised differently from them. At the heart of the book, it is a coming of age/growing up story, where the intrusion of Maggy into their life forces them to grow up and face the real world in ways that the Austin children hadn't conceived of.
I thought it was a sweet book: it was a series of slice of life anecdotes about a family with 5 children, reminiscent of The Moffats or The Melendy family books. It had a really classical old-timey feel with a very wholesome family-centric message, which was fun to read but nothing particularly to write home about. Some/most of the anecdotes were fairly dated (getting measles, snowy days, the mentions of how hospitals and schools operated) but as someone who grew up on Wholesome Stories From The 60s, it was really sweet to read.
The narration voice was really similar to Cheaper by the Dozen or maybe Caddie Woodlawn, and it was just very all-American feeling. There are those vibes that it could very quickly turn racist, but to date, it has just been about growing up and how to operate as a family.
All in all, a very cute little middle grade book! I do plan on reading the rest of the series, but am not in a particular rush to pick up the rest of the books.
The book opens with a tragedy that changes the trajectory of the Austins' life, and they are going to be taking in a child from another family: Maggy, who was raised differently from them. At the heart of the book, it is a coming of age/growing up story, where the intrusion of Maggy into their life forces them to grow up and face the real world in ways that the Austin children hadn't conceived of.
I thought it was a sweet book: it was a series of slice of life anecdotes about a family with 5 children, reminiscent of The Moffats or The Melendy family books. It had a really classical old-timey feel with a very wholesome family-centric message, which was fun to read but nothing particularly to write home about. Some/most of the anecdotes were fairly dated (getting measles, snowy days, the mentions of how hospitals and schools operated) but as someone who grew up on Wholesome Stories From The 60s, it was really sweet to read.
The narration voice was really similar to Cheaper by the Dozen or maybe Caddie Woodlawn, and it was just very all-American feeling. There are those vibes that it could very quickly turn racist, but to date, it has just been about growing up and how to operate as a family.
All in all, a very cute little middle grade book! I do plan on reading the rest of the series, but am not in a particular rush to pick up the rest of the books.