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A review by delgremmyaward
Daddy-Long-Legs by Jean Webster
4.0
Every time I read this book, I grow a little more satisfied with the writing style and a little less satisfied with the romance. The fact of the matter is that a grown man meets a teenager, becomes her sponsor and de facto guardian, and uses his position and money to try to control her actions. Even while she is learning about parts of the world herself and showing she is amply able to make her own decisions, he continues to control her through what basically amounts to financial intimidation. This is a little off-putting, but I would imagine that many people today can relate to this. What really gets me is this:
Every time I read this I wish Jimmie McBride were the end game. Even better, I wish there were somebody else reading her letters. I love the idea of a crush sitting on the other end of the postal route, pining over a person he'd love to meet. Perhaps an older trustee has a son who convinces his girl-hater father to sponsor an orphan, steals his mail, and slowly falls in love with his father's age-appropriate young ward. Why would that have been a worse story? Or maybe the non-age-appropriate sponsor falls in love with her and proceeds to act in accordance with his station and NOT pursue a relationship with her until she has graduated. I'd even accept that. What I don't accept is that an exceptional woman finds her only semblance of family comes from a person who wants not just to marry her, but also to own her mind and opinions-- and who doesn't even like girls, at that. It's very frustrating.
I can see how anybody would fall in love with Judy through her letters, though, because I did. She's delightful. Many aspects of her letters are familiar to somebody who had mild adventures in their youths, even if the setting of a turn-of-the-century women's college seems a little anachronistic at this point. (Spending time on Roman history as a rule and only learning basic geometry when in college? Education has changed.) The letters tap a little into nostaliga for those of us who are older than she is and hope for future happiness for those who are younger. She's hard-working, if a little whiny. (After a while, you start to lose count of the times she says, "I've never had this experience, except if you count that time at the orphanage when I did. It just wasn't to my liking at the time.") She's also funny. Judy also possesses a gentle wit and ability to spin the quotidian trials of college life into engaging tales. She'd be a terrific real-life letter writer. It's easy to see how somebody might warm to her when exposed to her sunny personality.
Still gonna read it again. It's cozy and comforting in a way few other books are. Maybe don't go for the sequel, though. I'll accept a lot of moral iffiness in books (which should be obvious given my qualms over this book and its corresponding four-star review), but I draw the line at the pro-eugenics stance that pops up in the next book.
Spoiler
That sponsor steps into her real life, befriends her, tries to sway her actions through their friendship, and demeans her when she disagrees. He becomes a hypocrite to ingratiate himself with her. He reacquaints himself with his family, whom he dislikes, because his niece is a "friend" of Judy's who can get him access to her. He comments on other couples needing chaperones while whisking Judy away for himself to go for long walks and drives, chaperone-less. When Judy decides to work for herself instead of going to Europe, he calls her an idiot (because she isn't choosing to be with him). I wish we could see some of the letters she and he exchange because as it is, it isn't clear to me why Judy would fall in love with him when somebody like Jimmie McBride is around.Every time I read this I wish Jimmie McBride were the end game. Even better, I wish there were somebody else reading her letters. I love the idea of a crush sitting on the other end of the postal route, pining over a person he'd love to meet. Perhaps an older trustee has a son who convinces his girl-hater father to sponsor an orphan, steals his mail, and slowly falls in love with his father's age-appropriate young ward. Why would that have been a worse story? Or maybe the non-age-appropriate sponsor falls in love with her and proceeds to act in accordance with his station and NOT pursue a relationship with her until she has graduated. I'd even accept that. What I don't accept is that an exceptional woman finds her only semblance of family comes from a person who wants not just to marry her, but also to own her mind and opinions-- and who doesn't even like girls, at that. It's very frustrating.
I can see how anybody would fall in love with Judy through her letters, though, because I did. She's delightful. Many aspects of her letters are familiar to somebody who had mild adventures in their youths, even if the setting of a turn-of-the-century women's college seems a little anachronistic at this point. (Spending time on Roman history as a rule and only learning basic geometry when in college? Education has changed.) The letters tap a little into nostaliga for those of us who are older than she is and hope for future happiness for those who are younger. She's hard-working, if a little whiny. (After a while, you start to lose count of the times she says, "I've never had this experience, except if you count that time at the orphanage when I did. It just wasn't to my liking at the time.") She's also funny. Judy also possesses a gentle wit and ability to spin the quotidian trials of college life into engaging tales. She'd be a terrific real-life letter writer. It's easy to see how somebody might warm to her when exposed to her sunny personality.
Spoiler
I just wish that somebody weren't Jervis.Still gonna read it again. It's cozy and comforting in a way few other books are. Maybe don't go for the sequel, though. I'll accept a lot of moral iffiness in books (which should be obvious given my qualms over this book and its corresponding four-star review), but I draw the line at the pro-eugenics stance that pops up in the next book.