A humorous tale that I would have loved as a child. This brings meaning to the old saying, 'One person's trash is another person's treasure.'

... The house itself is a perfect sight,
And everybody's dressed like a perfect fright,
But no one cares a single jot
And each one giggles over his lot ...

I can't make up another verse,
And if I did it would be worse ...

At the very least, I hope a child would come away with an appreciation of things that are old and used, perhaps even battered.

I read the 100th anniversary edition with art by Wendy Halperin. Her art has a joyful feeling that supports the story. I wonder if the original edition were illustrated so well and if I would have enjoyed the story as much if illustrated by a different artist.

I read this book aloud to my 6- and 8-year-old girls. It begins with a letter from the narrator, the fairy Queen Crosspatch: "Now this is the story about the doll family I liked and the doll family I didn't." It's a charming story about 2 dollhouses and the "families" that inhabit them. Tidy Castle is full of wealthy, well-dressed, high-bred, haughty dolls with lots of servants. Racketty-Packetty house is in the bad neighborhood behind an armchair and is full of poor, ragged, jolly dolls.

We enjoyed reading about what these dolls do when their little girl Cynthia was out of the room (a la Toy Story, I suppose) and how happy, kind-hearted people really have better lives, even if their houses aren't so nice.

Read it aloud to my little siblings. Quite cheerful.

This is the story of two doll houses, Racketty Packetty House and Tidy Castle. When Cynthia receives a brand new dollhouse, Racketty Packetty house and its shabby dolls are pushed aside and forgotten. But no matter how neglected and rundown the dollhouse becomes, the dolls inside stay cheerful and have fun in their own charming way.

I remember reading this little story when I was younger, when I loved reading books about toys that came to life. It's just as delightful and funny as it was back then, with a moral at its heart that has stood the test of time. It would be perfect for a bedtime story for little ones, or to read yourself to bring back a simpler time.

I really enjoyed the performance. The narrator did a great job with the dolls' voices and brought a lot of personality to the story. This story, with its playful prose and rhyming names, should really be read out loud, and the narrator brought it to life.

I requested a copy of the audiobook, and I'm voluntarily leaving a review.

Lovely book..

Jolly good little read about dolls, dollhouses, fairies and a little touch of magic. A nice bedtime story for children.

Originally published in 1906, this is a charming, classic story (by the author of A Little Princess and The Secret Garden) of two dollhouses and their inhabitants and the little girl who is their careless and untidy owner. With the advent of the new, modern Tidy Castle and its inhabitants, the old-fashioned hand-me-down dollhouse and family gets dubbed Racketty-Packetty, and moved to an out-of-the-way corner of the nursery and ignored. But the old doll family continues to live life to the fullest, in a jolly, happy fashion. And then their world is threatened as they learn that their little owner intends to burn their house, and only the fairy queen Crosspatch, who loves them and visits the happy family often, can save them. (The story is narrated by Queen Crosspatch.) My girls are enchanted by this story that contains timeless lessons about life.

We have the version illustrated by Wendy Anderson Halperin, and my older girls pore over the illustrations constantly, as well as re-reading it. (The cover for the one illustrated by Wendy Anderson Halperin is not very appealing, but the internal illustrations are lovely.)

I'm actually not a huge fan of Burnett's other more popular works, but she hits the ball out of the park with this one! Adorable novella about two families of dolls - one poor and neglected but happy, the other rich and admired but terribly snooty, and a passel of fairies that play a role in saving the neglected dolls. Sweet (but not saccharine), lively and not a little witty, this is a book pretty much forgotten by mainstream children's literature, which is a shame. A childhood isn't complete without at least one reading of this tale!

I like the concept of dolls coming to life, but the execution was a tad boring.

My children really enjoyed me reading this aloud at bedtime. I found it a little repetitive; it seems like every chapter ends with "joining hands together in a ring and dancing round and round and round and kicking up their heels and laughing until they tumbled down in a heap." I much prefer the author's other longer and more complex children's books, such as The Secret Garden. But this book is meant for younger children and has a good message about staying positive and taking care of your toys, not just getting the next great thing.

This book was delightful and I enjoyed reading it to my older girls. I love any books about toys and dolls who come to life when people aren't around. I LOVE dollhouses..so it was delightful. Since this book was first published around 1906....I did have to go to the dictionary to check out some of the vocabulary!

just a delight!

I have an ancient copy of this book that I got from my grandmother. It's a charming story, and I have many fond memories of reading (and re-reading) this as a child. Of course I was also the kind of girl who adored the Oz series and A Little Princess, so it may be less attractive to a newer generation.

A lovely little story, told from the perspective of the fairy Queen Crosspatch, about a neglected set of dolls who are full of humor and fun. I wished for a little more character development, but they are dolls after all. The language is really wonderful and this would make a great read-aloud, with lots of room for funny voices. Halperin's illustrations capture the tone of the narrative very well, and every page is charming.