Re-reading Harriet for the survey course I am teaching in, I found it incredibly nasty! I found Harriet insufferable in so many ways and there is a nasty edge to the novel that I disliked immensely!

July 4/14 The more I think about this book, the more complex I find it - I think that Fitzhugh gives us an unbelievably powerful portrait of a child suffering from depression as first Ole Golly and then her notebook are taken away from Harriet - and the more I think about it, it is also a stunning book in terms of looking at class - I'd like to know more about Fitzhugh and where she was coming from in writing this novel

July 12/15 I still don't like Harriet but I find the novel more compelling each time I read it - it is a masterpiece

August 8/20 Harriet rocks my socks now!

I just read this for the billionth time -- this time out loud, to my son. Pronouncing each word forced me to notice the casual brilliance of Fitzhugh's prose. "There was a cold wind off the water, but the day was one of those bright, brilliant, shining days that made her feel the world was beautiful, would always be, would always sing, could hold no disappointments." "She looked out over the water to the neon sign whose pink greed spoiled the view at night." Dazzling.

Not gonna lie - Harriet's kind of annoying but she was spitting facts when talking about how dumb math is

Loved it! So beautiful and sad, despite it's relatively happy ending. Very true to childhood, I believe. Just one disaster after another. But it's all so interesting and worthwhile. Childhood, I mean. And this novel.

But, does it even count as a children's book? I mean, is it a children's book just because the main characters are children? Is Stephen King's "The Body" a children's book? What about Scott Bradfield's "The History of Luminous Motion?" And though I've never read it (too intimidated!), I know that William Gaddis's second novel, "JR" features a precocious child as it's protagonist. But you are not likely to find a copy of it in your local bookstore's children's section (or any other section, honestly; unless your local bookstore is super erudite and, like, cool).

My point? I doubt I have one. Just making an observation. I think Fitzhugh's novel is rather more "adult" than most kid's novels today, or even back then when it was published. Or even most of the YA that I've been exposed to. It just seems like a novel. And a really good one at that.

I'm glad I finally read this book but only because it's the sort of thing I feel I ought to have read when I was actually in the target age group. There are far more things about it that I had a problem with than there were that I liked.

There was no development. Harriet is the same brat at the end that she was in the beginning, only she's learned the wonderful lesson "You have to lie." Fantastic message! I mean, I'm all for little white lies. But isn't "You have to have tact" a better way to phrase that? That's really what Harriet needs to learn. One of the most frustrating scenes for me is when she's taken to the psychologist and, in her head, makes some very astute observations about how the doctor's Monopoly performance is affected by the way he's writing in his notebook and not paying attention. A supposedly intelligent girl like Harriet ought to make the connection to how her own notebook obsession affects her entire life but she doesn't. She just gets annoyed with him and learns nothing.

Another major problem for me was ... there was not a single character in the whole book that I could identify with and I flat-out disliked most of them, including (maybe especially) Harriet. I realize that I'm 15+ years older than the main group, but this wasn't a case of simply not identifying with them now; I genuinely can't remember ever thinking/feeling/doing anything that Harriet and her peers do. There weren't even any characters that I could look at and think "I knew someone just like that when I was in school." They're all tedious, petty little brats, and I didn't get a sense of anything close to a real friendship between any of them.

And the adults are just... Well, they're even worse than the kids. They remind me of the Drapers and their various acquaintances on Mad Men, which I suppose makes sense, since the book was written around the time that Mad Men takes place. But this is supposed to be children's literature, not heavy social commentary... Even Ole Golly, who I think is supposed to be the wise and understanding grown-up, wraps the book up with poorly-worded advice in a letter that's so harsh I would have cried if I'd gotten it. Harriet thinks it's wonderful, though, which makes me terribly sad for her. How misunderstood and neglected do you have to be to take pleasure from receiving a letter from someone, saying "I don't miss you"? Jeez.

One of my very first “favorite books.” Still a comfort read that allows me to disappear into Harriet’s world and forget about mine for a moment.

This made me feel like a child again. Had good memories, and awful ones too. Since my life at 12 was quite similar to Harriet's at 11. Only more like hell. Due to a couple mean, devilish little girls.
Anyway, Fitzhugh is incredible because she actually understands kids in a whole new way. The way Harriet thinks and writes actually got me reminiscing quite a lot. It was a great experience.
And I do think I'm gonna give tomato sandwiches a try! :)

3.5 Stars. At first, it doesn’t strike me as a story that would stand the test of time, but I’m glad that it has. I liked the story and the writing, but I found Harriet unpleasant. Harriet is not kind or considerate. She does everything loudly and in a rush, literally never “closing“ her notebook, but always “slamming“ it shut. She runs into people and throws tantrums and writes mean things. She is nosy, entitled, and takes her privileged life in NYC for granted. But, that being said, she has a personality. She feels real. She isn’t perfect. She is not the typical 11yo that you meet in a lot of children‘s lit. She is unique, ambitious, and bold. I have to appreciate her even though I would hate to deal with her.

Wow. Just wow. I want to make this review as excellent as possible but I honestly don't know that I have the skills to describe the perfection of this book. Somehow, growing up in the 70's and 80's and being a huge reader, I still missed this amazing book. I honestly feel like it would have given me more confidence if I had read it--it's that important.
Harriet is an 11 year old girl living in New York City. She is not your typical kid--she writes obsessively in her journal (notebook) and is incredibly observant and smart. Unlike most characters in kid's books of this time period, she is not saccharin and sweet or naughty and waiting to be turned into a little lady. She's real--she has negative and judgmental thoughts --just like a real kid. She's strong and brave but still vulnerable. She is a flawed and magnificent heroine. Her best friends are a mad scientist-like girl who plans to blow up the world and a vulnerable and kind boy who takes care of his distracted writer father, and cooks dinner and cleans house. This is spectacular to me--not only does she have friends of both sexes, but neither of them is a cliche--especially during this time period. She is probably closest to her nurse, Ole Golly--a tough, literature spouting, no nonsense woman. Unlike most caretakers in kids books, she's not condescending or overly tender--but she loves her charge and her charge loves her. She is truly a wonderful and fleshed out character. She understands Harriet and we all need that--especially at Harriet's age. Harriet fancies herself a spy (she actually is a spy and a pretty good one) and spends copious amounts of time spying on various people in her neighborhood. These spying expeditions are funny, sad, and informative. I was literally laughing out loud in many parts. This book is not loaded with cliched lessons that were so pervasive in that time period--actually it's not loaded with cliches in any way. It's so rare to read a kid's book that you cannot predict what is going to happen as an adult--but I was as involved in this book as if I were a child and full of wonder and freshness (what a gift). I would truly recommend this book to every parent--especially if you have a child with literary leanings. It's such a gift to those of us who journal as well--Harriet's journals are so important to her--when she describes how her words and thoughts flow the best with a pen in her hand and her notebook at hand, I was actually very emotional. At 44 years old, I felt moved that someone understood that feeling so well. I plan to purchase a copy of this book as soon as possible--it's a library copy--but I know I will read this again and again. Harriet has become a dear and personal part of my heart.
The anniversary edition is especially nice--it has a darling little map of Harriet's spy route and her neighborhood and some really nice write ups by famous children's authors. I also don't want to neglect the beautiful illustrations by Louise Fitzhugh herself--they are beyond fantastic. They are incredibly expressive, beautiful and funny. I just cannot say enough about this book-and a truly lovely thing is that I actually had a hard time getting a hold of this book--not because it was out of print or neglected--but because it was always checked out. Things like that give you hope. A special shout out to my beautiful friend El...it was her deep love of this book that made me want to read it and I will appreciate that forever--she and I both have a lot of Harriet in us and that's a good thing.

Schadenfreude. That's what this book is about and it's all Harriet thinks about--the misfortune of others and how she can find joy in it. While that can have its place (like in The Hunger Games), it is just disturbing where this book is concerned.

This is one of those rare times where, twenty years later, I reread a book from childhood that I adored, and my opinion of it completely changes as an adult. I kept my original copy from childhood, but now I'm not sure I will keep it still because I can't imagine ever reading this again. It was painful. I did not enjoy it. It was not charming. I thought it was funny for maybe the first couple chapters, but it quickly becomes caustic.

Harriet wants to be a writer! Fair enough. But there are two very disturbing revelations associated with this:

1) Harriet somehow gets the idea that the best way to practice being a writer is not to, like, practice writing short stories and use her imagination. Instead, she takes "write what you know" to a whole new level, keeping a notebook where she spies on everyone in the neighborhood and then documents every cruel thought she has ever had about them, including her best friends, then somehow justifies this as a way to learn to write better and more descriptively.

2) Harriest does not want to be a writer to improve the world, become famous, or inspire people. Allow me, as I quote: "WHEN I GROW UP I'M GOING TO FIND OUT EVERYTHING ABOUT EVERYBODY AND PUT IT ALL IN A BOOK. THE BOOK IS GOING TO BE CALLED SECRETS BY HARRIET M. WELSCH. I WILL ALSO HAVE PHOTOGRAPHS IN IT AND MAYBE SOME MEDICAL CHARTS IF I CAN GET THEM." I just... WHAT??

Still, I kept giving the book the benefit of the doubt. For one thing, it is intriguing because we all think things about other people (although I quickly grew tired of that). Most importantly, though, there was still a chance that Harriet might learn some good lessons from all this!!

Nope.

Harriet's parents are so pleased that Ole Golly can "handle" Harriet so well, but they seem blind to the fact that none of them (the parents or Ole Golly) seemed to have instilled any values, a sense of privacy and boundaries/parameters, or common decency in Harriet. Harriet is petultant, selfish, disrespectful, shallow, beyond nosy, self-involved, and just plain mean. She has no redeeming qualities. None. She has no social skills, cannot relate to her peers, is stunted psychologically, has a truly alarming lack of empathy for other people, and spends her days involving herself in everyone else's business--and truly and wholeheartedly thinks it's her business to know these things about others, whereas how DARE they think to look in her SOOPER SEKRIT notebook!!

Harriet is eleven, but she talks and spends her days like a middle-aged sociopath relishing the choice of his next victim. I kept waiting for her to learn a lesson, to gain some insight, to understand how her actions hurt other people, to understand what she was doing was not just wrong but also sick--nothing. She doesn't learn anything, not even when she goes to a psychologist, not even when she gets caught breaking and entering, not even when all her friends find her notebook and shut her out, not even when the adults closest to her realize what she's been doing, not even when the teachers see what this does to her classmates.

I am really not sure what Fitzhugh was trying to accomplish with this book. Harriet learned no lessons. Her friends magically forgive her after her superficial apology (which involved more spying and telling secrets!) in the school newspaper, whereas, were I her "friend," I would never be able to trust her again. She doesn't get into any actual trouble for what she does. If I had children, I'm not even sure I would allow them to read this.

My 7 yr. old's reaction to this book: "She is one mean little girl. She judges people by how they look. And she NEVER learned her lesson. And she thinks it's okay to lie. Can we throw this book away?"

bro when i say i literally hated almost every second of this book, i'm not lying.

Harriet is so insufferable and she does not change one lick throughout the whole story, she just learns she has to apologize and lie to make things better. She can't even sincerely do it. It's disgusting. I don't give a shit if she's 11 years old, I am so angry at her and this goddamn book. Nothing is actually resolved, she's just a bitch, but can lie about it now I guess?

The only character I remotely liked was Ole Golly, she is a queen (and queer coded too). Also, every adult other than her is so incapable of doing anything - they just act so erratic for no reason.

Wouldn't recommend it to adults or children (for that matter), but a child may have an easier time getting through it.