You really have to be under ten the first time you read this. Like a wise woman in "You've Got Mail" said, "When you read something as a child it becomes a part of you like no other reading in your life." (not a perfect quote) but the idea is so true.

Well, I got so turned off by the books on my kindle that I decided to read another Betsy-Tacy book. This is the second one. The three friends are now 8-years old at the beginning of the book. That's three friends because, at the very end of the first book in the series, Tib Muller was added to the twosome of Betsy Ray and Tacey Kelly.

So, basically, we have three little girls who are best friends and who have lively imaginations. They have fun times together. That is fun times as would be likely for little girls some 120 years ago. So, they have picnics, form clubs, practice being dirty beggars, cut each other's hair, make ungodly messes, and so forth. They also get stuck with learning some things about housekeeping and, while trying to be good for a change, they learn how not to be good.

They liked to talk about God because one was a Baptist (Betsy), one a Catholic (Tacy) and one an Episcopalian (Tib). Back in the old days, children were reasonably ecumenical, it seems. Interesting because there was a fair bit of ecumenicism in my town 20 or 30 years ago, but in recent times the Baptists and Catholics most decidedly don't want to have anything to do with the Congregationalists and Methodists, and the Episcopalians and Unitarians have pretty much drifted off into their own, vague worlds. In some ways, we're regressing as a society.

Anyway, they thought that they might become "good" if they added a pebble to a bag around their necks every time they did something naughty. But then, it became rather fun adding the pebbles, so they got increasingly naughty, and got their younger siblings, Margaret (Betsy's little sister) and Hobbie (Tacy's little brother) involved. Naturally, they got into trouble in the end and had to search for other ways to become "good".

Well there's more, but it was a fun book, especially given the dreck I'd picked up previously that I wasn't able to finish.

Alice read this to me

My mom gave my childhood copy of this book to L for Christmas. She's 8 now and the perfect age for it, as Betsy, Tacy and Tib are 9 in the story. I remember loving this so much as a kid and reading it over and over again. I worried it might be too slow and old-fashioned for L and F because I remember feeling it was very old-fashioned 30ish years ago, but L in particular really enjoys these slow slice-of-life books about the past. She loved the Little House on the Prairie books too, which are similar even though the Betsy-Tacy stories are set about 40 years later.
The book is definitely dated, but there's nothing particularly troublesome that I felt needed to be "edited" in the read-aloud. I did have to explain what diptheria was during one of the chapters, and of course we always have talks when we read these types of books about how different expectations were for girls and women in the past. I'm glad I had a chance to re-read this with my daughters.

I wanted something happy and low-stakes, so I returned to the Betsy-Tacy series I loved when I was a child. This second book in the series follows the adventures of the three friends as 8-9 year olds. While there are some serious episodes in the story, such as Tacy's bout with diphtheria, most of the book is fairly low drama. The author clearly remembers what it was like to be a child contending with parents and siblings, and trying to figure out the world, and I loved seeing how she could convincingly bring the world to life through a child's eyes. Betsy, Tacy and Tib get into some hilarious scrapes and have a wonderful time coming up with ways to explore and keep themselves occupied. I often laughed while reading their adventures. I loved these books as a child and they stand up well upon rereading as an adult.

I am enjoying my reread of this series. I only read the first 3 Betsy-Tacy books WAY back in the day. I now am reading them and talking about them with my kids, and I love them.

My daughter's favorite part was the stone pouch, and my son like the 'Everything Pudding' incident. They are 8 (same as the girls in the book), and they can appreciate the humor and folly in the book.

Lovelace handles serious topics with the matter-of-fact approach that a child sees it as. She handles conversations with the adults and personality differences with the acceptance only a child brings to it. My favorite example of this is Betsy and Tacy's reaction to Mr. Muller's dated and sexist comment to his daughter:

"Freddie, when he grows up, shall be an architect like Papa."
"What about me, Papa? Will I be an architect too?" asked Tib.
"Nein, you will be a little housewife," said her father.
Betsy and Tacy thought that was strange, for Tib had done as much as Freddie towards building the house. But it didn't matter much, for in their hearts they were sure that Tib was going to be a dancer.

Lovelace's characters are so genuine in their reactions. The girls approach life with the fun and innocence of 8-year-olds. It is an enjoyable book.

“I wouldn’t like to be playing the piano today,” said Betsy.

“Neither would I,” said Tacy.

“Neither would I,” said Tib. “Of course,” she added, “we don’t know how.”

Neither Betsy nor Tacy would have pointed that out. Tib was always pointing such things out. But Betsy and Tacy liked her just the same.

I found this second book in the Betsy-Tacy series to be slightly less humorous than the first book but more nuanced. I love the way the author has subtly woven in some sweet life lessons, without any sermonizing…life lessons about embracing other cultures, religious tolerance, and just a hint of Edwardian-style feminism.

Embracing other cultures.
Betsy’s family is as American as apple pie, Tacy’s family has emigrated from Ireland, and Tib’s family has emigrated from Germany. Betsy is the one who constantly comes up with new, imaginative, nothing-is-impossible plans and schemes and games. Tacy instantly supports Betsy in anything that she comes up with, adding her own creative ideas to further the plan. And Tib never fails to point out the details which Betsy and Tacy neglected to factor in, all of which could ultimately affect the outcome of the plan. The three best friends love each other because of their differences, not in spite of their differences. Just beautiful.

Religious tolerance.
It was strange that Betsy and Tacy and Tib ever did things which grown-ups thought were naughty, for they tried so hard to be good. They were very religious. Betsy was a Baptist, and Tacy was a Catholic, and Tib was an Episcopalian. They loved to sit on Tacy’s back fence and talk about God. Tacy’s back fence was a very good place for such talk. There wasn’t a soul around to listen except the cow, and sometimes the horse, munching and stamping behind them. And above the crowding treetops there was a fine view of sky, the place where God lived.

A hint of Edwardian-style feminism.
“That’s a good little house,” [Tib’s father] said, patting Freddie on the shoulder. “Freddie, when he grows up, shall be an architect like Papa.”

“What about me, Papa? Will I be an architect too?” asked Tib.

“Nein, you will be a little housewife,” said her father.

Betsy and Tacy thought that was strange, for Tib had done as much as Freddie toward building the house. But it didn’t matter much, for in their hearts they were sure that Tib was going to be a dancer.

Tib’s father is not unkind; it’s just that he understands how the world works, and the children do not. This passage hints at a future day when a girl could grow up to become a dancer or an architect or a housewife or whatever she wants to become.

I am loving this series!!!

5 stars from my 5-year-old, 3 stars from me

I didn’t like this one as much as the first; it didn’t have quite as many imaginative stories (though still a few), and instead had them doing some things that felt a bit strange compared with their ages. They were 5 years old in the first book, and are 8 here. Somehow, to get hair for lockets, they cut off half the hair on their heads (and not evenly, but one whole side) which I would expect more for a 5yo but it seems at 8 they would have realized immediately that you can’t cut off only one side. My husband was reading this book to our own 8yo son simultaneously while I was reading it to our 5yo, and apparently the 8yo commented on some things that they did that he felt were too young for kids the same age as him.

This book also emphasized blonde hair and blue eyes as beauty quite a bit, even having a whole chapter about this beautiful aunt visiting.

I am going through the Betsy-Tacy books at the instance of a friend. First, I continue to love the pictures. Second, this second of the series goes beyond the "feelings" of childhood life so well described in the first book. It becomes far more complicated. I love the chapters on the The Christian Kindness Club. I think an old fashioned reader (like me) would enjoy how it represents St. Paul's discourse in the letter to the Romans how the law gives rise to sin. Just so for the girls. Otherwise, the girls are growing up (viz., the fascination with Aunt Dolly and the desire to have an age with two digits). Ms Lovelace is a mistress of her genre.

This book shows such an idyllic childhood, even in an era before vaccination was available for diphtheria. While my childhood experiences were significantly different, there was much familiar here. Maud Hart Lovelace really remember what it feels like to be a child.

I particularly enjoyed the story of the three haircuts. The Everything Pudding story was fun as well.

For adults who have missed this book, even if you grew up many years after Maud Hart Lovelace’s time, you’ll feel a sense of nostalgia, and any warm memories of childhood that you have are likely to be recalled.

I read the original hardcover edition of Betsy-Tacy which was fun to do, but I actually really appreciated getting a later paperback edition of Betsy-Tacy and Tib mostly because of the included author’s biographical information and photos.

Even though, I have a couple of these chapters to students regularly; this was the first time I reread the book in its entirety.
This is the one where the more the girls try to be good, the more they get in trouble.
It's a quick and simple read and as good as I remember. Tib is still my favorite as the practical and matter of fact one. To quote Maud several times during thd story, "Tib always said things like that. But Betsy and Tacy liked her just the same."

I someday hope to be like Mrs. Ray, Mrs. Kelly, and Mrs. Muller and even Mrs. Benson. They take the girl's antics in stride while also guiding them to better things.