This works as a delightful stand-alone novel about friendship and family, but when I look at the entire series, I marvel at how MHL creates such a strong foundation for all the books to come. It always comes back to a present of a friend.

Simple language, but this is the most poetic one in the series.

Re-read for VSC. Last read: 1-28-07 (not counting audiobook listens)

girlhood.

Delightful to revisit this book which I enjoyed as a girl and which my own Betsy-like daughter has read and re-read!

So sweet.

So I had heard about this in passing many times up in Minneapolis, I think there are things in the Children's Department named after Lovelace or something something? I was all psh old fuddy-duddy sentimental pap.
But, in my extreme and strangely exhibited homesickness, something prompted me to just pick up the first Betsy-Tacy book, and about one chapter in I became a crazy convert.

Betsy lives in Deep Valley Minnesota (it's really the Mankato of MHL's childhood!) and she's the only kid her age. She's 5. Then Tacy moves in across the street with her family of 11 (Irish Catholics!) and though Tacy is initially terrified of Betsy's forward manner, they become fast friends at Betsy's birthday party. They help each other through life's ups and downs -- from such lovely small things as having a picnic up on the hill to such huge sad things as Tacy's baby sister's death. And all of it is related in a light-hearted yet emphatically sincere way: just because these are the experiences of five-year-olds doesn't mean they aren't important and serious and real. They're not after-school-specials, they're not kids say the dardnest things, they're just life, through the eyes of a couple of sharp, slight adventurous (turn of the century!) young gals.

It reminded me of a combo of two of my favorite things -- Little Women and Le Petit Nicolas. AND there are 9 more books. Which I will be reading in short order. I should probs get around to reading the whole spans of Nicolas and the March legacy as well. Oof.

Totally delightful! I've read this aloud over the last week or so with my Evelyn (8y) who adored this book. She's looked up info about all the other books online and has decided we need a road trip to Mankato this summer to visit Maud Hart Lovelace's childhood home and museum!

I never read this series as a child and wish I had. It reminds me of the Little House books; simple and sweet. Looking forward to reading more with Evelyn!

Nothing happens in this book. In the best, sweetest possible way.

A beautiful, perfect book. I'm rereading it to the girls right now (the first time for the 5yo) and their giggles are delicious. I never read these books as a kid, and I'm so glad to be sharing them with my daughters.

I'm not sure how to rate this. I want to give it three stars because I liked it. However, I'm a 42-year-old man, and the intended audience is young children. I think it'd be great for them and deserving of four stars. So, 3.5? Yeah. 3.5 rounded up to four.

I enjoyed this, but there wasn't any tension, or villain, or anything like that. Just a fun series of stories about two little girls behaving like little girls. It's clean, wholesome, and good for really young readers or tykes who need things read to them. I certainly enjoyed it a lot more than the odious Junie B. Jones which I read eight years ago, (and it looks like I still haven't made a full recovery. Ugh, what a beastly little brat!)

However, I don't think this will appeal to older children who have been exposed to more of what today's world has to offer, for it is very tame by comparison. I think that's a shame. There's nothing wrong with a bit of innocence. I used to resent being a little more sheltered than some of my peers, but now I see the benefits of it. I slowly learned about ugliness when the time was right; I didn't need to be slapped in the face with it the day I was born. I would've missed some good moments and memories if I had been, and I adapted quickly enough when some rougher sides of the world were brought to my attention. And don't get me wrong: I'm not judging those who expose their kids to harsher realities at a younger age and roll their eyes at Betsy-Tacy or things like Leave It to Beaver. I just think there's room enough in this world for both styles.

There really isn't a lot more to say about this... except... And the rest of this is not intended for children, and certainly goes into topics not at all innocent or pure, I guess because I'm no longer innocent and pure. You've been warned.

Parts of this were really sweet, and cutesy-wutesy, and would probably make people twow-up if they can't stomach such things. I often thought of Little House on the Prairie (the show, not the books; I've never read the books.) That made me think of George Carlin's favorite episodes of Little House, but I'll let him tell you about them.

n  n
"They’re gonna play back to back two of my favorite episodes of Little House on the Prairie. First of all, the 1975 Christmas show “A Douchebag for Clara.” Wasn’t that good? Aw… and it was sad toward the end when she cried cause she stuck it in the wrong hole! But as they say in the U.S. Navy, “there is no wrong hole.” And then, right after that, they’re gonna play my favorite Little House on the Prairie of all time: “Missy Takes a Big Dump in the Woods.” And that was interesting, I thought, cause she had on the high heels and the long dress, and it was fun to watch how she had to maneuver through the poison sumac, and they didn’t have toilet paper in those days. She had to use a series of pinecones, and she was pulling them in the wrong direction! Yes, I understand toward the end of the show, they had to bleep out a lot of screaming and foul language."

And I bet you never thought George Carlin would show up in a Betsy-Tacy review, but my mind goes in odd directions sometimes. Who the hell Clara and Missy are, I have no idea, but I think Harriet was the one who could benefit most from a douchebag, and Nellie was probably dumb enough pull pinecones the wrong way across her anus.

I enjoyed this book, (as well as Carlin's quotes). Check it out if you like reading about little girls who aren't little shits. (Yeah, I'm talking about you, Junie Bitch Jones.)

Ahh! the innocence of youth! This is a really cute book about two little girls who become best friends. It takes place at the turn of the century which makes it especially charming. It's written in a very simple way which makes it perfect for younger children to enjoy. I read it to my two little girls ages 6 and 4 and they loved it so much that we have decided to read the next one, too, "Betsy-Tacy and Tib".

Just adorable. So glad I'm finally reading this series.

I remember reading this with my mom as a child. The stories are so cute and I remember wanting to be just like the girls. I still sometimes thumb through the book and find new stories that I have forgotten. It is also interesting to reread since the innocent point of view of a child is captured perfectly.