Great sequel as we see the girls growing up, a surprising romance and a not-so surprising one in the family. There are some very funny scenes as when Henny comes home past her curfew and I loved that my children learned about the traditions of the May parade and life in the early part of the 20th century. Great book!

I squealed aloud when I saw this in my library's list of downloadable audio books. I've loved it forever, and listening to it as I drifted off to sleep several nights running was sheer delight. What I noticed this time  was how Taylor bookended the beginning and the ending scenes with such skill.  The girls are so real, and Charlie so endearing. Heartily recommended.

This is listed as book three, but the official listing of books labels this book two in the All-of-a-Kind family series. It fits as the second book and how very sweet it is. More delightful stories and misadventures from a simpler, sometimes harder, time in NYC. More introductions to the Jewish faith and a bit of history about polio (timely during the COVID-19 situation). A sweet, wholesome, quick read.
I have such sweet memories of reading book one in my childhood, as evidenced by its worn condition today, I am excited to discover the stories I never knew existed. Enjoy!

I didn’t know that All of a Kind Family was part of a series when I read it as a kid, but I’m so happy to have found these subsequent books now to share with my own children. We listened to the audiobook in the car on our way to and from hiking trips and it kept all crankiness away.
The polio epidemic plays a role in this book, so we had quite the heavy conversation comparing COVID-19 to polio.

In addition to the good storytelling and the rich family life, this series is a wonderful way to introduce some of the teachings and practices of Judaism to children.

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1.All-of-a-Kind Family
2.All-of-a-Kind Family Downtown
3.More All-of-a-Kind Family
4.All-of-a-Kind Family Uptown
5.Ella of All-of-a-Kind Family

Another of the All-of-a-Kind series that we listened to on CD. It's hard not to love these books, especially as the reader does great accents and has a voice full of emotion. I particularly like that they introduce Logan to Jewish life and customs without being obvious or acutely educational. They're funny too. And they incorporate the times in terms of illnesses, wars, poverty, etc. In short, they make turn-of-the-century immigrant NY come alive. But they're less depressing than, say, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. We'll get to that wonderful book too, but at six, I don't think Logan is ready for the drunken dad and the darker parts of tenement living.

I am reading this series completely out of order, but it is hard to imagine the original being any more charming than this one. A truly delightful read, and large families especially will enjoy the positive depictions of large family life. In addition, there are tons of teachable points to build from: Jewish holidays, the influenza epidemic of the 1910s, and more. I love this series.

I wasn't sure if I had read this before, but as the story progressed a lot of it started to come back to me. Now I'm positive that I read it when I was a kid. In any case, I thought it was really charming and sweet. Like the first book, it's a collection of chronological incidents in the family's life. I love how the author highlights even the most simple of scenes—for example, the chapter about Charlie climbing up and down those stairs (so cute)!

I was a little surprised that the girls were allowed to go out alone at night; their neighborhood in New York City must have been pretty safe! I am also still wondering how having a junk business yields enough profit for the family to live comfortably, escape to the seashore during a citywide epidemic, and eventually move to a bigger home and get new furniture. Hmm.

I would definitely recommend this book. These stories are so warm, loving, gentle, and humorous that any time spent with this family is always a delight. It's also a refreshingly happy book. Although the sad and dark elements of tenement living are sometimes hinted at, the family generally remains unscathed. I guess that's because it is a book for children. But it is nice that everything works out well!

The All-of-a-Kind Family books were some of my mother's favorites growing up so of course I read them as a child. I recently re-read them and still enjoyed them as an adult. There are some parts of them that are rather problematic from a religious tolerance perspective but in general they stand the test of time and are sweet well written books.

These never get old! LOVE them!

From Michael: In Michael's opinion it is the best of the first three books.