Ah, Baby Island: the book that introduced 8 year-old me to words like hard tack and tarpaulin and to the concept of powdered milk. Thanks to this book I made sure to always carry around safety pins in my pockets, have never in my life confused poltroons with doubloons, and was shocked one night in a pub when I realized I could somehow sing along to Scots Wha Hae. Like a previous reviewer, I borrowed this book so often the librarian eventually just gave it to me.

It's written in the '30s and it shows - missionaries, savages, harabs, interurban cars - but it remains wacky and charming and a fun read. Jean is always my favourite.

Time and tide wait for no man, garlic does not belong in a banana and coconut cream pie, and if you want to survive a ship-wreck, pre-teen girls will get you through it.

Adorable

This is such a cute, adorable story. I really enjoyed it the first time I read it, and it stood up to the test of rereading it after a lot of intervening years. So cute with the babies and Mary and Jean.

This was a favorite book of mine as a girl. I read it many, many times as a gradeschooler; I was delighted to find it at the library and know that it is still in print. Obviously it was an easy read since it is a children's book. It's hard to rate it from the viewpoint of an adult but I found I enjoyed the story again. It is totally unrealistic but it appeals to my 'little girl' side. I was surprised at how much of it I remembered since it has been near 50 years ago that I read it! A fun read for my summer.

It's pretty unrealistic (seriously, the babies don't cry for much of anything, a tooth pops up right over the course of an afternoon, and there are no diaper changes in sight), but it's such a fun little story. I had to laugh at how long the milk supply managed to hold out...that was apparently quite the stash! But the story itself was a fun read and an enjoyable way to spend a tired-out evening.

Well, this was a delightfully nostalgic read, full of 1930s American slang and lots of young heroine chutzpah. Here is the basic premise: 2 brave sisters, Mary and Jean (ages 12 and 10, respectively) are shipwrecked on a deserted island, with four babies in tow. Yes, it may be a simple plotline, but it makes for an entertaining story! Although this was written in the 1930s, it still appeals to young readers today. I read this book with four 4th and 5th grade girls, who selected it themselves as our first intramural book club pick. They all really enjoyed it, though we did all agree that it felt too old-fashioned at times and was a bit hard to relate to because of this. And I have to admit, I think this is more of a girl book than a boy book...that's not to say that boys might not enjoy the story, but I don't think they'd pick it out to read, as the protagonists are females and their main dilemma is how to care for four babies. Brink, also the author of Caddie Woodlawn, fills her pages with rich vocabulary and description, so this really is quality children's literature. All in all, this one is well-worth a read and was a nice selection for an upper elementary book club. I would recommend it for children (girls especially) ages 8 and up.

Ordered this through school book club many years ago. Loved it then. Reread it recently and thought ... how stereotypical it was ofr perceptions of girls at the time. Cute

I read “Baby Island” in Elementary School. I was an avid reader. Our class went once a week. But, as a rule, I went to the library about 3 more times Every week. (Before or After school & sometimes when i finished my schoolwork my teacher would let me go! Sometimes I even helped the librarian.

But, even then, I loved children! It was a dream for me! I even chose it for a book report poster.

But… even as an elementary school age, I knew when they mixed up the girl/boy ‘mix-up, that they could just peek when they changed their diapers!

It was just a special and fun book for me to read! It might have been part what started live for babies: i volunteered to work with the 5 year olds on Sunday Morning, was chosen at 18-19 to serve on the Daycare Committee. I babysat. Taught VBS. During college breaks, i worked under 2 amazing teachers at Day Camp who taught me more than I ever learned in books at school. I wax in charge of ALL arts & crafts projects for 2 different age groups. (Younger/Older) with a very small budget. Before & After I served as a camp counselor..,, gopher.

I became a school teacher and really enjoyed the kids. Just not the administrative duties or irrational parents: (this is ONLY 1 example of challenging parents: One showed up very late to school, she had her adorable, but somewhat quiet child. She started yelling in front of the whole class. She had the strong smell of alcohol emanating from her entire body, not to mention that her mouth too had a very strong order coming from her mouth. She was totally wasted. I sent my aide to the office to send for immediate help. The intoxicated Mom kept screaming that her child did Not want to come to school, so she just assumed it had to be my fault.

Sorry I got so far off topic, But, I believe Baby Island helped me realize my love of children.

As a adult I see a lot wrong with this book, realism wise. However, I read this book over and over and over again in late elementary school. I was a favorite for a long time, so my 10 year old self give is 5 stars; my adult self, not quite so many.

I read a vintage version of this book as a child and LOVED it. The fantasy of being a babysitter on a deserted, tropical island--apparently this is really what gets little girls off...

This book was wild lmfaooooo I loved it

I loved this when I was little, though being Jewish, even then I was uncomfortable with the fact that the characters are missionaries. But I think every child has a shipwrecked on an island and living in a treehouse fantasy, and this certainly appeals to that. And it introduced me to the word "hardtack," the meaning of which I'm still unsure about.

I definitely like the ending, and it wasn't as farfetched as I had thought it might be. It somehow reminds me of Nim's Island.