Beany Malone

Beany Malone #2

by Lenora Mattingly Weber

Beany, sixteen, is instructed by her father to look after the Malone family when he travels to Arizona to convalesce following a case of pneumonia. With protective loyalty, Beany's attempts to shield her family from pain and disappointment by locking up their hearts from potential threats. Mary Fred tries to impress a popular college sorority yet encounters many obstacles. Beany is infatuated with Norbett Rhodes, yet fears that the attention he pays Beany is an effort to make Mary Fred jealous. Johnny is distracted in his work of helping an aging newspaperman, Emerson Worth. Elizabeth, a war bride, awaits word from husband, Don. Beany is forced to evaluate what is important in her life and the lives of her family.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Childrens, Classics, Historical Fiction, Romance, Teen

222 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1948

About the author

Lenora Mattingly, though born in Missouri, lived most of her life in Denver, Colorado. In 1916 she married Albert Herman Weber and was the mother of six children.

Weber's first book, Wind on the Prairie, was published in 1929. From 1930 through 1962 she wrote short stories for magazines such as The Saturday Evening Post, McCall's, and Good Housekeeping. Her last book was published posthumously in 1972.

Lenora Mattingly Weber’s favorite topics included the Denver area, horses, and teenage girls. In 1943 the first Beany Malone book, Meet the Malones, was published. Beany Malone became Weber's most well-known creation, featured in 14 books and appearing as a minor character in the Katie Rose Belford and Stacy Belford series.

Reviews

[Wendy Darling · Rating 3 out of 5]

Obviously I'm going to enjoy a book set in the 40s whose first chapter contains peppermint stick ice cream + a girl who furtively buys freckle cream because she has a crush on an unsuitable boy.

The writing and characters are a little overly earnest for my taste, but I hope that gets better as the series continues. I do love the setting and period details!

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the past, I've used this site to promote my all-time favorite books...hence all the five-star reviews on my list. BEANY MALONE is the first book I've listed that rates fewer stars. Although it's still dear to my heart, this story (and the entire series to which it belongs) has one major flaw: it was written by a sadist.

Now, don't get me wrong. Lenora Mattingly Weber is a fine writer. She's not as poetic as Maud Hart Lovelace nor as soulful as L.M. Montgomery, but her fiction has a lot of heart. I particularly like the chaotic Malone household, where somebody is always cooking, typing, or shouting on the telephone. It's like something out of a Howard Hawks movie.

BUT. And this is a big but. Whattup with the author's penchant for ridiculing her main character's dreams and desires? No matter what Beany does, Mattingly sets her up for failure. Not because failing is part of the growing process (goodness knows, Betsy Ray lost that frigging essay contest often enough for her to gain some perspective, while Anne Shirley was constantly forced to protect her dreamy ways from hard-bitten, cynical relatives.) No, Mattingly seems to punish Beany not as a means to help her grow, but as a way to quash her frivolity.

I mean, sheesh, if Elizabeth can be a knockout and Mary Fred can get a horse and Johnny can become a journalist, why can't Beany redecorate her bedroom, fix up the basement or choose a satin wedding gown without her creator raking her over hot coals for being a wanton hedonist? Time and time again, Mattingly crafts novels in which Beany is forced to admit that her desire for beauty and success is stupid, stupid, stupid.

The author even scolds her heroine for feeling resentment toward her new stepmother...a perfectly normal reaction in any blended family. Instead of allowing Beany to mourn the loss of her place as the nurturing mother figure in the Malone household, her siblings and father turn on her for being a selfish pig. If I were Beany in that situation, I would have laced my next batch of peppermint stick ice cream with a liberal dose of arsenic and told my relatives to go to hell as they writhed in agony from systemic organ failure. Well, maybe that's a little dramatic, but I would have at least told everybody to get their own damned dinner when I was busy chasing my own rainbows.

Granted, Beany loves the domestic arts -- that's part of her appeal -- but it seems odd that Mattingly keeps her behind a hot stove for the majority of the series, only to castigate her any time she ventures out to do something fun or frivolous.

One of the things Anna Quinlen praised about the Betsy-Tacy series was author Maud Hart Lovelace's ability to celebrate her characters' love of luxury. Hence, Betsy can long for an expensive trip to Milwaukee, Tacy is allowed to lobby for a bridesmaid's dress that accentuates her autumn coloring, and Tib can dream of owning her own car. At no point does Lovelace condemn her characters for wanting stuff like beauty, riches, or success. As the writer wisely demonstrates, it is only when these desires become idolatrous that they cause problems. I wish Mattingly had made the same distinction for Beany Malone. Through 14 books, the poor girl does nothing but cook, clean, and perform good deeds. Would it have been so freakin' difficult to give her a blush satin wedding gown as a reward for all of that mop squeezing?

Beany, old girl, I hope you're reading this on a chaise longue, wearing a silk peignor, eating bon bons and chain smoking gold-tipped cigarettes. Goodness knows, you deserve a nice, long, luxurious rest after all of your labors.

[clara [inactive account] · Rating 3 out of 5]

my initial reaction when i first saw this book:

ah, what a lovely cover!

...wait. her NAME is beany?



as it turns out, her name is catherine cecelia but people call her beany because... because...

...just, cuz.

however, i decided to overlook this.

this was, in the end, not a bad decision. and, it's another book for my reading goal, so that's a plus.



thoughts? it was cute! very 50s. the mc is StRuGgLiNg the whole book, which i can relate to, because same. the romance was sweet.

also, i really liked this one kid named carlton, and i don't know why. they don't really say much about him. i just liked the kid's vibes.



ok you know what?

...

tl;dr:
-i have a problem with the name "beany" so... remember that.
-the romance in this was adorable.
-carlton buell, whoever he is, is amazing. & that's all you need to know.

[Melody · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've been avoiding Beany Malone for years and years, laboring under the misapprehension that she was one of those books I dismiss as "soda shoppe romances". She's not. Well, maybe a little, but there's much more to Beany than that.

I started reading this book by accident. I was cleaning out my amazon inventory, trying to streamline my life. Beany's been in inventory for several years, and as I pulled her down from the shelf, it seemed more attractive to start reading than to continue working. I was skeptical but increasingly captivated as I went on.

It's a vanished world that Beany inhabits, one full of large skirts and small bedrooms, one where high school students who are actually held back in school due to academic nonperformance, and parent participation is optional.

The characters are believable, the plot is interesting if a little cluttered, and in short, I liked it much more than I expected to. Though I'm unclear on why Beany couldn't write that pivotal editorial herself.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a HUGE fan of Lenore Mattingly weber. I have read all of her books, and own most of them. When they were re-issued by Image Cascade, I called the publisher myself and we talked for an hour about these books, and also about the Janet Lambert books.

I highly recommend them. Not only were they good to read in junior high, but I re-read all of them when I was 32, and they were still fantastic.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think the Malone family is tops! I really liked this second in the series as well. There are more serious themes in this that I thought the author handled well through Beany’s narration. Beany learns a lot in this book, and I love how and what she learns. There is a lot of humor as well. I’d say all four siblings grow and change, the three girls especially. I love the subplot of Beany’s friend Kay. Old Emerson Worth is back again as well.

[Jeanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read all her Beany Malone books. These are sweet, wholesome 1950ish books that I read at 13, then read again as an adult. I loved these.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perhaps this series is outdated, but the old fashioned values and the family love made this one of my favorites series when I was in high school. I read and reread all of Weber's books.

[Katie Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review also appears on my blog, Read-at-Home Mom.

When her father is sent by his doctor to Arizona to recover from an illness, high schooler Beany Malone is left with instructions to look after her siblings. These include Mary Fred, her beautiful sister, who wants nothing more than to be accepted by the members of her preferred sorority, Johnny, who is consumed with the work of helping an aging journalist named Emerson Worth finish his life's work, and Elizabeth, who waits day in and day out for word of her soldier husband whose fate in the war is still unknown. In addition to trying to prevent anything even remotely negative from infiltrating her family's life, Beany also struggles to sort out her feelings for Norbett Rhodes, whom she likes very much but fears may be using her to get to Mary Fred.

Beany Malone is the second book in a series about the Malone family. I normally don't start with the second book of a series, but it's the only one I have access to right now, and I couldn't resist it, especially once I started reading. It reminded me instantly of the later Betsy-Tacy books where the characters are finishing high school, finding spouses, and venturing out on their own. It also reminded me quite a bit of Winterbound. Somehow, though, Beany is more real to me than the characters in any of those other titles. Her approach in protecting her family and in relating to others in general is very flawed, and she often makes big mistakes that cause more problems than they prevent. I think most young teens, the likely audience for this book, would really relate to her because how she behaves is also how they would behave in the same situations. She is very human - sometimes painfully so.

Beany is a character I would have loved in middle school, and who still appeals to a particular aspect of my personality, even now. I really hope to gain access to the other Malone books so I can get to know the other siblings better and follow Beany's antics as she continues to blunder on the road to maturity.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh! Loved this one. I cannot wait to read the whole series--I have no idea how I'll have time for it these days-and wonder how I missed this classic series before.

"Elizabeth was saying, 'But of course, His peace doesn't mean a sit-down, folded-hands peace, or a running-away-from-trouble peace. He meant the kind of peace that comes of standing up to trouble--even taking it on the chin..."

10 stars.

[Gwen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beany, who lost her mother as a young girl, lives in Denver following the 2nd World War. Beany juggles the complexities of family life without a mother with growing up Catholic in the world as best a young girl can! Her decisions are not always the right ones but her conscience guides her to learn and grow with her mistakes. Poignant but not overly sentimental. I think Weber really lets the sacramental nature of family life shine without any overtly religious themes and it's an imperfect family at that! Fun and light addition to a summer reading list.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was fun to read when I was in high school growing up in the 70's. My older sisters had read the series and recomended them to me and so I read the complete series, and some of the books three times! I absolutely loved the Malone family! Of course now the books are very "dated" and we would see flaws in them. I love that they took place in what seems like a friendly time, when people knew their neighbors, cooked casseroles, sewed, went to drive-in's and ordered burgers, fries and malts, skated, went to sock hops and valued family and community!

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my earliest childhood memory....of selecting a book, reading it myself, and then reading additional stories by the same author.....3rd or 4th grade. It was in 4th grade that I decided to be a writer, and my Uncle Bob Keith was my biggest fan.....need to find that book I started....might be in the same box with my kindergarten Valentine's....I know you'll be shocked that I saved them!

[Ellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have the entire series. I LOVE these books. When I was pregnant I would allow myself one book a week until my babies were born. Total comfort reads. Was in love with Andy, who ended up a priest. What an innocent time the Malones lived in.

[Hannah Garden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not as good as the first, but dang! Who can resist warmhearted girls from the 40s?

[Tommy Verhaegen · Rating 3 out of 5]

De vader van Bonnie is een beroemd journalist die oververmoeid geraakt. Hij neemt een broodnodige vakantie en geeft zijn dochter Bonnie de leiding over het huishouden tijdens zijn afwezigheid. De kinderen schieten goed met mekaar op dus dat zou geen probleem moeten zijn...
Bonnie probeert het allemaal té goed te doen en iedereen te behoeden voor nare dingen of eigen verantwoordelijkheden. Op die manier maakt ze brokken en brent iedereen in moeilijke situaties. Uiteindelijjk gaan haar ogen open en besluit ze de juiste dingen te doen. Met steun van haar familie dus alles komt goed.
Een heel klein beetje humor en veel bakvissenromantiek in dit vlot geschreven boek. Psychologisch niet al te diep en typisch voor het meisje dat droomt van een man maar ondertussen dan zelf maar de handen uit de mouwen steekt. Haar talenten liggen wel vooral in het huishouden, dat is immers haar toekomst.
Er zitten best wel een aantal min of meer spannende passages in het boek maar die komen bij de lezer dan toch niet als een enorme verrassing over, ze lijken eerder aangekondigd door talloze verwijzingen (die de betrokkenen en Bonnie helemaal niet zien of begrijpen).

[Treasure Island Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beany Malone at the Taco Bell
I saw a strangely familiar face
When we went to Taco Bell today,
but stopped myself from saying hello
because characters from books you've read
may feel like someone you know,
but I was surprised to see Beany Malone,
a character from dusty books of the fifties
that nobody else checked out from the shelves
and every summer, I read them once more
to cry when she married the boy next door.
Then, one summer, the library shelves were bare
(Old books must be discarded
to make room for the new.)
So, I lost touch with Beany Malone
until I thought I saw her again today
like a freckle-faced ghost from the fifties
sitting in a corner booth,
and just for a moment,
I almost convinced myself
that it could be true.

[Panda Incognito · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second Malone family novel takes place in the aftermath of World War II, and it features Beany as the main character, which she remains for the rest of the series. I enjoyed this tremendously, read it all in one night, and was overcome with delight at having such a great slice-of-life series to get into.

The characters and situations are all vivid and memorable, and this book is a prime example of how an author can tell episodic stories in different chapters while still tying together an overarching plot and key themes. I don't want to spoil any of the details, but this is well-crafted and thoroughly satisfying, and I highly recommend it.

[Kathleen Vincenz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did enjoy this book very much. It is extremely well plotted with a subplot for each family member that meshes with the main plot. The writing is vivid with good descriptions. Every character is well delineated.

However, when the plot worked itself out, it was really all about the three sisters getting MRS. degrees. At first, I thought, wow, each of these sisters plans to go to college--but it was to join a sorority and find a mate. The book is, of course, of its time, but still the author who had done so much in her own life, could have given the sisters more.

The subplot about the returning GI who wouldn't fit in with the juvenile college scene reminded me that there was a reason America changed after WWII. I am so nostalgic for the 1930s/1940s that I think we should never have changed but this portrayal showed me how naive I am even on as simple a level college hazing and pranks.

As always, I loved the family togetherness--something America shouldn't have changed. :)

[Sallie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I began this a year or so ago but didn't finish it then. I was irritated by Beany and put it aside. I have now finished it and while it will never be my favorite book, I did like it ok. Luke warm approval but the best I can do. Beany continued to irritate me throughout the book. I loved MEET THE MALONES, but that centered on Mary Fred who I really like. I found myself comparing it to the Betsy-Tacy book series and Beany just didn't measure up to Betsy Ray or any of the other girls in the series. I know LMW was writing about a whole different time in USA history - after WWII - but it just didn't ring as 'true' for me as MHL books about Betsy et al.

Betsy made a mess of many things through the books, but she did learn from her errors. Beany just kept making a mess of many things without learning much IMHO.

[Terry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beany Malone was first published in 1948 and I first read it when I was in junior high in the late 70's. It's the second in a series about the Malone family and the main character, Beany. It's a heart-warming read from a time when family was all-important and life seemed a little more innocent.

[Audrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like the original cover on this. It was a fun book.

[Mary Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading with my daughter. Priceless.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

What can I say? Beany rocks.

[Abigail · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Malone family return in this follow-up to Meet the Malones , with youngest sibling Beany—full name: Catherine Cecilia Malone—taking over as protagonist from her older sister Mary Fred, the heroine of the previous book. Now sixteen, Beany is a student at Harkness High, where she has a strong crush on Norbett Rhodes, the nephew of the very man her father, newspaper columnist Martie Malone, has been crusading against. As if being "enemies" with Norbett weren't enough, Beany finds herself worrying about the happiness of each of her elder siblings when her father is sent away to Arizona for a few months, in order to regain his strength after a protracted illness. Deciding that the Malone way of opening their hearts and home to the world is misguided, and can only lead to pain, Beany tries to influence and guard each of her family members from vulnerability. But as she witnesses Mary Fred confronting a choice between popularity and what she knows is right (and what her heart wants); Elizabeth steadfastly waiting for and then supporting Don, her wounded veteran husband who is newly returned from World War II; and Johnny finding a way to help elderly family friend Emerson Worth realize his dream of seeing the early history of Denver preserved, she slowly discovers that the Malone way is best after all...

Published in 1948, five years after Meet the Malones , Beany Malone is also set around five years after that first book, shortly after the end of World War II, which looms large in the story. The storyline involving Don, who must have his injured leg amputated, would be one example of this, but so too would the entire sub-plot involving Mary Fred and Ander (whom I was happy to see were together as a couple!), and the controversy stirred up by returning GI college students with little interest in observing campus traditions. I thought that these elements of the book were quite interesting, from a historical perspective, offering a snapshot of the personal and cultural adjustments that would have been necessary on all sides, to integrate thousands of young men back into American society, after the horrors of their experiences in the recent war. I also found them quite moving, and admired both Elizabeth and Mary Fred for their response to the challenges they faced. Beany herself made a wonderfully sympathetic protagonist and heroine, so wholeheartedly invested in those she loves, even while imagining that it was possible to fence off her heart. The reader realizes immediately that this is a futile effort, but watching Beany come to that realization is one of the chief delights of the book. I found her romance with Norbett charming, and also frequently amusing, as she is so oblivious, and he so obtuse. If I had any criticism to make of the book, it would be the way in which the storyline involving Kay and Faye Maffley was resolved. While on the one hand I appreciated the way in which Weber explored the problems arising from a mother who attempts to be a peer and friend to her child, rather than their parent, on the other hand I found the overly pat and almost anti-climactic conclusion to that sub-plot rather unsatisfying. Despite this critique, I enjoyed this one every bit as much as, perhaps even a bit more than the first, and am eager to continue on with the story of Beany and the Malones. Recommended to anyone who has read and enjoyed the first book in the series, and to readers who enjoy lighthearted vintage fiction for children, or who are looking for children's books featuring loving Catholic families.

[April Schwanke Kaufman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another book I read multiple times when I was in Junior High School, Mrs. Weber always made me feel the greatest comfort while devouring her books over and over. Those same feelings all come back once again. Back then, we didn't rate books or review them, unless a book report was assigned. (The sign out signature card with its corresponding date stamp on the half-envelope found on the back jacket was the only way to ascertain how popular a book might be.) So, I feel it's a privilege to rate and review it now.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading for the first time since I was 13 was so much fun.
Initially when I read this book, I was disappointed that it wasn't Mary Fred-focused. But re-reading, I thought this book was so much fun.
I'm glad we still have Mary Fred, Ander, Elizabeth (and her husband) all in this book. Also the introduction of her friend Kay.

It's funny the things you remember when you re-read a book - I mainly remembered her friend Kay and the ice-cream colored car.

[Reading with Cats · Rating 3 out of 5]

Things I've learned about the post-WW2 era from this book:
1. People took their high school and college traditions *very* seriously. No exceptions made if you've been in, IDK, a WAR!
2. If you don't have a dopey nickname, you're doing it wrong.
3. It's totally okay to swan off and leave the care of your large family to a 16-year-old. Nice one, Marti.
4. Guys named Norbett are dicks.

[Tina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one took me longer to warm to than the first in the series, Meet the Malones. The writing is a little clunky at the beginning. But, ultimately, I really liked the book. I plan to continue with the series...now that it has been reissued by Image Cascade. It would be too heartbreaking to search for all 14 of them used! I would be curious to know how her other series compare with this one.

[Susan Liston · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found a list of books I'd read in junior high, and there were a bunch of Beany Malone books on it. I found a copy of this one that is a 50s library book, so probably a reasonable facsimile of what I originally read. I never owned any, and I have no particular memories of them. The book kind of surprised me, as it was rather grim a lot of the time. I obviously liked the series, though, but I wasn't inspired now to re-read any others.