Little Eddie

Eddie Wilson #1

by Carolyn Haywood

Whether little Eddie's finding homes for a crowd of stray cats, or picketing the baseball team that says he's too little to play, his happy adventures are sure to win lots of friends

Genres: Childrens, Fiction, Classics, Middle Grade, Juvenile, Chapter Books

160 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1947

About the author

Carolyn Haywood was an American writer and illustrator of children’s books, best known for her beloved “Eddie” and “Betsy” series, which captured everyday childhood with warmth and authenticity. Raised in a supportive, middle-class Philadelphia family, she developed her artistic talents early, studying art and later working as a teacher, an experience that inspired her to write for young readers. After formal training in fine arts and travel in Europe, she worked on murals before turning fully to books. Her debut, “B” is for Betsy, appeared in 1939, launching a prolific career built on close observation of children’s lives and feelings, continuing for decades.

Reviews

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

My six-year-old and I thoroughly enjoyed meeting Eddie and chumming along on his everyday adventures. Published in the late 1940s, this is vintage and "old fashioned" for better and for worse (I was thinking Beaver Cleaver and Opie Taylor as I read) but mostly for better. My son is so like Little Eddie in many ways, especially in his love of cats and in making things out of "junk" -- yet Eddie's is a world where he could be off on his own all afternoon, run to town on an errand for his mom (taking two buses to get there, so grown-up!) and workmen are so charmed that they not only let him keep the old telegraph pole they took down, they haul it to his house for him. I like that Eddie is friends with a girl, and that the girl is pretty darn cool (she even plays good baseball!) so that is a little more "progressive" than some books of this time. (I'm wondering if she is the same Betsey that is in the Betsey series by the same author? I'm guessing so.) We will look for more in this series.

[Katt Hansen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eddie has all the problems of a 7-year old boy. He spends his time collecting old junk - and collecting cats. He wants to play with the big kids. And always has an angle so that he comes out ahead.

I would classify this as one of those books that's kind of soft and gentle - the adventures are sweet and funny, and while the book is definitely a bit dated, there's a soothing feel when you read them. I like Eddie, maybe in part because I used to read Eddie books back when I was a child. I think, though, they can still have a certain relevance to today. I think I'm going to enjoy my walk down memory lane with Eddie. I can't wait to read the next one!

[Ammie · Rating 5 out of 5]

We devoured this one. Finished it in 24 hours. Even the hubby got caught up in the stories. We carried the book everywhere and read it every free moment. 💕

[Cheryl · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

4.5 stars -- I found it very interesting to read a Carolyn Haywood title at the same time as a Beverly Cleary title. I think I could write a lengthy paper on my thoughts... By no means am I an expert, but as a reader, I feel like Cleary's work is more on point with how children actually are than Haywood's. Considering that both authors wrote children's chapter books right around the same time and those books are about young boys & girls in a neighborhood setting, I was really struck by the differences in their writing. And I may never have really thought about those differences except that I am/was reading a title from both of them at the same time. Do I think that Carolyn Haywood is a bad author? Of course not, but I can also understand why Beverly Cleary's works are still largely in publication and Haywood's are not. But I digress.

Regardless of my thoughts, I still enjoyed this, though it was the last chapter that really bumped it up for me. The story focused on Eddie Wilson and his life as the youngest of four boys. Using the chapters as vignettes, it chronicles Eddie's efforts to be respected by his family and to pursue his interests (baseball, animals, and junk - among others) in his hometown. This leads to several memorable moments, but only one really touched my heart. Let's hear it for Wilson & Son.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovable Eddie. My boys found his misadventures and good fortune a lot of fun. Perfect book for our six year old son to listen to at bed time.

[Claire · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just as good as I remember from my childhood. My boys loved it because Eddie is so relatable.

[Nathaniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it.

[Maggie Panning · Rating 4 out of 5]

We fell in love with Eddie in this book, these books are not easy to find, but they are so fun to read aloud to my young son.

[Emily Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this when I was pretty young. It was fun to reread it with my youngest brother and sister.

[Penn · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sweet old fashioned read!

[Emma McKenzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

it was great

[Miroslava Méndez · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read every Carolyn Haywood book that I could get my hands on when I was a child. These were the first books I read after Dick and Jane. Eddie was much more adventurous.

[Laraine Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been going back to books I read as a child and rereading them. This was fun. The world for kids was so different then.

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet slice of nostalgia! Good old Eddie and his junk collecting.

[Mary Burkholder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed re-reading Little Eddie aloud to my six and nine-year-old.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

A childhood favorite!

[Caleb · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Liked Little Eddie he had A Lot of cats