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Bright Island
Mabel Robinson's delightful coming-of-age story won a Newbery Honor in 1938 and garnered extraordinary praise from critics and readers alike.
Born and raised on Bright Island off the Maine coast, Thankful Curtis is more like her sea captain grandfather than any of her older brothers are. Nothing suits her better than sailing and helping her father with the farm. But when her dreaded sisters-in-law suggest that Thankful get some proper schooling on the mainland, the wind is knocked from her sails.
Thankful finds the uncharted waters of school difficult to there's a rocky reception from her rich roommate, Selina; the breezy behavior of the charming Robert; and stormy Mr. Fletcher, the handsome Latin teacher whose caustic tongue masks a tender heart. And while Thankful works hard to make the best of her new life, Bright Island continues to flash in her thoughts, like the sparkle of the sun on the water.
The New York Times raved, "One would be hard put to it to find a better contemporary novel than this," and now this evocative tale can be welcomed by a new generation of readers.
Born and raised on Bright Island off the Maine coast, Thankful Curtis is more like her sea captain grandfather than any of her older brothers are. Nothing suits her better than sailing and helping her father with the farm. But when her dreaded sisters-in-law suggest that Thankful get some proper schooling on the mainland, the wind is knocked from her sails.
Thankful finds the uncharted waters of school difficult to there's a rocky reception from her rich roommate, Selina; the breezy behavior of the charming Robert; and stormy Mr. Fletcher, the handsome Latin teacher whose caustic tongue masks a tender heart. And while Thankful works hard to make the best of her new life, Bright Island continues to flash in her thoughts, like the sparkle of the sun on the water.
The New York Times raved, "One would be hard put to it to find a better contemporary novel than this," and now this evocative tale can be welcomed by a new generation of readers.
278 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1937
28 people are currently reading
892 people want to read
About the author
Mabel Louise Robinson
62 books6 followersAttended Radcliffe College 1900-03, earning bachelor's degree in education (1903) and later master's degree (1907).
Taught classes in zoology at Wellesley College from 1904 to 1916.
Earned PhD from Columbia University (1915) and taught advanced fiction workshops there from 1919 to 1945.
Taught classes in zoology at Wellesley College from 1904 to 1916.
Earned PhD from Columbia University (1915) and taught advanced fiction workshops there from 1919 to 1945.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 96 reviews
February 20, 2015
I wish I'd known this book when I belonged to the target age group. It feels like an unexpected amalgam of a Heidi, Anne of the Island, and Swallows and Amazons, with a little Railway Children thrown in for good measure - the isolated girl who is just fine with staying that way, who has to carve out a place for herself among townsfolk; the extraordinary girl going away from her beloved home to school, a completely foreign environment where she is seen as a hick but proves herself and wins good friends with a very good mind and an unaffected attitude; the completely unsupervised children messing about with boats – and a timely rescue or two. But it in no way owes anything to any of these stories: it is - despite what I just said - very much itself.
Bright Island - so called because it shines in the sun and acts as a beacon for boaters - is the home of the Curtis family, and always has been, as long as there have been Curtises. It is its own world off the coast of Maine, almost entirely self-contained. It used to be home to a large family: not too long ago Gramps, the patriarch, ruled over his son's family: Scottish wife, four strapping sons, and fey daughter. But as the book opens Gramps has died and the four sons have married and left the island, to their father's dismay, and only Thankful, the youngest, remains. She is more of a sailor than any of her brothers ever were, and scorns the decision all of them made to marry and take work off the island (as she scorns the silly mainland wives they've taken) - all Thankful wants is to continue as she's always lived, learning from her former-schoolteacher mother, working around the farm, and sailing every available minute.
When it is decreed that she must go to the mainland to go to school, she digs her heels in. Hard. She has no desire to meet new people, or to learn more than her learned mother can teach her, or to leave the island for any reason whatsoever; the idea of an undetermined time spent at a landlocked school - especially boarding with those sisters-in-law by turns ... It's a nightmare. But as it is decreed, so it must be done, and though she wins a battle or two, the war is a lost cause to her, and off she goes.
There are plenty of fish-out-of-water coming-of-age stories in which the ugly duckling either becomes a swan or proves s/he was never ugly to begin with, and ducklings are terrific. This fits in well amongst them, but stands strong – and bright - on its own.
Bright Island - so called because it shines in the sun and acts as a beacon for boaters - is the home of the Curtis family, and always has been, as long as there have been Curtises. It is its own world off the coast of Maine, almost entirely self-contained. It used to be home to a large family: not too long ago Gramps, the patriarch, ruled over his son's family: Scottish wife, four strapping sons, and fey daughter. But as the book opens Gramps has died and the four sons have married and left the island, to their father's dismay, and only Thankful, the youngest, remains. She is more of a sailor than any of her brothers ever were, and scorns the decision all of them made to marry and take work off the island (as she scorns the silly mainland wives they've taken) - all Thankful wants is to continue as she's always lived, learning from her former-schoolteacher mother, working around the farm, and sailing every available minute.
When it is decreed that she must go to the mainland to go to school, she digs her heels in. Hard. She has no desire to meet new people, or to learn more than her learned mother can teach her, or to leave the island for any reason whatsoever; the idea of an undetermined time spent at a landlocked school - especially boarding with those sisters-in-law by turns ... It's a nightmare. But as it is decreed, so it must be done, and though she wins a battle or two, the war is a lost cause to her, and off she goes.
There are plenty of fish-out-of-water coming-of-age stories in which the ugly duckling either becomes a swan or proves s/he was never ugly to begin with, and ducklings are terrific. This fits in well amongst them, but stands strong – and bright - on its own.
September 19, 2018
Love/hate. This book, I tell you, it was so good in some ways, and so flat-out awful in others. It might have seemed worse when it was bad because the good was so unique. I have never before come across a book that really spoke to me as much as this one does about living in two worlds, worlds that clash and dislike each other - and the tension this causes in the individual who has to find her way in both. This is about a girl, living in a remote place, right in the heart of nature, weather, etc. and she has all the skills to thrive. Her love of the water, of sailing and fishing, and her capability in every element is clear. She is not a "girl" in a role, so much as a person doing what is necessary for life, and enjoying her mastery. But there's a bigger world out there, and she has to face it. She really has no one to prepare her. She's never even seen a light switch before. She's been taught by her mother, never sat in a class, and now she's off to boarding school. Well. This was where the story got a little "Miss Pettigrew Lives For a Day" smarm on. Wish Fulfillment City. I was ticked. There were still some good moments, like when she brings a friend home for Christmas, and the two worlds collide. She talks about herself in those moments as if she were two people who don't know each other - wonderful description, I thought. And when she goes down to the shore and stands there, right back in the center of nature and wildness, and feels that connection, that solidity, that belonging that the people on the mainland know so very little about. I loved that. But the smarm was unendurable. Dang. Love/hate. If only it had had more grit.
October 23, 2012
This is a magnificent book that is engaging and rewarding. While the situations are perhaps not commonplace today, the emotions are no less apropos. The story is somewhat typical, but is nevertheless interesting. It does not resolve in the expected way and yet is entirely satisfying. What I noticed, however, was that the book is written in a style that is strikingly different from that found in children's fiction of recent vintage. Too many of today's books seem dumbed down through the influence of video. Novels read as if they were merely screenplays; if something can be put into dialogue, it is. Since credible dialogue is basically simplistic, sophisticated structure and vocabulary are essentially absent from such books. Writing, however, is *different* from speaking - and it should be! In this book, the author is not afraid to use written language to express thoughts and emotions, even avoiding dialogue at times while still conveying what is being expressed in a conversational interaction. This book has substance and provides much to think about. It deserves to be widely read and discussed. Thankfully, it has recently been republished on its 75th anniversary.
November 16, 2012
This is just the kind of old-fashioned book I love, very reminiscent of A Girl of the Limberlost. Thankful's understanding but no-nonsense mother also reminds me of Velvet's mother in National Velvet. And there are some boarding-school elements as well, another of my favorite themes. I can't believe I'd never heard of it before, but now it's been re-issued for its 75th anniversary.
May 27, 2017
This review also appears on my blog, Read-at-Home Mom.
Thankful Curtis is the youngest of Mary Curtis’s children and the only girl. Her six brothers have married and left the family home on Bright Island, but Thankful has no such desires. She wants to remain in the place she loves most, where she can hold tightly to memories of her beloved grandfather. Unfortunately, Thankful’s family is concerned that she hasn’t been properly educated about “what a girl is for,” so they decide that she must attend school on the mainland. In the year that follows, Thankful learns the ways of the modern world, which has many more luxuries than her island home, and comes to a greater understanding of herself as a human being.
Bright Island was originally published in 1937, and it was a 1938 Newbery Honor book. It seems that it has been out of print for a while, but Random House has just published a 75th anniversary edition, which I read courtesy of NetGalley. Bright Island is a coming of age story of a type that no one seems to write anymore. Thankful’s age is never identified, but based on her experiences at school, she must be a teenager, meaning this book would likely be classified as YA if it were published today. It certainly shares a lot in common with other young adult books. Thankful struggles with issues of family, identity, friendship, education, romance, and belonging. She must leave the safety of everything she knows and try to stay true to herself out in the real world. This is something every teen faces, either at the start of high school, or when he or she goes away to college.
The writing, despite being 75 years old, is very accessible. Robinson’s lyrical prose is beautiful - especially to read aloud - but the reader doesn’t get bogged down in her descriptions, as in other older books (The Yearling, for example.) Thankful and her mother are the strongest characters in the book, but even more minor characters, like Thankful’s antagonistic roommate, are written sympathetically, so the reader understands their motivations and believes in them as real people. The most interesting parts of the plot actually hinge on the visits of these minor characters to Bright Island. These scenes heighten the tensions between Thankful's island life and the modern world on the mainland and show the reader interesting sides to Thankful's character as well as that of her roommate and of Robert, a popular boy from school.
I expected this book to be similar to Swallows and Amazons, but Bright Island is much more character-driven. There are some sailing scenes, and I was thankful that I had read Swallows and Amazons because that helped with the sailing terminology, but this is not a sailing book, or even an island book. The island is a strong presence because of its importance to Thankful, but Thankful herself is really the center of the plot. It is through her experiences that the reader comes to terms with the inevitable, which is that we will all someday grow up and venture out into the world.
The illustrations by Lynd Ward are a wonderful addition to the story. They look old-fashioned by today's standards, but they do a wonderful job of immersing the reader into the natural world Robinson conveys with her words. I think my favorite image of the entire book is the snowy illustration at the start of the chapter entitled "The Stranger Leaves Bright Island." I love the way Ward draws the sweep of the winter wind and each individual snowflake. I get cold just looking at the picture.
Bright Island should appeal to girls - and maybe boys, too - who like reading classic works of children’s literature. I think it would make a wonderful read for a mother-daughter book club, as the mother-daughter relationship is one of the central themes. Some read-alikes might include The Little House on the Prairie series, In Summer Light by Zibby O’Neal, and The Moon By Night by Madeleine L’Engle.
Thankful Curtis is the youngest of Mary Curtis’s children and the only girl. Her six brothers have married and left the family home on Bright Island, but Thankful has no such desires. She wants to remain in the place she loves most, where she can hold tightly to memories of her beloved grandfather. Unfortunately, Thankful’s family is concerned that she hasn’t been properly educated about “what a girl is for,” so they decide that she must attend school on the mainland. In the year that follows, Thankful learns the ways of the modern world, which has many more luxuries than her island home, and comes to a greater understanding of herself as a human being.
Bright Island was originally published in 1937, and it was a 1938 Newbery Honor book. It seems that it has been out of print for a while, but Random House has just published a 75th anniversary edition, which I read courtesy of NetGalley. Bright Island is a coming of age story of a type that no one seems to write anymore. Thankful’s age is never identified, but based on her experiences at school, she must be a teenager, meaning this book would likely be classified as YA if it were published today. It certainly shares a lot in common with other young adult books. Thankful struggles with issues of family, identity, friendship, education, romance, and belonging. She must leave the safety of everything she knows and try to stay true to herself out in the real world. This is something every teen faces, either at the start of high school, or when he or she goes away to college.
The writing, despite being 75 years old, is very accessible. Robinson’s lyrical prose is beautiful - especially to read aloud - but the reader doesn’t get bogged down in her descriptions, as in other older books (The Yearling, for example.) Thankful and her mother are the strongest characters in the book, but even more minor characters, like Thankful’s antagonistic roommate, are written sympathetically, so the reader understands their motivations and believes in them as real people. The most interesting parts of the plot actually hinge on the visits of these minor characters to Bright Island. These scenes heighten the tensions between Thankful's island life and the modern world on the mainland and show the reader interesting sides to Thankful's character as well as that of her roommate and of Robert, a popular boy from school.
I expected this book to be similar to Swallows and Amazons, but Bright Island is much more character-driven. There are some sailing scenes, and I was thankful that I had read Swallows and Amazons because that helped with the sailing terminology, but this is not a sailing book, or even an island book. The island is a strong presence because of its importance to Thankful, but Thankful herself is really the center of the plot. It is through her experiences that the reader comes to terms with the inevitable, which is that we will all someday grow up and venture out into the world.
The illustrations by Lynd Ward are a wonderful addition to the story. They look old-fashioned by today's standards, but they do a wonderful job of immersing the reader into the natural world Robinson conveys with her words. I think my favorite image of the entire book is the snowy illustration at the start of the chapter entitled "The Stranger Leaves Bright Island." I love the way Ward draws the sweep of the winter wind and each individual snowflake. I get cold just looking at the picture.
Bright Island should appeal to girls - and maybe boys, too - who like reading classic works of children’s literature. I think it would make a wonderful read for a mother-daughter book club, as the mother-daughter relationship is one of the central themes. Some read-alikes might include The Little House on the Prairie series, In Summer Light by Zibby O’Neal, and The Moon By Night by Madeleine L’Engle.
October 20, 2020
The descriptions of the island and island life are beautiful, reminding me of Misty of Chincoteague, but even after she resigns herself to life on the mainland, her boarding school and the small slightly-inland town are lovely in their own way as she learns to navigate this strange and noisy territory full of other teens, including such tropes as A Dashing Boy and a sophisticated and standoffish roommate. Even though she's out of her element, she never loses her natural determination and sense of self reliance. Thankful Curtis is just about the pluckiest young heroine I've ever met.
As a bonus, I fell all over myself when the book suddenly came at me with a surprise student/teacher element. Of course it's all very innocent in the way these should ideally be, and lets me just enjoy the fact that because it's 1937, everyone is like "it is totally normal and fine for a teacher to hang out with students on the weekend. What nice friendship. I certainly don't see any heart eyes latching onto her prowess with Latin and adoring her every move."
As a bonus, I fell all over myself when the book suddenly came at me with a surprise student/teacher element. Of course it's all very innocent in the way these should ideally be, and lets me just enjoy the fact that because it's 1937, everyone is like "it is totally normal and fine for a teacher to hang out with students on the weekend. What nice friendship. I certainly don't see any heart eyes latching onto her prowess with Latin and adoring her every move."
July 10, 2014
I loved the beauty and feel of this book. It reminded me of the way it feels to read stories like The Penderwicks, The Boxcar Children, The Happy Hollisters, Charlotte's Web, Little Women, Little House on the Prairie, Anne of Green Gables and such. Written over 75 years ago it still has a timeless feel to it especially as a coming of age story. The descriptions of the island and the sea were so beautiful that you imagined them to be 2 more characters in the story.
I was thinking about the characters in the story and wondering what life had in store for them and if there was a sequel. But then realizing that it was written in 1938, the next book most likely would've taken place during WWII and would've been difficult and sad with innocence lost. Rather than reading about that I decided it's best to leave them frozen in time in 1938 and enjoy the beauty of the story for what it is.
I was thinking about the characters in the story and wondering what life had in store for them and if there was a sequel. But then realizing that it was written in 1938, the next book most likely would've taken place during WWII and would've been difficult and sad with innocence lost. Rather than reading about that I decided it's best to leave them frozen in time in 1938 and enjoy the beauty of the story for what it is.
August 6, 2013
In the same vein as The Bent Twig, Up a Road Slowly, even Understood Betsy. Elisabeth Ogilvie comes to mind too. Loved it.
Want to read
December 26, 2014I suspect I read this as a child but I don't remember it. Thanks for the reminder, Rachel!
December 30, 2021
What an idyllic life Thankful led out on Bright Island, off the coast of Maine. Her parents raised her there with her grandfather, a retired sea captain, until Gramps passed away before this story starts. By this time she's a teenager who has been homeschooled all her life. Her relatives intervene and it is decided she'll go to the mainland to attend high school. Thankful loves her isolated island life and does not want to go!
The first third of the book takes place prior to the school scenes. The writer created a lot of lovely prose describing the beauty of the island and coast, and water, and sailing and swimming and everything else that makes Thankful think she's already got the best life ever because she lives on an island and sails in a boat. At times there's a lot more description than meaningful action. If something does happen, it is not something that forwards the plot of the book. There were pages and pages of idyllic family life, and beautifully written, but it felt very tedious to read through.
When she got to move to the school there was a lot more to say that moved the plot forward. She was meeting people, adjusting, attending classes, and having teenage adventures. I don't want to say more about what happened in the book because I won't give spoilers about the last half of the novel, but just wanted to say those chapters were easier for me to get through.
The author taught writing for many years, and I'm sure she thought the pacing of her story was just perfect. I think, maybe in the 1930's when this was written, it was just fine. These days however we have different expectations for juvenile literature.
The first third of the book takes place prior to the school scenes. The writer created a lot of lovely prose describing the beauty of the island and coast, and water, and sailing and swimming and everything else that makes Thankful think she's already got the best life ever because she lives on an island and sails in a boat. At times there's a lot more description than meaningful action. If something does happen, it is not something that forwards the plot of the book. There were pages and pages of idyllic family life, and beautifully written, but it felt very tedious to read through.
When she got to move to the school there was a lot more to say that moved the plot forward. She was meeting people, adjusting, attending classes, and having teenage adventures. I don't want to say more about what happened in the book because I won't give spoilers about the last half of the novel, but just wanted to say those chapters were easier for me to get through.
The author taught writing for many years, and I'm sure she thought the pacing of her story was just perfect. I think, maybe in the 1930's when this was written, it was just fine. These days however we have different expectations for juvenile literature.
October 23, 2014
I chose this book because once-upon-a-time it was a Newbery Honor book, but, meh.
"Bright Island" is a coming-of-age story about Thankful Curtis, a young girl who has grown up as basically an only child (her brothers are much older) on an island where no other families live. She has been home-schooled, and spent most of her time alone. She doesn't much care for other people, and has a difficult time fitting in when she goes to spend a year on the mainland to finish high school. The book takes place in the 1930's, an alternate universe where, after you've been pressured by well-meaning teachers to dance a solo highland fling - in full Scottish regalia - in front of all your peers at the high school dance, you become the "It" girl of the evening, instead of the pathetic loser that everyone avoids, as would have happened at the high school I attended. Also, no one bats an eye when the high school's dreamy Latin teacher develops a crush on Thankful and, during Easter break, asks her to marry him. And yes, he is still her teacher.
It was pretty obvious during the reading of this book that Mabel Louise Robinson was a woman who didn't like women much. There are four brothers, each of whom are named, and in fact the author goes into great detail about how each got their name. But of their wives, only two of them merit an actual name; they are usually mentioned, then dismissed, as a group: "the girls," Thankful's least favorite people on the planet. Quoted from the book - "The wives Thankful scarcely bothered to keep separate. They looked alike and talked alike and acted alike." When a group of women is together talking, they "chittered and chattered." But when it's a group of men: "Over the rice pudding the men warmed into digs at each other which brought gruff laughter. Thankful laughed too. She was used to a tableful of men."
I can see why this book was well-received when it was written, but to me it hasn't worn all that well.
"Bright Island" is a coming-of-age story about Thankful Curtis, a young girl who has grown up as basically an only child (her brothers are much older) on an island where no other families live. She has been home-schooled, and spent most of her time alone. She doesn't much care for other people, and has a difficult time fitting in when she goes to spend a year on the mainland to finish high school. The book takes place in the 1930's, an alternate universe where, after you've been pressured by well-meaning teachers to dance a solo highland fling - in full Scottish regalia - in front of all your peers at the high school dance, you become the "It" girl of the evening, instead of the pathetic loser that everyone avoids, as would have happened at the high school I attended. Also, no one bats an eye when the high school's dreamy Latin teacher develops a crush on Thankful and, during Easter break, asks her to marry him. And yes, he is still her teacher.
It was pretty obvious during the reading of this book that Mabel Louise Robinson was a woman who didn't like women much. There are four brothers, each of whom are named, and in fact the author goes into great detail about how each got their name. But of their wives, only two of them merit an actual name; they are usually mentioned, then dismissed, as a group: "the girls," Thankful's least favorite people on the planet. Quoted from the book - "The wives Thankful scarcely bothered to keep separate. They looked alike and talked alike and acted alike." When a group of women is together talking, they "chittered and chattered." But when it's a group of men: "Over the rice pudding the men warmed into digs at each other which brought gruff laughter. Thankful laughed too. She was used to a tableful of men."
I can see why this book was well-received when it was written, but to me it hasn't worn all that well.
June 20, 2019
******CONTAINS SPOILERS.********
(I have hidden the first three, but honestly, if you read past that, it's pretty obvious, so I stopped hiding them.)
Alright. Before I explain this obnoxiously low rating, let me first praise what is good about this book.
First, the prose is gorgeous, and especially impressive as this is a children's book. There are tons of descriptions that somehow maintain a strongly evocative sense the whole way through. You can clearly see why Thankful adores her island so much, because you grow to love it too.
Second, most of the characters are well filled-in and have a very human sense to them. Mary Curtis, especially, is very distinct and likeable and I enjoyed every time she appeared on the pages. Even the bratty roommate Selina turns out to have her good points, and it's nice to see her grow and become authentically kind.
Third, the plot is slow enough to be contemplative but also very engaging. Brief synopsis: 1930s-ish, I think. Thankful Curtis (17?18? I just assume since she's a Senior and it never really says her age) has always lived on Bright Island off the coast of Maine, the youngest and only girl of her parents' (Jonathan and Mary) handful of children. Shortly after her Gramp's death, her sisters-in-law/entire family set about a scheme to put her in school on the mainland, so that she can officially graduate etc. as she's always been home schooled. So after much fuss she goes, where she deals with classic fish-out-of-water/ different-ness/ growing up. In the meantime, there's this boy, Robert, who she meets at the academy and who seems like a very agreeable person at first. Also there's Dave, her childhood friend (who lived with her family a while after his parents died) and he's working some kind of shipping job as a sailor, or something, so, you know, he'd obviously qualify as fulfillment of the promise she made to her grandpa to marry a sailor. And Orin Fletcher, the young Latin professor, is basically the only person at the school who's kind to her.
Well, that's all fine and good, you say. How could such a benign piece of literature merit a lonely one star?, you ask. Surely, little could go wrong, what with the beautiful prose and what not, you argue.
BUT THAT IS WHERE YOU ARE WRONG!!!!! Surprise! Because this book, let me tell you, had me all set for the classic, satisfactory, Little Women type ending. And then, on page 265, a mere 11 pages from the ending, the cup is dashed from my lips! Leaving poor me completely WRECKED, to the point where I go and create a Goodreads account just to tell my truth. That's right. This is REAL, folks. Buckle up.
Alright, so I already mentioned Robert, who is actually a milquetoast. Don't worry. I wasn't rooting for him. In fact, there's a point in the story where he comes to visit her family on the island for Christmas. She wants to marry him, and it looks like she could get her way---but, gloriously, sees what a bratty wuss he actually is, and by the time of his departure, that ship has sailed, pun intended.
And I mentioned Dave. Herein lies the problem. A few facts about Dave: He is weirdly possessive, from almost the beginning. He just kind of assumes, oh yeah, by the way, we should get married. Also, he's a bit of a hollow character, to be honest. I mean, he's got blue eyes. He's blonde. Tan. Sails. Also he is a large, strong guy. These facts are repeated constantly, so as to ameliorate any danger of us, the audience, forgetting them. Beyond this, we know he's dependable, and he's known Thankful a long time. That's about as deep as it gets.
But beyond that, there's nothing necessarily wrong with being a dependable hunk, is there? No, that's true. So, other problems. One, I can't explain all the details, but that just seems a little sexist to me.
My other beef with the unfortunate ending is that Mabel Robinson has set up a beautiful three person continuum. I LOVE THREE PERSON CONTINUUMS. On the one end, we have Robert. He's smart, intellectually on the level with Thankful. But he's also quite the pretty boy. He can't work. As previously stated, he's a spoiled pansy, so he can't even bring himself to reach out of the slough of laziness and set his brain to work. On the other end, Dave. He's got the brawn, and in the way of outdoorsiness, perfectly meshes with Thankful, as they are basically both creatures of the ocean. And even though he's not as smart as Thankful, he uses the brains he does have, to learn navigation, at least. So he knows how to work hard.
But then, in the middle, Orin. Let me extol the virtues of Orin Fletcher for a moment. One, from the moment she meets him, he is incredibly respectful. He doesn't care that she's not well-dressed. When everyone around her is not even aware of her existence, he sees her true value. He's just as smart as she is, but though he's in a position of authority, he addresses her as his EQUAL, and never once abuses his power. But beyond that, he knows how to work. You see, shortly after Thankful arrives at the Academy, she meets old Dinkle, a lobsterman, and arranges to spend her Saturdays helping him. And later, Orin helps too. He learns how to manage the sailboat, and though she's still got a lot to teach him in the way of navigation, he teaches her how to dance. So you see, they learn from each other. They are equals. It is beautiful.
BUT WAIT! THERE'S MORE! Near the end of the book, Thankful gets a telegram that her mother is dying of pneumonia and she should come immediately. Guess who helps her IMMEDIATELY? Orin. He drives her to the dock. He gets the doctor. He pays for a boat. (NOT Dave's, who's (though one can't blame him) not around, due to work). THEN, once they are on Bright Island, he does all he can for Thankful and her family. He stays up for hours upon hours, and then, a couple DAYS later, after Mary Curtis turns the corner, he goes and gets some supplies.
Now, back to the continuum. Robert, the foil on the left, highlights his nature-related-stuff abilities and non-wussiness. Dave, foil from the right, highlights his gentlemanly qualities, intellect, and sensitivity. Yeah. His sensitivity.
And then, she rejects him. That's right. Why? Because he's not a sailor.
And it turns out, her highest allegiance is to Bright Island, and beautiful as it is, that is just a little bit disturbing to me. Because she won't even try to make things work out! (i.e. found your own school, woman! **cough cough** Have you never seen Little Women?**cough cough**) That's the thing. Even in marriage, her number one priority is living EXACTLY where she wants, and anywhere else is a deal-breaker.
Writing this has made me sad. So yeah. It's a little, tiny bit of a let down.
;(
(I have hidden the first three, but honestly, if you read past that, it's pretty obvious, so I stopped hiding them.)
Alright. Before I explain this obnoxiously low rating, let me first praise what is good about this book.
First, the prose is gorgeous, and especially impressive as this is a children's book. There are tons of descriptions that somehow maintain a strongly evocative sense the whole way through. You can clearly see why Thankful adores her island so much, because you grow to love it too.
Second, most of the characters are well filled-in and have a very human sense to them. Mary Curtis, especially, is very distinct and likeable and I enjoyed every time she appeared on the pages. Even the bratty roommate Selina turns out to have her good points, and it's nice to see her grow and become authentically kind.
Third, the plot is slow enough to be contemplative but also very engaging. Brief synopsis: 1930s-ish, I think. Thankful Curtis (17?18? I just assume since she's a Senior and it never really says her age) has always lived on Bright Island off the coast of Maine, the youngest and only girl of her parents' (Jonathan and Mary) handful of children. Shortly after her Gramp's death, her sisters-in-law/entire family set about a scheme to put her in school on the mainland, so that she can officially graduate etc. as she's always been home schooled. So after much fuss she goes, where she deals with classic fish-out-of-water/ different-ness/ growing up. In the meantime, there's this boy, Robert, who she meets at the academy and who seems like a very agreeable person at first. Also there's Dave, her childhood friend (who lived with her family a while after his parents died) and he's working some kind of shipping job as a sailor, or something, so, you know, he'd obviously qualify as fulfillment of the promise she made to her grandpa to marry a sailor. And Orin Fletcher, the young Latin professor, is basically the only person at the school who's kind to her.
Well, that's all fine and good, you say. How could such a benign piece of literature merit a lonely one star?, you ask. Surely, little could go wrong, what with the beautiful prose and what not, you argue.
BUT THAT IS WHERE YOU ARE WRONG!!!!! Surprise! Because this book, let me tell you, had me all set for the classic, satisfactory, Little Women type ending. And then, on page 265, a mere 11 pages from the ending, the cup is dashed from my lips! Leaving poor me completely WRECKED, to the point where I go and create a Goodreads account just to tell my truth. That's right. This is REAL, folks. Buckle up.
Alright, so I already mentioned Robert, who is actually a milquetoast. Don't worry. I wasn't rooting for him. In fact, there's a point in the story where he comes to visit her family on the island for Christmas. She wants to marry him, and it looks like she could get her way---but, gloriously, sees what a bratty wuss he actually is, and by the time of his departure, that ship has sailed, pun intended.
And I mentioned Dave. Herein lies the problem. A few facts about Dave: He is weirdly possessive, from almost the beginning. He just kind of assumes, oh yeah, by the way, we should get married. Also, he's a bit of a hollow character, to be honest. I mean, he's got blue eyes. He's blonde. Tan. Sails. Also he is a large, strong guy. These facts are repeated constantly, so as to ameliorate any danger of us, the audience, forgetting them. Beyond this, we know he's dependable, and he's known Thankful a long time. That's about as deep as it gets.
But beyond that, there's nothing necessarily wrong with being a dependable hunk, is there? No, that's true. So, other problems. One, I can't explain all the details, but that just seems a little sexist to me.
My other beef with the unfortunate ending is that Mabel Robinson has set up a beautiful three person continuum. I LOVE THREE PERSON CONTINUUMS. On the one end, we have Robert. He's smart, intellectually on the level with Thankful. But he's also quite the pretty boy. He can't work. As previously stated, he's a spoiled pansy, so he can't even bring himself to reach out of the slough of laziness and set his brain to work. On the other end, Dave. He's got the brawn, and in the way of outdoorsiness, perfectly meshes with Thankful, as they are basically both creatures of the ocean. And even though he's not as smart as Thankful, he uses the brains he does have, to learn navigation, at least. So he knows how to work hard.
But then, in the middle, Orin. Let me extol the virtues of Orin Fletcher for a moment. One, from the moment she meets him, he is incredibly respectful. He doesn't care that she's not well-dressed. When everyone around her is not even aware of her existence, he sees her true value. He's just as smart as she is, but though he's in a position of authority, he addresses her as his EQUAL, and never once abuses his power. But beyond that, he knows how to work. You see, shortly after Thankful arrives at the Academy, she meets old Dinkle, a lobsterman, and arranges to spend her Saturdays helping him. And later, Orin helps too. He learns how to manage the sailboat, and though she's still got a lot to teach him in the way of navigation, he teaches her how to dance. So you see, they learn from each other. They are equals. It is beautiful.
BUT WAIT! THERE'S MORE! Near the end of the book, Thankful gets a telegram that her mother is dying of pneumonia and she should come immediately. Guess who helps her IMMEDIATELY? Orin. He drives her to the dock. He gets the doctor. He pays for a boat. (NOT Dave's, who's (though one can't blame him) not around, due to work). THEN, once they are on Bright Island, he does all he can for Thankful and her family. He stays up for hours upon hours, and then, a couple DAYS later, after Mary Curtis turns the corner, he goes and gets some supplies.
Now, back to the continuum. Robert, the foil on the left, highlights his nature-related-stuff abilities and non-wussiness. Dave, foil from the right, highlights his gentlemanly qualities, intellect, and sensitivity. Yeah. His sensitivity.
And then, she rejects him. That's right. Why? Because he's not a sailor.
And it turns out, her highest allegiance is to Bright Island, and beautiful as it is, that is just a little bit disturbing to me. Because she won't even try to make things work out! (i.e. found your own school, woman! **cough cough** Have you never seen Little Women?**cough cough**) That's the thing. Even in marriage, her number one priority is living EXACTLY where she wants, and anywhere else is a deal-breaker.
Writing this has made me sad. So yeah. It's a little, tiny bit of a let down.
;(
September 8, 2016
Didn’t have high hopes for this 1938 Newbery Honor about a remote island off the coast of Maine even after I was a few chapters deep. Maritime-themed books seldom hold my interest. And on top of that, it seems the earlier I get on the honor roll the less enjoyable the book. But I was wrong. The tomboy-ish main character, Thankful, is likeable. It is a coming of age Cinderella story of a girl who goes from being home-schooled to an elite, well-to-do boarding school where she is at first ridiculed for her simple, unfashionable clothing. But the other characters misjudge her—turns out the simpleton islander is more advanced academically than her peers. Good for her. I find it so interesting with the rise in popularity of homeschooling to look back in time to a book written in the 1930s, to consider the author’s viewpoint and experience.
“The weeks seemed to her like waves at sea, each one like the other, rolling up and flattening out, leaving no record behind.”
After a difficult first day at the boarding school: “Her first deep sleep broken, that path of escape was closed. She must lie in this airless black space with only the realization of how inevitably it must go on—and on—and on. Its very limitless expanse dazed her imagination into sleep again. The first day was over.”
“Her anxious absorption at the beginning had set her apart, and now she found herself still outside watching all these young people who had no awareness of her. She had thought she could find out how not to be a shadow, but now she was not sure that a shadow could ever become substance.”
“Thankful was conscious then of sound. The air, the earth, the sea, were filled with it, like herself, and as unaware of it as she was. A great tuning fork, it set them all to singing together.”
“The weeks seemed to her like waves at sea, each one like the other, rolling up and flattening out, leaving no record behind.”
After a difficult first day at the boarding school: “Her first deep sleep broken, that path of escape was closed. She must lie in this airless black space with only the realization of how inevitably it must go on—and on—and on. Its very limitless expanse dazed her imagination into sleep again. The first day was over.”
“Her anxious absorption at the beginning had set her apart, and now she found herself still outside watching all these young people who had no awareness of her. She had thought she could find out how not to be a shadow, but now she was not sure that a shadow could ever become substance.”
“Thankful was conscious then of sound. The air, the earth, the sea, were filled with it, like herself, and as unaware of it as she was. A great tuning fork, it set them all to singing together.”
January 17, 2015
This is just a beautiful book. It shunned the frivolous chattiness of shallowness and deeply plunged into the steady beauty of a life deeply felt and bravely lived. It's a romance in its very practical way which suited me perfectly. I can't stand romance books usually. There was so much good in this book. I have a new favorite.
January 15, 2014
Such a wonderful character. It reminds me of Anne of Green Gables, but without all the annoying prattle. This speaks beautifully of how place becomes part of you.
February 10, 2018
Sssllllllooooowwww. Like watching a 3 hour BBC show that an American network could manage in 45 minutes.
Read
December 2, 2022This was a delightful read. Beautiful natural imagery and the most interesting character.
August 22, 2024
Bright Island by Mabel L. Robinson is a lovely coming-of-age novel that won the Newbery Honor Medal in 1938. Thankful Curtis loves her home on Bright Island, located off the coast of Maine, where she lives with her mother and father. She loves sailing and helping her father on their farm. After the death of her beloved grandfather, Thankful learns he had set aside a significant amount of money for her to be educated on the mainland. Reluctantly, she agrees to attend the fancy boarding school where she will experience the ways of the modern world and will learn more about herself.
What a delightful novel! Mabel L. Robinson did a beautiful job of capturing the natural world on and surrounding the island. Her characters are layered and likeable. Thankful is an independent and strong female with an adventurous spirit. However, she is also reserved and prefers to be alone or with a small group of like-minded people which shifts when she attends school on the mainland, and she is exposed to more people with different ideas than her own. I loved that Thankful is gently nudged by different members of her family to give school a try. Even though she is reluctant at first and has a rocky start with her roommate and navigating school life in general, she is able to hold her own academically and gets to experience relationships that help her grow as a person and solidifies her values.
Bright Island will appeal to readers who enjoy Anne of Green Gables or Little House on the Prairie. Like many coming-of-age novels, there is plenty of heart and humor. The relationships are genuine, and the romantic element is old-fashioned and innocent which I appreciated and found endearing. This story was enjoyable, and by the end of the novel, I wanted to visit Bright Island.
What a delightful novel! Mabel L. Robinson did a beautiful job of capturing the natural world on and surrounding the island. Her characters are layered and likeable. Thankful is an independent and strong female with an adventurous spirit. However, she is also reserved and prefers to be alone or with a small group of like-minded people which shifts when she attends school on the mainland, and she is exposed to more people with different ideas than her own. I loved that Thankful is gently nudged by different members of her family to give school a try. Even though she is reluctant at first and has a rocky start with her roommate and navigating school life in general, she is able to hold her own academically and gets to experience relationships that help her grow as a person and solidifies her values.
Bright Island will appeal to readers who enjoy Anne of Green Gables or Little House on the Prairie. Like many coming-of-age novels, there is plenty of heart and humor. The relationships are genuine, and the romantic element is old-fashioned and innocent which I appreciated and found endearing. This story was enjoyable, and by the end of the novel, I wanted to visit Bright Island.
February 23, 2025
This 1938 Newbery Honor winner stands the test of time in that there aren’t any cringy scenes to be retired. I teenage girl (Thankful) who grew up on a remote island immersed in nature goes off to boarding school to complete her education. I found the boarding school piece tiresome in that I don’t believe everything would have been sunshine and roses for her. She would have been an outsider at best and more likely a bullied outcast amongst her richy rich classmates. Definitely ripe for a mean girls scenario. I did like that the story shows the reader that Thankful had a choice. She could go back home and marry her childhood friend, she could pursue a different romantic possibility abroad, or she could pursue her own college education. Her choice was hers alone.
April 23, 2025
⭐️ 3,5/5
March 7, 2020
Lovely book. It Gets a bit lost on itself in the middle with the finish is very very strong
August 5, 2021
This book was one I picked at my library, and I don’t usually read books I rent🤦🏻♀️
And it was actually very good. Not a favorite of mine which is why I gave it only three stars, but it wasn’t bad. I was entertained and enjoyed myself when reading this story. The cover of the one I got had the ocean and thankful in her sale boat so I thought it would be mostly about the beach for some odd reason. I read the description the book had of it so idk why I thought that.
BUT
I liked it. Not totally recommending, but I did enjoy myself as I’ve said.
And it was actually very good. Not a favorite of mine which is why I gave it only three stars, but it wasn’t bad. I was entertained and enjoyed myself when reading this story. The cover of the one I got had the ocean and thankful in her sale boat so I thought it would be mostly about the beach for some odd reason. I read the description the book had of it so idk why I thought that.
BUT
I liked it. Not totally recommending, but I did enjoy myself as I’ve said.
July 14, 2019
I did not expect this book to captivate me the way it did. The genre so easily becomes trite, saccharine, and/or lecture-heavy. But Robinson somehow trims the sails just so to keep this story sailing in a classic vein.
Thankful Curtis is a young lady as unique as her name. She has grown up surrounded by males, taught to use her mind, work hard, lead an athletic life, and shun the shallow chittering that was more typical of young girls in broader society. She is allowed to run free, work in men's roles, and make her own life decisions regarding being forced out of her life-long sheltered home. Her transition from carefree and innocent, though deeply grounded, island-runner to a young woman who has learned to interact with a wider world and people different from herself is more an awakening novel than a coming-of-age novel.
Philosophically, is Thankful's freedom only possible in Robinson's time because she grew up on a single-family island, isolated from "normal" society? <~~ "Bright Island," indeed! In 1937, how many families operated as hers did, with a mother that explains: "It's a man's world, Thankful, and they like to think they lead us. You would never be a good follower. Your Gramp knew it,"
The scenes of island life and sailing, the boarding-school foibles and successes, the lessons in responding to others, all combine into a charming tale. It satisfies and entertains even in 2019, even though the unusual female freedom comes to be tempered.
Thankful Curtis is a young lady as unique as her name. She has grown up surrounded by males, taught to use her mind, work hard, lead an athletic life, and shun the shallow chittering that was more typical of young girls in broader society. She is allowed to run free, work in men's roles, and make her own life decisions regarding being forced out of her life-long sheltered home. Her transition from carefree and innocent, though deeply grounded, island-runner to a young woman who has learned to interact with a wider world and people different from herself is more an awakening novel than a coming-of-age novel.
Philosophically, is Thankful's freedom only possible in Robinson's time because she grew up on a single-family island, isolated from "normal" society? <~~ "Bright Island," indeed! In 1937, how many families operated as hers did, with a mother that explains: "It's a man's world, Thankful, and they like to think they lead us. You would never be a good follower. Your Gramp knew it,"
The scenes of island life and sailing, the boarding-school foibles and successes, the lessons in responding to others, all combine into a charming tale. It satisfies and entertains even in 2019, even though the unusual female freedom comes to be tempered.
January 13, 2020
How come I have never heard of this book? I was browsing the YA shelves and came across this treasure from 1937 with a “Newbery Honor Book” sticker on the front. I took my time reading it because I knew from the first chapter that I was holding something GOOD, not to be raced through and tossed aside. I don’t want to be done! Definitely going to reread some other time.
I wish someone had pointed me toward this book when I was a homesick 16 year old North Dakotan who had moved across the country from the only home I’d ever known! The main character, Thankful, is also 16 and has lived a sheltered but adventurous life on an island off Maine. She is the youngest of her siblings, the only girl, yet the only one who inherited her late sea captain grandfather’s love of sailing. She lives with her no-nonsense parents, she loves her island and home, and is sent off to the mainland to attend school and finds herself in a bit of a culture shock and homesickness.
There are so many things I love about this book, but I think the main reason is the gender-role theme (or “finding out what a girl’s for”). I mean, this book was out in 1937 and here we have a girl who is cross dressing! Not only super uncomfortable when forced to wear dresses, but along with her regular men’s overalls, there’s the part in which she is so pleased to have grown into her deceased brother’s suit/kilt. “She stood for a moment in her knickers like a tall boy”... I wonder if people in 1937 were upset by this. Thankful does hard manual labor from dawn til dusk, she “eats like a hired man”, her father is dependent on her help, and she loves this life above anything else. When she was trying to learn to dance, her roommate says, ‘I don’t lead. You just follow if you are a girl.’
“Thankful thought that she had not much practice in following. What was it her father had said she must find out? What a girl’s for! If it was following, she’d never be much good at that.”
I love that this was revisited toward the end, when her mom tells her, “It’s a man’s world, Thankful, and they like to think they lead us. You would never be a good follower.”
There is so much more I could talk about (symbolism!) but suffice it to say that I LOVED this treasure and Thankful Curtis is AWESOME.
I wish someone had pointed me toward this book when I was a homesick 16 year old North Dakotan who had moved across the country from the only home I’d ever known! The main character, Thankful, is also 16 and has lived a sheltered but adventurous life on an island off Maine. She is the youngest of her siblings, the only girl, yet the only one who inherited her late sea captain grandfather’s love of sailing. She lives with her no-nonsense parents, she loves her island and home, and is sent off to the mainland to attend school and finds herself in a bit of a culture shock and homesickness.
There are so many things I love about this book, but I think the main reason is the gender-role theme (or “finding out what a girl’s for”). I mean, this book was out in 1937 and here we have a girl who is cross dressing! Not only super uncomfortable when forced to wear dresses, but along with her regular men’s overalls, there’s the part in which she is so pleased to have grown into her deceased brother’s suit/kilt. “She stood for a moment in her knickers like a tall boy”... I wonder if people in 1937 were upset by this. Thankful does hard manual labor from dawn til dusk, she “eats like a hired man”, her father is dependent on her help, and she loves this life above anything else. When she was trying to learn to dance, her roommate says, ‘I don’t lead. You just follow if you are a girl.’
“Thankful thought that she had not much practice in following. What was it her father had said she must find out? What a girl’s for! If it was following, she’d never be much good at that.”
I love that this was revisited toward the end, when her mom tells her, “It’s a man’s world, Thankful, and they like to think they lead us. You would never be a good follower.”
There is so much more I could talk about (symbolism!) but suffice it to say that I LOVED this treasure and Thankful Curtis is AWESOME.
March 20, 2012
Bright Island by Mabel L. Robinson
ISBN: 9780394809861
First thing that attracted me to this book was that it's about an island. Love islands as I spent many a year in my teens growing up on one local one.
Next thing is the state of Maine. We have traveled around the state and have spent many a week there just discovering new things.
Mary Curtis has 6, 4 living boys who were now all married and living on the mainland and the last child she had a daughter which she named, Thankful.
They were all coming to visit for the day to have a Sunday dinner.
The family has decided come September she will spend time over on the mainland going to regular schools. Spend a few weeks with one relative and then onto
another. Thankful is not too keen as she likes her daily routine of jumping into the frigid ocean for a quick wake up swim, then onto breakfast, feeding the
animals and other chores before she heads out in her sailboat, The Gramp. she misses him so much and loves being so free to do, dress and as she likes on the island.
The mainland will be so different.
The charcoal type drawings throughout the book are interesting to visualize.
Another solution presents itself and that is what Thankful wants and is able to get.
Is this going to be the right choice for her?
Love not only the Latin language, I had picked up a book of my brother's once to study it. but also the knowledge of the winds and sailing. What a lesson!
Highlander traditions, song and dance and everything it stands for comes out in this book.
Not only the weather she knew about but the signs of fall, when certain berries were a certain color, I remember those.
Happy to hear the gift her gramps gave her in his will, priceless!
Wish there was a previous book when the grandfather was alive and teaching her everything.
ISBN: 9780394809861
First thing that attracted me to this book was that it's about an island. Love islands as I spent many a year in my teens growing up on one local one.
Next thing is the state of Maine. We have traveled around the state and have spent many a week there just discovering new things.
Mary Curtis has 6, 4 living boys who were now all married and living on the mainland and the last child she had a daughter which she named, Thankful.
They were all coming to visit for the day to have a Sunday dinner.
The family has decided come September she will spend time over on the mainland going to regular schools. Spend a few weeks with one relative and then onto
another. Thankful is not too keen as she likes her daily routine of jumping into the frigid ocean for a quick wake up swim, then onto breakfast, feeding the
animals and other chores before she heads out in her sailboat, The Gramp. she misses him so much and loves being so free to do, dress and as she likes on the island.
The mainland will be so different.
The charcoal type drawings throughout the book are interesting to visualize.
Another solution presents itself and that is what Thankful wants and is able to get.
Is this going to be the right choice for her?
Love not only the Latin language, I had picked up a book of my brother's once to study it. but also the knowledge of the winds and sailing. What a lesson!
Highlander traditions, song and dance and everything it stands for comes out in this book.
Not only the weather she knew about but the signs of fall, when certain berries were a certain color, I remember those.
Happy to hear the gift her gramps gave her in his will, priceless!
Wish there was a previous book when the grandfather was alive and teaching her everything.
Read
October 23, 2012 Bright Island by Mabel L. Robinson
ISBN: 9780394809861
First thing that attracted me to this book was that it's about an island. Love islands as I spent many a year in my teens growing up on one local one.
Next thing is the state of Maine. We have traveled around the state and have spent many a week there just discovering new things.
Mary Curtis has 6, 4 living boys who were now all married and living on the mainland and the last child she had a daughter which she named, Thankful.
They were all coming to visit for the day to have a Sunday dinner.
The family has decided come September she will spend time over on the mainland going to regular schools. Spend a few weeks with one relative and then onto
another. Thankful is not too keen as she likes her daily routine of jumping into the frigid ocean for a quick wake up swim, then onto breakfast, feeding the
animals and other chores before she heads out in her sailboat, The Gramp. she misses him so much and loves being so free to do, dress and as she likes on the island.
The mainland will be so different.
The charcoal type drawings throughout the book are interesting to visualize.
Another solution presents itself and that is what Thankful wants and is able to get.
Is this going to be the right choice for her?
Love not only the Latin language, I had picked up a book of my brother's once to study it. but also the knowledge of the winds and sailing. What a lesson!
Highlander traditions, song and dance and everything it stands for comes out in this book.
Not only the weather she knew about but the signs of fall, when certain berries were a certain color, I remember those.
Happy to hear the gift her gramps gave her in his will, priceless!
Wish there was a previous book when the grandfather was alive and teaching her everything.
ISBN: 9780394809861
First thing that attracted me to this book was that it's about an island. Love islands as I spent many a year in my teens growing up on one local one.
Next thing is the state of Maine. We have traveled around the state and have spent many a week there just discovering new things.
Mary Curtis has 6, 4 living boys who were now all married and living on the mainland and the last child she had a daughter which she named, Thankful.
They were all coming to visit for the day to have a Sunday dinner.
The family has decided come September she will spend time over on the mainland going to regular schools. Spend a few weeks with one relative and then onto
another. Thankful is not too keen as she likes her daily routine of jumping into the frigid ocean for a quick wake up swim, then onto breakfast, feeding the
animals and other chores before she heads out in her sailboat, The Gramp. she misses him so much and loves being so free to do, dress and as she likes on the island.
The mainland will be so different.
The charcoal type drawings throughout the book are interesting to visualize.
Another solution presents itself and that is what Thankful wants and is able to get.
Is this going to be the right choice for her?
Love not only the Latin language, I had picked up a book of my brother's once to study it. but also the knowledge of the winds and sailing. What a lesson!
Highlander traditions, song and dance and everything it stands for comes out in this book.
Not only the weather she knew about but the signs of fall, when certain berries were a certain color, I remember those.
Happy to hear the gift her gramps gave her in his will, priceless!
Wish there was a previous book when the grandfather was alive and teaching her everything.
October 10, 2018
Good writing, pleasant characters, nice setting, but mysteriously, the story never took hold of me.
December 31, 2012
Okay, listen up, hipsters of the Newberys/Cybils/Whatever.
This is a cautionary tale.
Back in 1938 the NY Times raved "One would be hard put to it to find a better contemporary novel than this" and perhaps it was. And perhaps it was worthy of a Newbery Honor.
But in 2013 I can't see a kid happily reading this.
Or perhaps, before I get a slough of 12 year olds/homeschooling moms/childless librarians and teachers telling me otherwise--I can't see the average kid of 2013 reading this one
Plenty of fiction that WAS contemporary, can age well and be read forever. Things like Ramona the Pest,Charlotte's Web are read and treasured, generation after generation because they continue to speak to something in children that is eternal.That's why we call them "classics".
This one is not a classic. Seventy five years later, it's dated. The language is amazingly awkward at times. Thankful isn't that compelling a character--in fact, there were a number of points in this book where I wanted someone to push her off of her dory and into the water.
So the next time, oh ye hipsters of the award committees, think of that before you pick another "winner". It's a book that will be bought for years because of that award.
It may be the book of the year. But will it still be read, laughed over and cried over in 2023? Or 2033? Or beyond?
This is a cautionary tale.
Back in 1938 the NY Times raved "One would be hard put to it to find a better contemporary novel than this" and perhaps it was. And perhaps it was worthy of a Newbery Honor.
But in 2013 I can't see a kid happily reading this.
Or perhaps, before I get a slough of 12 year olds/homeschooling moms/childless librarians and teachers telling me otherwise--I can't see the average kid of 2013 reading this one
Plenty of fiction that WAS contemporary, can age well and be read forever. Things like Ramona the Pest,Charlotte's Web are read and treasured, generation after generation because they continue to speak to something in children that is eternal.That's why we call them "classics".
This one is not a classic. Seventy five years later, it's dated. The language is amazingly awkward at times. Thankful isn't that compelling a character--in fact, there were a number of points in this book where I wanted someone to push her off of her dory and into the water.
So the next time, oh ye hipsters of the award committees, think of that before you pick another "winner". It's a book that will be bought for years because of that award.
It may be the book of the year. But will it still be read, laughed over and cried over in 2023? Or 2033? Or beyond?
November 26, 2013
Newly reissued for the 75th anniversary of its publication, this book should find some new readership with a spiffy new cover. Set rather exotically on a small island off the coast of Maine, the novel explores one year in the life of Thankful Curtis, a high-school aged girl whose loyalty and love for her home and the natural world takes precedence over all things. Her six older brothers have all married and left home to live on the mainland, and their wives feel strongly that Thankful should be sent off to school to get some of the wildness out of her. Thankful dreads this with a deep misery, wishing that her sea captain grandfather were still alive to defend her. But as the dark day of departure looms, a ray of light is cast: Thankful's grandfather left her enough money for two years of schooling, and if she wants, she can attend the Academy and not have to board with her irritating sisters-in-law. Rich and descriptive writing gives real heft to this coming-of-age novel, and it is completely evident that the author lived in the environment she writes about and loved boats and the sea coast just as Thankful does. The book reminded me a little of Anne of Green Gables, with less humor. Quite a lovely book with heart and spirit. Junior high, high school, adult (who are probably the most likely audience).
May 12, 2015
It was okay. A girl named Thankful is very independent, and it seems that everyone is trying to get her to conform - especially her Sisters-in-Law, which to me are still all the same person even though there are 4 of them. And she resists. Unfortunately, by the end she does kind of become her mother and it is meant to be a good thing. Oh, well.
Also, this book teaches about jerks. Yep, there is one named Robert. For all you Jane Austen fans out there, this guy is a LOT like Mr. Wickham from Pride and Prejudice, except that he lives in modern times, (i.e. in the 1930s when this book was written). Hopefully it will clue young ladies in to what a lot of guys really want even though they appear so nice on the outside.
But like most books written for girls prior to WWII, everything works out right in the end. Yep; what did you expect?
Also, this book teaches about jerks. Yep, there is one named Robert. For all you Jane Austen fans out there, this guy is a LOT like Mr. Wickham from Pride and Prejudice, except that he lives in modern times, (i.e. in the 1930s when this book was written). Hopefully it will clue young ladies in to what a lot of guys really want even though they appear so nice on the outside.
But like most books written for girls prior to WWII, everything works out right in the end. Yep; what did you expect?
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