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The Diaries of Bluebell Gadsby #3
All About Pumpkin: The Diaries of Bluebell Gadsby (Diaries of Bluebell Gadsby 3) by Natasha Farrant
It's the summer holidays and Flora has gone off with Dad to the exotic set of his new film and Mum is at home having a much-needed rest with baby Pumpkin. Bluebell, Twig and Jas have been sent to stay with Grandma at Horsehill in the countryside.With Grandma keen that the children get as much fresh air as possible, they are sent off on bikes to go wild swimming and befriend the boys next door. With so much freedom, they can't help but get into trouble, and Grandma doesn't seem to be as capable as looking after them as she should be...
Paperback
First published June 4, 2015
9 people are currently reading
213 people want to read
About the author
Natasha Farrant
26 books117 followersNatasha Farrant grew up in the heart of London's French community, and currently combines writing with her career as a Literary Scout. She is the author of two successful novels for adults, Diving Into Light and Some Other Eden, both published by Transworld. She lives in West London with her husband, two daughters and a large tortoiseshell cat.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
September 9, 2015
Beautifully written, funny, and deeply moving, just like the earlier books in this wonderful series. Honestly, I could read about the Gadsbys forever! And in fact, when I finished this book, the first thing I did was go back to the last book, FLORA IN LOVE, for a re-read just so that I could hang out with all of them a little longer! I love how beautifully and subtly Natasha Farrant can convey moments of big emotional shift for her heroine, and I really love the mixture of hilarious family dynamics and deep emotion. I think (fear) this is the last in the series, but I hope I'm wrong. Either way, though, I'll be re-reading this and the earlier books many, many times in the future!
July 17, 2019
IT was very food as it showed the real struggles of loosing a sister and accepting how to live without her. It was very interesting and it had a few different stories on the sid which I liked. It was about how to move on and accept what happens and teaches you life lessons.
June 29, 2023
🌼🌤️
,,Wszystko o Dyńku" to kontynuacja losów rodziny Gadsbych, która na swój sposób próbuje na nowo ułożyć sobie życie po bolesnej stracie. Główna bohaterka, Bluebell, podobnie jak w poprzednich tomach, dokumentuje codzienne rodzinne życie w pamiętniku i za pomocą kamery.
Tym razem akcja powieści rozgrywa się latem w uroczym, malowniczym miejscu, gdzie Bluebell razem z rodzeństwem spędza wakacje u babci. Jest to czas na odkrywanie siebie, na nowe przyjaźnie, a nawet... pierwsze zauroczenia
💐🌻
Uwielbiam serię o Bluebell i trzeci tom również znalazł specjalne miejsce w moim sercu. Pokochałam wykreowanych przez autorkę bohaterów oraz to, jak pięknie są opisane relacje między nimi.
Książka ,,Wszystko o Dyńku" urzekła mnie też świetnie odmalowanym klimatem beztroskich wakacji. Czytając tę historię, czułam się jak dziecko, które przeżywa niesamowite przygody na łonie natury.
Natasha Farrant trafnie uchwyciła poszczególne etapy żałoby i jej naturalny przebieg. Choć w tym tomie imię Iris nie jest już przywoływane tak często, dziewczynka wciąż jest obecna we wspomnieniach swoich bliskich.
Jestem pewna, że pamiętniki Bluebell Gadsby rozgrzeją niejedno serce, wywołają wiele uśmiechów, a może nawet wzruszą do łez.
Polecam Wam tę serię z całego serduszka 💙
🏕️🌅
January 22, 2023
Randomly found this at college lib and I’m in love with the cover. This book tells about 3 siblings who went on vacation at their Grandmother's house, their oldest sister (Flora) followed their father. And their other living at home with the youngest siblings, Pumpkin. So actually they’re siblings. Bluebell, as the oldest sibling among them, became the only normal in a crazy family, even though their Grandmother was also crazy. Bluebell has mature thoughts but sometimes she can also be very stubborn. Bluebell always filmed everything through her cameras into memories. Kinda sad Bluebell didn’t end up with Ollie :/. Overall, I gave this book ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. And this is the trilogy books? Can’t wait to read another story of Bluebell and her fam.
December 19, 2017
It was not so funny, just okay for young adult genre. The story depicts a normal family with their crazy attitudes towards all the events happening in their life. It comes from the perspective of the Bluebell's character where she roams around the house with a camera so the chapters begin with the video's script. I think people can relate to the conflicts although breaking Grandma out of hospital sounded a little irresponsible considering they are old enough to know better than do that. Sounds kinda dangerous to play with your Grandma's health. 3.5 stars
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 12, 2024
this was an impulse-borrow from the library, hence why I haven't read the first two in the series and I won't read the last one. really, it was just meant to be a joyful, summer book, and it certainly did that.
February 17, 2019
Enjoyable read, and I’d have enjoyed it just as much when I was the age this is written for (pre-mid-teens).
March 28, 2019
Love this book must read now!!!
December 24, 2023
It was a really cute book! Except for the confusing relationship with the boys that seemed almost like a love triangle but Idk (maybe I'm just dumb)
February 4, 2025
it's a cozy read for me and the books describes middle child well i guess....
December 15, 2019
I'm gonna give 3,5
This is the first book I read from the series. It's not the best book of all time, but I like reading a delightful story from the Gadsby family.
This is the first book I read from the series. It's not the best book of all time, but I like reading a delightful story from the Gadsby family.
February 14, 2018
It is not thr best book that i read but i kinda like it. The family reminds me of my family and it’s kinda a grow up book . I like it
November 9, 2015
*4.5 stars*
Originally published at http://solittletimeforbooks.blogspot....
The first two books in this series are full of heart, warmth and life and All About Punpkin was no exception.
It’s the start of the summer, Pumpkin is now four months old, Dad’s in New Zealand filming with Flora and Twig, Blue and Jas have been shipped off to Grandma’s in Devon to give mum some peace and quiet. Even though Blue, Twig and Jas are initially a little reluctant about the summer ahead of them, but it doesn’t take them long to fall back in love with Horsehill. I fell in love with Horsehill! All About Pumpkin is drenched in the hazy heat of summer and it's gorgeous.
But as always with the Gadsbys, there’s a lot more under the surface than a summer of swimming in the stream, riding the ponies in the paddock and helping Grandma with the vegetable garden. Pumpkin’s arrival has thrown Blue into turmoil a little. She fears that Pumpkin is an attempt to replace Iris (her twin sister who died) and although she understand logically that that’s not possible and probably not the case, she can’t help the way it feels for her or the disconnect with and disinterest she has in Pumpkin. I know it sounds a little silly, but I’m so glad Blue’s grief was still a motivating factor in Blue. It can often get lost in series’ where it’s a large part of the story in the first book but then drifts off and though grief does lesson, it doesn’t leave (as far as I’ve experienced anyway) and I’m really glad Farrant presented that.
As well as coming to terms with Pumpkin, the Gadsby children are also facing the sadness of their Grandma getting older and things not being how they used to be at Horsehill because they’re getting older too. It kept hitting me how much more grown up Blue seemed in All About Pumpkin. I loved the balance of her growing up and the comebacks, thought processes and arguments of a 14-year-old girl; I thought it was done brilliantly. She’s straddling that age of leaving childhood fully behind her and becoming a teenager in all its bittersweet glory.
Lots of the newfound changes in Blue appeared along with her Grandma’s new neighbours, Lizzie, her son Skye and his cousin Ollie. Ollie is beautiful and confident and makes Blue blush a little while Skye is messy and shy and all about horses. Blue was thrown into the horror of liking someone when you didn’t want to and the competition that caused between the boys. Her interactions with them over the summer taught Blue a fair few lessons and I love the strength of character she showed at the end as a result. I also loved Skye as a character. It’s so important that there are kids and teens in books that aren’t good at school and academics, but that doesn’t means they don’t have talents or valuable skills – that’s something that isn’t really appreciated in any form of media and it should be.
All About Pumkin is another delightfully heartwarming, thoughtful and engaging instalment in The Diaries of Bluebell Gadsby. My love for the Gadsby family grows with each book and I would happily read about them forever.
Originally published at http://solittletimeforbooks.blogspot....
The first two books in this series are full of heart, warmth and life and All About Punpkin was no exception.
It’s the start of the summer, Pumpkin is now four months old, Dad’s in New Zealand filming with Flora and Twig, Blue and Jas have been shipped off to Grandma’s in Devon to give mum some peace and quiet. Even though Blue, Twig and Jas are initially a little reluctant about the summer ahead of them, but it doesn’t take them long to fall back in love with Horsehill. I fell in love with Horsehill! All About Pumpkin is drenched in the hazy heat of summer and it's gorgeous.
But as always with the Gadsbys, there’s a lot more under the surface than a summer of swimming in the stream, riding the ponies in the paddock and helping Grandma with the vegetable garden. Pumpkin’s arrival has thrown Blue into turmoil a little. She fears that Pumpkin is an attempt to replace Iris (her twin sister who died) and although she understand logically that that’s not possible and probably not the case, she can’t help the way it feels for her or the disconnect with and disinterest she has in Pumpkin. I know it sounds a little silly, but I’m so glad Blue’s grief was still a motivating factor in Blue. It can often get lost in series’ where it’s a large part of the story in the first book but then drifts off and though grief does lesson, it doesn’t leave (as far as I’ve experienced anyway) and I’m really glad Farrant presented that.
As well as coming to terms with Pumpkin, the Gadsby children are also facing the sadness of their Grandma getting older and things not being how they used to be at Horsehill because they’re getting older too. It kept hitting me how much more grown up Blue seemed in All About Pumpkin. I loved the balance of her growing up and the comebacks, thought processes and arguments of a 14-year-old girl; I thought it was done brilliantly. She’s straddling that age of leaving childhood fully behind her and becoming a teenager in all its bittersweet glory.
Lots of the newfound changes in Blue appeared along with her Grandma’s new neighbours, Lizzie, her son Skye and his cousin Ollie. Ollie is beautiful and confident and makes Blue blush a little while Skye is messy and shy and all about horses. Blue was thrown into the horror of liking someone when you didn’t want to and the competition that caused between the boys. Her interactions with them over the summer taught Blue a fair few lessons and I love the strength of character she showed at the end as a result. I also loved Skye as a character. It’s so important that there are kids and teens in books that aren’t good at school and academics, but that doesn’t means they don’t have talents or valuable skills – that’s something that isn’t really appreciated in any form of media and it should be.
All About Pumkin is another delightfully heartwarming, thoughtful and engaging instalment in The Diaries of Bluebell Gadsby. My love for the Gadsby family grows with each book and I would happily read about them forever.
September 29, 2015
Pumpkin (William) is the newest addition to the Gadsby family, but his arrival and subsequent presence in the family puts a spanner in the works. After an accidental mishandling of Pumpkin (a.k.a a small drop) by Twig, Mum has made the decision to send the youngest Gadsbys to thier Grandma's by themselves while she rests, and while Flora and Dad are away in New Zealand, filming.
Bluebell, Twig, and Jas are spending the summer in Devon like they do every year, but for Bluebell, this isn't the year she thought everything would be back to normal, half the family is missing, and the time spent at Grandmas just isn't the same. All About Pumpkin is a very aptly named book, as although Pumpkin isn't around much, he is on everyone's minds. Whether they are missing him and worried he will forget about his siblings, or that they are worried he is a replacement for the sibling they lost, or just a replacement for a child that they already have. He takes up a lot of thier Mums time, and when they do get chance to talk it is all about Pumpkin.
Lizzie, and her son, Skye, are Grandma's nearest neighbours. With Skye, and his cousin Ollie, helping Grandma, the Gadsby's will be seeing a lot of this duo. Bareback horse riding, swimming in streams, and accidents galore, this summer is set to be an adventurous one. Bot everything is perfect, and signs start to appear to indicate the Grandma hasn't fully recovered from her fall, about halfway though the book it had to be one of the saddest parts of the book so far that I had read. I cried with what was happening and what was being experienced. But I was so proud of Bluebell for being the strong one for finding help and making sure her siblings were OK.
All About Pumpkin was exactly what I expected from Natasha Farrant, but also from the Gadsby family. I loved getting to join this family again, and although they are divided, the adventures, the mischief, the usual antics somehow end up being even more impressive, and dangerous. I loved the setting this book is told in, it's picturesque scenery, old rambling house, and of course, the horses. The friendships they make with some characters seem like they would stand the test of time, while others were only in it for the moment. I liked how it all ended, how this huge plan of deception was made, but fit in perfectly with the characters it involves, and makes for happy families all round.
Final Verdict
This series has been unputdownable from the very first book, and although All About Pumpkin has a final note in it, I would never turn down another addition to this series. This family will entertain readers of all ages, and the children are sure to inspire younger readers with ideas of adventures they can get up to.
Bluebell, Twig, and Jas are spending the summer in Devon like they do every year, but for Bluebell, this isn't the year she thought everything would be back to normal, half the family is missing, and the time spent at Grandmas just isn't the same. All About Pumpkin is a very aptly named book, as although Pumpkin isn't around much, he is on everyone's minds. Whether they are missing him and worried he will forget about his siblings, or that they are worried he is a replacement for the sibling they lost, or just a replacement for a child that they already have. He takes up a lot of thier Mums time, and when they do get chance to talk it is all about Pumpkin.
Lizzie, and her son, Skye, are Grandma's nearest neighbours. With Skye, and his cousin Ollie, helping Grandma, the Gadsby's will be seeing a lot of this duo. Bareback horse riding, swimming in streams, and accidents galore, this summer is set to be an adventurous one. Bot everything is perfect, and signs start to appear to indicate the Grandma hasn't fully recovered from her fall, about halfway though the book it had to be one of the saddest parts of the book so far that I had read. I cried with what was happening and what was being experienced. But I was so proud of Bluebell for being the strong one for finding help and making sure her siblings were OK.
All About Pumpkin was exactly what I expected from Natasha Farrant, but also from the Gadsby family. I loved getting to join this family again, and although they are divided, the adventures, the mischief, the usual antics somehow end up being even more impressive, and dangerous. I loved the setting this book is told in, it's picturesque scenery, old rambling house, and of course, the horses. The friendships they make with some characters seem like they would stand the test of time, while others were only in it for the moment. I liked how it all ended, how this huge plan of deception was made, but fit in perfectly with the characters it involves, and makes for happy families all round.
Final Verdict
This series has been unputdownable from the very first book, and although All About Pumpkin has a final note in it, I would never turn down another addition to this series. This family will entertain readers of all ages, and the children are sure to inspire younger readers with ideas of adventures they can get up to.
February 19, 2017
Nice read
December 10, 2015
Stories revolving around families never fail to make me laugh and cry (both happy and sad tears), so Pumpkin's tale was just one of those. I started the tale expecting to be with Pumpkin all the time, but as you can see from the summary Pumpkin isn't always there in present. Pumpkin was in Bluebell and her siblings thoughts and feelings, just because well, if Pumpkin wasn't about then their mum would be with them. But then they wouldn't experience not being monitored as strictly as normal, which is great fun, except for when their grandmother's actions start to worry them.
There is the usual sibling banter and disagreements, yet at the end of the day no matter what happens they are all family and love each other very much. There were several 'eeep' moments where I thought everything was going to go wrong - sometimes it did, but it wasn't forever. You'll need a few tissues though! Bluebell and her siblings do more than just have fun that summer, they get to know and love each other a little better while facing the trials that only life can bring. I'll be adding the other books in the series to my wish list as I want to know more about Bluebell and her family!
I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review on my blog Nayu's Reading Corner http://nayusreadingcorner.blogspot.co...
There is the usual sibling banter and disagreements, yet at the end of the day no matter what happens they are all family and love each other very much. There were several 'eeep' moments where I thought everything was going to go wrong - sometimes it did, but it wasn't forever. You'll need a few tissues though! Bluebell and her siblings do more than just have fun that summer, they get to know and love each other a little better while facing the trials that only life can bring. I'll be adding the other books in the series to my wish list as I want to know more about Bluebell and her family!
I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review on my blog Nayu's Reading Corner http://nayusreadingcorner.blogspot.co...
September 18, 2015
Welcome back to the Gadsby Family. After the first few pages you’ll feel like you never left them. By the time Jas and Twig are arguing it’ll be all back to normal, well Gadsby Family normal, and that warm fuzzy feeling you have reading this series is in full swing.
Bluebell continues to narrate with video transcripts and in her diary. In All About Pumkin Blue’s 14 and with Flora abroad with their dad, this makes Blue the eldest. Her, Jas and Twig have been sent to their grandmother to stay.
All About Pumpkin took me on a journey through happiness, sweet nostalgia (there is something very lovely about the adventures Blue and her siblings have, swimming, horse-riding, etc.) concern, hilarity and hope. I thought this story was a little more serious in some ways than the previous books, though of course there were some truly ‘Gadsby moments’ to keep you smiling.
I love how much Natasha Farrant has made me care about this fictional family (though admittedly the parents less since reading Pumpkin) and I hope there are more books to come, because the Gadsby Series just keeps getting better.
Bluebell continues to narrate with video transcripts and in her diary. In All About Pumkin Blue’s 14 and with Flora abroad with their dad, this makes Blue the eldest. Her, Jas and Twig have been sent to their grandmother to stay.
All About Pumpkin took me on a journey through happiness, sweet nostalgia (there is something very lovely about the adventures Blue and her siblings have, swimming, horse-riding, etc.) concern, hilarity and hope. I thought this story was a little more serious in some ways than the previous books, though of course there were some truly ‘Gadsby moments’ to keep you smiling.
I love how much Natasha Farrant has made me care about this fictional family (though admittedly the parents less since reading Pumpkin) and I hope there are more books to come, because the Gadsby Series just keeps getting better.
June 15, 2021
A really light hearted summery read that made me feel some great emotions and thoroughly enjoyed! This book is primarily set in the countryside, which does not really interest me, so I was surprised that I liked it so much. I think a big part of my enjoyment was because of the season I am currently in (Summer) so it made me feel warm and happy. I probably wouldn’t pick up the rest of the books but I thoroughly enjoyed this one!
November 30, 2015
Another lovely instalment of the gadsby family.
January 4, 2016
As heartwarming and wonderful as the first two in the series. I will always want more of the Gadsby family.
March 13, 2016
This is a funny book that has incredibly relateable characters and continues the story well. The events that occur are slightly on the ridiculous side, but this adds humour to the storyline.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews