The Little Colonel's House Party

The Little Colonel #3

by Annie Fellows Johnston, Louis Meynell (Illustrator)

As one of the gifts for her eleventh birthday Lloyd Sherman, the Little Colonel, is given permission to hold her very own house party.

She invites her closest friends from all over the country--Eugenia Forbes of New York City, Joyce Ware of Plainsville, Kansas, and Beth Lewis of Jaynes, Kentucky--to her home in Lloydsboro Valley, Kentucky for her special event.

Over the course of the weekend the four girls learn that, though they are very different, they all have much in common, and also teach each other the true meaning of friendship.

Genres: Childrens, Fiction, Juvenile, Classics

274 pages, Hardback

Published January 1, 1900

About the author

Annie Fellows Johnston (1863-1931) was an American author of children's fiction who wrote the popular "Little Colonel" series, which was the basis for the 1935 Shirley Temple film The Little Colonel. She was born and grew up in McCutchanville, Indiana, a small unincorporated town near Evansville, Indiana.

Reviews

[Magda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had forgotten how sweet these books are. The children are portrayed as normal, but struggling (with the help of their parents and other adults) to become better, not necessarily for the sake of "being good" but because they see the benefit of it for themselves.

Lloyd, Eugenia, Joyce, and Betty all get together for a house party at Locust (Lloyd's home in Kentucky). Eugenia convinces the others to go against Lloyd's mother's wishes (except Betty, who had spoken to Lloyd's mother in person also). They struggle through the consequences (measles caught at the gypsy camp), but when Betty also falls sick with the measles, her cheerfulness in the face of nearly becoming blind forces them to reconsider how they live.

It's refreshing to have children who aren't Elsie Dinsmores try to be saints, even though they don't call it that.

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was a child every Christmas Eve I would read either this book or "Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm" because I would be incapable of sleeping that night. My copy, from 1916, is now battered and taped, but this year it called to me for a re-read. Having done so I am struck by just how much this sweet little book, very much a product of its turn-of-the-century time frame, has affected me over the years. It's really the tale of how one poor, orphan girl's goal of building her own "road of loving kindness" changes the lives of everyone around her. I still love it.

[Laurie Bz · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing isn't too bad in this book. It definitely has that 19th century moral tone--be kind, help the poor, etc., yet the characters are not perfect like Elsie Dinsmore.

HOWEVER. The racism and classism just DRIPS off this book. There is a (not so) subtle glorification of the Confederacy, with the references to Lloyd's grandfather, the (regular) Colonel, missing an arm, which he lost in his fight for the "cause he loved so much." (ugh) Looking at it now, these books probably served as part of the propaganda to romanticize the South in the backlash post-Reconstruction.

Being rich and having lots of leisure time and ability to live "graciously" with fancy clothes, etc., is presented as the only real way for "civilized" people to live. Others are considered not really worthy of associating with, unless they are at the receiving end of your charity.

There are black servants at the estate, and though they are clearly not actual slaves (it's 1900 already) they might as well be, for the way they are described. If they are given personalities at all, they are super stereotyped. There is one very horrifying scene in this book where they have a "pillowcase" party. Many friends and neighbors are invited to a kind of masquerade, where everyone comes draped in sheets and pillowcases, and they "bid" on each other to get a partner for the games. It's framed as an innocent party where people are trying to guess each other's identity and ending up with different partners than they thought. Yet, yikes! Even if the servants were informed about the party, and they probably were, since they had to set things up, make food, etc., can you imagine how terrifying for them for crowds of people in white sheets and hoods to be coming up the driveway? How incredibly thoughtless. Unless, of course, you didn't consider the servants to be actual people...

AND--how odd that Lloyd turns out not to be the main character. This book is much more about Lloyd's guests at the party and their own back stories.

From a historical perspective, I am glad to have read it, but I would definitely NOT give this to a child without a great deal of context. The lessons of be kind and helpful do not seem to extend to those who don't look like you.

[Joan Carrigan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a childhood book of my mother who was born in 1926. It was one in a series of 'Little Colonel' books and told of the activities and lives of children from an earlier era. Well-written but reflects the language, social mores and manners and attitudes of a bygone time. Interesting to read a book that my mother enjoyed in her youth. She kept many of these volumes the entirety of her life.

[Richie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an especially cute Little Colonel story. Made me tear up. Love the Road to the Loving Heart story and how the girls change over the story.

[Robyn Harrison · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can see why I loved this 50 years ago. Now it's a bit too sugary and moralistic.

[Kati Polodna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I want a house party! This reminded me of some of the later Betsy-Tacy novels, which I adored.

[Jeremiah (Star struck and VERY smitten Cowboy) · Rating 5 out of 5]

👏👏👏👏👏👏

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

These books, written in the late 1890's, were given to me when I was 5 years old, perhaps younger, in the mid-1940's. They had belonged to a neighbor whom I greatly admired. I didn't start reading them until I was 8 or older and then just fell in love with them. I still have the books, although the set was not complete. This is the series of books that gave me the love of reading I have to this day. Thank you, Frederica.

[Abigail · Rating 5 out of 5]

the little colonel is so comforting -- and historically interesting, too. i spent quite a while researching what betty might have had the first time she had the measles (since you really can't get it twice), and, thanks to my previous reading, i think she might actually have had variola minor, which was going around the area at the time. connections!

[CLM · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read Carney's House Party first, and obviously came to this series via Maud Hart Lovelace but now own nearly all of them.

[Diana Lambert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written older book - much vocabulary. Enjoyed the morals in the story. It would be fun to hear a 'tween' readers review!

[Marti Wade]

Silly, dated, etc. But mentioned in another book I loved as a child... so in searching for easy reads that are free and fun and pass the time, I picked up this one. Sweet.

[James P. Howard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, simple read that paints a colorful picture of Edwardian simplicity.

[Mark Schumacher]

A gorgeous cover design !! www.amysacker.net