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All Over Town
A ten-year-old girl living in a small town at the turn of the century finds her quiet life drastically changed when the new minister's two sons begin to include her in their escapades.
291 pages, Library Binding
First published January 1, 1939
88 people want to read
About the author
Carol Ryrie Brink
65 books178 followersBorn Caroline Ryrie, American author of over 30 juvenile and adult books. Her novel Caddie Woodlawn won the 1936 Newbery Medal.
Brink was orphaned by age 8 and raised by her maternal grandmother, the model for Caddie Woodlawn. She started writing for her school newspapers and continued that in college. She attended the University of Idaho for three years before transferring to the University of California in 1917, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1918, the same year she married.
Anything Can Happen on the River, Brink's first novel, was published in 1934. She was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of Idaho in 1965. Brink Hall, which houses the UI English Department and faculty offices, is named in her honor. The children's section of the Moscow, ID Carnegie public library is also named after her.
Brink was orphaned by age 8 and raised by her maternal grandmother, the model for Caddie Woodlawn. She started writing for her school newspapers and continued that in college. She attended the University of Idaho for three years before transferring to the University of California in 1917, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1918, the same year she married.
Anything Can Happen on the River, Brink's first novel, was published in 1934. She was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of Idaho in 1965. Brink Hall, which houses the UI English Department and faculty offices, is named in her honor. The children's section of the Moscow, ID Carnegie public library is also named after her.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
November 1, 2019
Laughs, heartwarming, suspense, mystery... all the feels!!! GREAT book!!
Review and Cleanliness Report coming soon!
Review and Cleanliness Report coming soon!
March 11, 2017
Fun children's read!
September 6, 2021
2.5 stars
This book was fun, but there was a lot of talk about “luck” and lucky objects. The children all believed in luck and while the adults might say they didn’t believe in it, they never taught their children any better. And even the visiting missionary aunt give the children things that she says people consider good luck.
There are pets who die because someone goes around town poisoning dogs. The Chinese vegetable seller is a stereotypical oriental who is called by some people a “yellow heathen.” The minister’s two sons (both main characters) are your typical mischievous boys who get into all sorts of mischief and scrapes.
There are fun things that happen and some of the mischief was innocent and accidental.
Overall, it was fun to read, but I don’t think I’ll want to read it again.
This book was fun, but there was a lot of talk about “luck” and lucky objects. The children all believed in luck and while the adults might say they didn’t believe in it, they never taught their children any better. And even the visiting missionary aunt give the children things that she says people consider good luck.
There are pets who die because someone goes around town poisoning dogs. The Chinese vegetable seller is a stereotypical oriental who is called by some people a “yellow heathen.” The minister’s two sons (both main characters) are your typical mischievous boys who get into all sorts of mischief and scrapes.
There are fun things that happen and some of the mischief was innocent and accidental.
Overall, it was fun to read, but I don’t think I’ll want to read it again.
September 18, 2022
I was excited to read this because Carol Ryrie Brink based Warsaw on her hometown—where I was also raised! This was the most believable book about children that I’ve read this year, but it also has the most casual racism, which was very jarring. I was not prepared for the pet death in the story and I wish I had a warning, I have a very tender heart and got very upset by it.
March 13, 2012
Enjoyable read about early 1900s small town life.
August 8, 2023
2.5 stars, rounded up.
This book had some fun moments, but I didn't find it nearly as entertaining or funny as some of Brink's other works, and I was surprised by the amount of casual racism in the story, even with the forewarning I had from Goodreads reviews. In some old books, racial content is part of the author's representation of a time and place, even when they're not self-aware about it. Here, it felt jarring and completely extraneous. The racist stuff is almost never remotely relevant to the plot or characters, and it's distracting and unnecessary.
On that note, I was also surprised by how weak Brink's characters are here. The minister's two boys are completely interchangeable, and the girl character is forgettable as well, without much characterization beyond her desire to do unladylike things with her male friends. The story picked up towards the end, and the last few chapters were quite entertaining, but the book as a whole is not impressive. I can see why this is one of Brink's mostly forgotten works.
This book had some fun moments, but I didn't find it nearly as entertaining or funny as some of Brink's other works, and I was surprised by the amount of casual racism in the story, even with the forewarning I had from Goodreads reviews. In some old books, racial content is part of the author's representation of a time and place, even when they're not self-aware about it. Here, it felt jarring and completely extraneous. The racist stuff is almost never remotely relevant to the plot or characters, and it's distracting and unnecessary.
On that note, I was also surprised by how weak Brink's characters are here. The minister's two boys are completely interchangeable, and the girl character is forgettable as well, without much characterization beyond her desire to do unladylike things with her male friends. The story picked up towards the end, and the last few chapters were quite entertaining, but the book as a whole is not impressive. I can see why this is one of Brink's mostly forgotten works.
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August 20, 2023This 1939 book describes the adventures of three youngsters growing up in Warsaw Junction (likely a fictionalized version of Moscow, Idaho) in the time before the town had its first automobile. The last sentence of this book is, "Happy and thrilled, they were on their way into a new era."
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews