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When Mischief Came to Town

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In the tradition of Anne of Green Gables and Pippi Longstocking comes a heart-warming novel about love, family, grief, joy and the power of laughter and imagination.

When Inge Maria arrives on the tiny island of Bornholm in Denmark to live with her grandmother, she's not sure what to expect. Her grandmother is stern, the people on the island are strange, and children are supposed to be seen and not heard. But no matter how hard Inge tries to be good, mischief has a way of finding her. Could it be that a bit of mischief is exactly what Grandmother and the people of Bornholm need?

180 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2013

53 people are currently reading
1536 people want to read

About the author

Katrina Nannestad

43 books201 followers
Katrina Nannestad is an award-winning Australian author. Her books include The Girl Who Brought Mischief, the Girl, the Dog and the Writer series, the Olive of Groves series, the Red Dirt Diaries series, the Lottie Perkins series and Bungaloo Creek.

Katrina grew up in country New South Wales in a neighborhood stuffed full of happy children. Her adult years have been spent teaching, raising boys, perfecting her recipe for chocolate-chip bickies and pursuing her love of stories. She now lives near Bendigo with her family and an exuberant black whippet called Olive.

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5 stars
545 (47%)
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426 (37%)
3 stars
141 (12%)
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22 (1%)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 267 reviews
Profile Image for Morgan.
616 reviews
March 8, 2016
I know I'm not the only one who hugs special books when they're finished reading them - and I was just starting to think I'd never hug a book again when I finally decided to read Mischief (after my mom had been gently suggesting for weeks that it was worth a try) and I only stopped hugging it long enough to hop onto GoodReads and give it five stars. For me, this little story is perfect - in tone, in message, in Inge (our plucky little weirdo of a heroine), in its celebration of fairy tales and food and fun...as bittersweet and wise as it is clever and funny, this old-fashioned story of love and family is like the first signs of spring after a slushy, gray winter. A great readalike for fans of Bo at Ballard Creek, gentle historical fiction, or classic children's lit.

"If we didn't have anyone special in our lives we would never be sad. But we would never be happy either."

"It is the first day of July. Summer is frolicking across the island. The sun is shining and the breeze is warm and sweet with the scent of blossoms. We are sitting around the edge of a blue picnic blanket and the middle is filled with bread and butter, almond cake, wedges of cheese, gingerbread turkeys, and strawberry Danishes." <-- I want to go to there

"Tears and laughter.
Grief and joy.
Loss and love.
It's all right to have both.
I know that now."
Profile Image for Wendi Lee.
Author 1 book480 followers
September 15, 2019
This was a really cute middle grade novel about a recently orphaned girl, Inge Maria, going to live with a grandmother she has never before met. Inge Maria was a character full of imagination and spunk (think Anne of Green Gables), thanking her silverware and trying her best to be "good," but never quite succeeding. I liked the message of being wild and your own person, versus trying to conform to what society (the novel took place in 1911) deemed girls or women should be.

Read for my stepson's Battle of Books competition.
Profile Image for fateme.sadat.
42 reviews
November 11, 2022
_ وروجک تازه‌وارد/ترجمه زهرا ساعدی/نشرپرتقال


_ تا صفحه۷۲، دائم از ذهنم می‌گذشت که خوندن این کتاب، بهترین هدیه به خودم تو روز تولدم بود
شیطنت‌ها و ذهن خلاق ماریا، منو یاد آنه‌شرلی می‌انداخت و به همون اندازه عاشقش میشدم، حسابی رفته بودم تو حال و هوای سرخوش کودکی و دقایقی بی‌خیالِ اخبار و حواشی این روزها که یهو تو فصل ۱۰ (ص۷۳) ماریای شیطون و جسور، به نشانه اعتراض نسبت به فضای خشک مدرسه و تبعیض و بی‌عدالتی در حق دختران، موهاشو با قیچیِ برنجی تا ته میزنه :/ اینچنین باز گره خوردم به حال و دیگه حتی پایان گل و بلبل داستان دلم‌رو خنک نکرد...

_ ۲۰آبان۱۴۰۱
Profile Image for Sarah.
1,148 reviews
May 20, 2016
THis book was charming, heartfelt, and funny. Surely it will get comparisons to Pippi Longstocking-mischievous Scandinavian girl- but I liked Inge Maria much better than Pippi. I thought the way Inge Maria's grief over losing her mother was very believable and touching and it wove together effortlessly with the the humorous stories of the scrapes she gets into. The details of 1911 Bornholm were fascinating to us (I read this aloud with my daughter.)
Profile Image for Mary Moreno.
189 reviews2 followers
July 17, 2016
I read this book out loud to my two girls and we all loved it! This reminded me of Heidi, and Anne of Green Gables, but was written in a more modern style, and had some very funny moments that had my girls belly laughing. We also learned about life in Denmark in the early part of the 1900s, and that was interesting too. I think this book will be a classic.
Profile Image for Laura.
233 reviews6 followers
October 21, 2017
A delightful story that brought to mind the characters Anne Shirley and Pippi Longstocking. This one took place in Denmark in 1911. Made me smile.
Profile Image for Els.
299 reviews2 followers
October 29, 2018
THIS WAS SO CUTE OKAY my face is as pink as Inge Maria's in the cover (though I think her having two braids is false advertising? Like she lost one two sentences into the book?) and I read it through in one sitting last night. It's a children's book, so don't expect billowing prose, but land sakes it was so perfect and funny and - Nannestad just captured being a precocious ten-year-old. Expect farm shenanigans and cranky, darling old ladies and cute kids and three-legged-turkeys. IT'S DARLING.

I'm going to find myself an actual copy of this now since I have to return this book to Natalie (*weeps*) and this'll be my I'm-sad-and-need-to-pretend-I'm-four-again read for ages.
Profile Image for Pop Bop.
2,502 reviews125 followers
June 12, 2017
Move Over Heidi, Rebecca, Anne, and Pollyanna

I truly and earnestly believe that Heidi, Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, Anne of Green Gables, and Pollyanna are four of the most compelling, (and sadly now overlooked except maybe for Anne), girl heroines in all of middle grade fiction. This delightful book, which is perhaps aimed at a slightly younger readership, now adds Inge Maria to that pantheon.

Heidi is, of course, the gold standard when it comes to warming old, cold hearts. Rebecca has a dark side and enough mature themes that some publishers felt the need to reissue the original book in a bowdlerized form that made Rebecca more malleable and submissive. Pollyanna was a gimlet eyed realist, (the exact opposite of how she is remembered), who hid her pain and despair under a sunny disposition and faith in better times to come. Anne got the best deal of the four, but her grit and determination allowed her to make the best of a bad hand. Any girl raised on a diet of books like these is going to grow up to be a woman to be reckoned with.

This "Mischief..." book takes a lighter tour through that territory. It doesn't take too long, after scaring Inge and us about grandmother, to show us that the future will be bright and promising. It doesn't grind Inge down just so she can fight back. We share Inge's sadness about the loss of her parents, and her confusion and dismay about being relocated to a strange place with a stern grandparent. But, there is no meanness and there is no heartbreaking despair. In the other books I noted above there is a grim reality that slips in to the stories, and real tension regarding our heroines' fates. But in "Mischief..." we are gently promised and then regularly reassured that all will end well.

That's what I mean when I suggest that this is for a slightly younger crowd, and might serve as an excellent introduction to orphan girl heroines, loss, grief, and life reimagined. The author carries a number of arcs through the story, and the opening threads all tie up neatly by the end, but by presenting the story as a string of episodes the author allows for a fast pace, manageable set pieces, and a lot of pausing and breathing room for a young, ambitious reader. There is sort of a mini-story in each chapter, and the reader hardly realizes that the underlying tale of Inge Marie is building chapter by chapter to a powerful conclusion. This is just a beautiful structure for a middle grade book.

The writing is crisp, clear and direct, with enough color and whimsy and action to drive the story forward. There is wise and knowing humor here. While some scenes are broad and antic, our author is also skilled at deadpan, throwaway and ironic observations that breathe life and personality into the characters. Inge is observant, resourceful, stubborn, creative and self-possessed, and she breathes life and vitality into all of the other characters, (which is, of course, one of the main attractions and points of the story). Inge can be pert and rude, but is usually instructed regarding the difference between high spirits and going too far, and I didn't have a problem with this girrrlll power version of being a troublesome woman. I suspect most girl readers, or readers of any gender, won't either.

So, on every level I found this to be an entertaining and attractive work, and a refreshing and upbeat addition to the family shelf. (Please note that I received a free advance ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
Profile Image for Susan  Dunn.
2,073 reviews
July 11, 2016
10-year-old Inge Maria is sent to a small island in Denmark to live with her grandmother after her mother's death. At first the old woman seems grumpy and unhappy - not at all thrilled when the girl shows up in the first place - much less with one of her braids chewed off! From the start, Inge Maria is a handful; in addition to the hair incident (a goat on the ferry over to the island chewed it off when Inge Maria fell asleep), she feeds the pig an entire prune tart that was meant for dinner, almost kills their turkey with a misplaced wooden clog that comes off her foot and sails across the barn, and has a very hard time sitting still and keeping quiet in her strict new school. Inge Maria wonders if she'll ever feel at home in Bornholm - but the feisty little girl soon melts the hearts of everyone she meets. This delightful story will be a hit with fans of Pippi Longstocking and is a great choice for readers in grades 4 - 6.
Profile Image for Darla.
4,827 reviews1,234 followers
February 26, 2017
This is such a heartwarming read and as many have described it -- a combination of Anne of Green Gables and Pippi Longstocking. Inge Marie does get into lots of mischief and her grandmother helps her realize that you don't have to be a perfect child to be loved. The adventures Inge Marie has with her grandmother, the farm animals, her friend Klaus and other islanders are delightful.

A great book for a readaloud!
Profile Image for Angie.
3,696 reviews53 followers
May 18, 2018
Igne Marie has moved to the small town of Bornholm to live with her grandmother after her mother dies. At first it seems grandmother is a stern old woman who doesn't know how to handle active, imaginative Igne Marie. But there is a twinkle in her eye and her name is Dizzy. Igne Marie gets into all kinds of trouble like having a goat eat half her hair and almost killing the turkey with a clog. She also causes mischief at school when she rebels against the constraining rules about what girls can and cannot do. She befriends orphan Klaus and helps him find a family. Slowly and surely she realizes her grief is lessening and her love for her grandmother is growing.

This reminded me of classics like Heidi, Anne of Green Gables and Pollyanna. It is a gentle story with a classic feel. Igne Marie is good hearted but gets into a lot of mischief and along the way she pulls the adults around her out of their shells. I really appreciated the growing relationship with her grandmother and the fact that while grandma may seem stern she is anything but. She has such a soft heart she lets a turkey stay in the house!
Profile Image for Caitlin.
103 reviews7 followers
April 14, 2018
Was a great read-aloud and my kids remembered the story even if we had a week(s) between reading sessions. My kids are pretty sensitive and knew right away the part about her mother dying, subtle as it was in the beginning. I had to skip a few sentences about her sorrow and quite a bit in the last couple chapters, but on the whole, lovely and inspirational and I would recommend it to anyone, adult and child alike.
Profile Image for Laura.
935 reviews135 followers
May 22, 2017
If we shelved books next to their nearest kin, this book would belong somewhere between Pippi Longstocking and Anne of Green Gables. The protagonist brings just the right amount of whimsy and mischief to add unexpected color back into the lives of those who are old enough to know better. My 7 year old enjoyed it so much she wanted to trace the cover before she took it back to the library.
Profile Image for Jenny.
3,364 reviews39 followers
June 7, 2017
A sweet story of a clever, curious, mischievous girl who comes to live with her grandmother. At first her grandmother is strict and seems annoyed and angry with each thing Inge Maria does, but soon Inge Maria comes to see that her grandmother also has a curious, mischievous side. Over time, their relationship grows. Equal parts touching and humorous, this is worth reading.
Profile Image for Kimberly.
252 reviews
October 26, 2025
Sweet, endearing, gentle, wholesome, heartfelt, rollicking, good fun. What a joy this book is. I recommend this for everyone!

My only critiques: (1 I wish it was just a smidge longer with a bit more of my favorite characters, and (2 that there was a more grounded answer to loss, especially considering this takes place in 1911 in a village where going to church was the norm. The answer is relevant for today, too.
Profile Image for Ms. B.
3,749 reviews76 followers
February 17, 2020
A humorous look at what happens when an energetic little girl, Inge Maria goes to live with her grandmother after both her parents past away. Trouble seems to follow Inge Maria everywhere. What will happen if she's too much for her grandmother to handle?
Give this one to young readers in need of age-appropriate chapter books. Or those looking for stories with spunky female protagonists (i.e. Pippi Longstocking without the magical realism).
Profile Image for Melanie.
528 reviews30 followers
March 16, 2022
what an adorable book. Its beautiful happy and sad- which is really all we can ask for in a good book. If you are craving a bit of Anne and Marilla, this book is just right for you.

(P174)
Tears and laughter.
Grief and joy.
Loss and love.
It's all right to have both.
I know that now.

Profile Image for Sedighe Vazehi.
176 reviews40 followers
April 15, 2024
من ترجمه فارسی این کتاب رو خوندم ولی اینجا پیدا نکردمش.
داستان جالبی بود.
ترکیبی از خلاقیت، هیجان و سوگ.
.
خطر لو رفتن داستان:
قصه درباره دختریه که بعد از فوت والدینش میاد روستا تا با مادربزرگش زندگی کنه. دختر که اسمش اینگه ماریاست بسیار شیطونه و عاشق داستان‌های هانس کریستین اندرسون.
Profile Image for Andi.
87 reviews
November 26, 2017
A very charming story that reminded me of Pippi Longstocking. A great read for a youngster who may enjoy a sweet story about loss and the love of a family.
Profile Image for Venus.
500 reviews4 followers
September 21, 2016
Review originally posted on Children's Atheneum

I am not entirely sure what I expected when I started this book. Based on the cover, I think something Pippi Longstocking-esque based on the cover and setting perhaps. There was definitely some Pippi Longstocking-like shenanigans going on, but there was also a great deal of pathos that made the story beautifully heavy in places. Inge desperately missed her mom and although she is moving on with her life, that longing doesn't go away overnight. There were numerous time throughout the book where I teared up or full on cried as Inge comes to terms with the loss of her mother. There is also this wonderful character in the grandmother who may seem rather stern in the beginning, but as the story continues one can see the twinkle in her eye before Inge is even aware of it. The grandmother has the nickname of Dizzy and it turns out that Inge and her grandmother may have a lot more in common than Inga first thought. There is also an additional storyline that deals with what happens to orphaned children that don't have a safety net and how they need a family too.

As I have said before, because my husband and I are in the middle of the adoption process, I am much harsher on books with adoption themes. This book was perfect in that respect. It deals with the loss, doesn't shy away from issues, shows different types of adoption, and still had a wonderful story behind it full of fun mischief and a wonderful little girl. And for the modern American reader, it is just distant enough from our home and time period to not be so immediate for children who may be dealing with the same issues.
Profile Image for Hillary.
189 reviews5 followers
February 10, 2016
I will start this review by saying that I won this book through a goodreads giveaway.

It is about a young girl named Inge Maria Jenson, who has to learn to get used to living in an unfamiliar new city while learning to live with her old-fashioned grandmother after the death of her mother.

This book is intended for ages 9-12, I am older than that age group, however, I do find that this book is an easy read even for kids and is a very well written story about grief, acceptance, change and freidnship that I believe children can and will understand. I find that it is also the perfect length for a childrens book. It is not too short, yet not too too long either.

This is overall a great childrens book. The author did a great job of taking confusing topics for kids, such as death, and making it kid friendly so that they can uderstand it.

I recommend for teachers to suggest this book for their lessons and for parents to pick up this book up for their kids, they will definitely learn a thing or two from reading this book. :)
Profile Image for Gina.
1,361 reviews32 followers
February 4, 2016
Inge Maria is one big part Pippi Longstocking (crazy antics and forward thinking beliefs), one part Heidi (girl getting to live with her grandparent in a cottage with goats), and a small pinch of Anne Shirley (the feistiness and the school room sass). I loved the Scandinavian setting!

The story is a simple one and felt like more isolated incidents with moral lessons (basically Inge Maria causes mischief in each chapter without meaning to, oh no) but I loved the real treatment of grief and emotion (Inge's parents have died) and all of the food descriptions. If a children's book describes, oatmeal and honey, goat cheese, toast and jam, hot chocolate, thick filling stews, etc... I AM IN!
Profile Image for Lisa.
3,785 reviews491 followers
July 23, 2013
A little heavy-handed with the moralising and the Worthy Messages but otherwise a pleasant little story about a little orphan who softens her frosty granny's heart and livens up a rigid Danish country town.
I can think of a couple of little girls who might like it, but they're the kind of girls who'd read anything.
The boys wouldn't bother.
Profile Image for Courtney Nicole.
326 reviews4 followers
June 3, 2016
I liked the first half, but then the story got repetitive: girl causes mischief/girl thinks she will be punished/ the old people laugh and everyone chuckles. I got pretty bored towards the end.

Some nice things about this book in terms of recommending: beautiful cover, short, empathy moments, nothing too crazy, life lessons. Good to recommend to kids with Scandinavian roots.

Profile Image for Kate.
607 reviews129 followers
December 15, 2015
When Mischief Came to Town is a very sweet book geared, it says on the back of the book, for readers ages 9-12. I think it trends towards the low end of that range. It would be a great book for parents to read aloud to kids ages 7- or 8-ish. I love stories about impish girls (think Pippi Longstocking) and while the character of Inge Marie might not stick with me long, she is wonderfully impish.
Profile Image for Annina Luck Wildermuth.
255 reviews4 followers
February 28, 2016
This book takes me back to Heidi and Pippi Longstocking a bit--a loving but mischievous 10 year old girl, Inge Maria, and her grandmother on a farm. The farm is on a little island in Denmark in 1911. I was especially moved, though, not as much by Inge Maria but by Klaus, a little boy on the island.

This is a nice young Middle Grade read.
Profile Image for Ali.
1,088 reviews7 followers
July 10, 2015
I really liked the characters and setting in this book, it was like a fairy tale in 1911 Denmark. Some of it very cute while dealing with issues of parents dying. It just didn't completely gel for me.
Profile Image for Wrenna.
19 reviews
March 6, 2016
This book is about a girl who went to live with her grandmother in a town where girls aren't allowed to run around and do those kinds of things. So she gets mischievous. I didn't like that she wasn't allowed to run around -- it's one of my favorite things to do.
Profile Image for Brenda.
49 reviews4 followers
March 13, 2016
This book was everything I love: cheese, apples, pastries, Scandinavia, history, fairy tales, family and farm animals.

"Tears and laughter.
Grief and joy.
Loss and love.
It's all right to have both.
I know that now."
Displaying 1 - 30 of 267 reviews

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