What do you think?
Rate this book
Ms. Rapscott's Girls #1
Ms. Rapscott's Girls
Fans of Mary Poppins will love this whimsical tale of a boarding school for children of very busy parents, where an extraordinary headmistress teaches them life lessons about courage, adventure, friendship . . . and the importance of birthday cake.Nestled inside a lighthouse, Great Rapscott School for the Daughters of Busy Parents takes its motto from Amelia Adventure is worthwhile in itself. Headmistress Ms. Rapscott couldn’t agree more, but her students, who are shipped to the school in boxes, could use a little convincing. Still, despite their initial reluctance, the students are soon soaring through the sky and getting lost on purpose. In addition to learning what birthday cakes are and how best to approach a bumbershoot tree, the students also manage to learn a little something about strength and bravery.Bestselling author Elise Primavera has created an irresistible, richly illustrated story about finding your way.
145 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 1, 2015
25 people are currently reading
1451 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 308 reviews
February 7, 2015
Mary Poppins, Nanny McPhee, Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle - there is a proud tradition of stories about adults who teach children lessons in unusual ways. Ms. Rapscott has now joined this group with her odd boarding school for girls of busy parents. She does things in such strange ways, like sending packing boxes in which the students are shipped to school, feeding the girls birthday cake and ice cream every morning, or deliberately trying to have bad luck. And her students are all bewildered by life away from home. The girls' parents are professional exercisers, singing chefs, bloggers, raising two sets of octuplets, or prominent cosmetic surgeons. They are all much too busy to pay attention to their daughters. Receiving a notice that their girls have been accepted to a school with "a unique curriculum designed solely for" them must seem wonderfully convenient. The girls arrive with some very bad habits, but Ms. Rapscott takes it all in stride, even when one of the girls is lost from her box during shipment. And the lessons she teaches range from poaching an egg to how to cross the street without getting squashed. During the course there are disagreements and rivalries among the girls, terrible weather, thank-you notes, and exploring Less Traveled Road.
The characters are amusing, the action is adventurous, and I wouldn't mind signing up for a semester at Rapscott's School myself. Who wouldn't want to live for a while in a big lighthouse with two corgis who can keep checklists, tie rain bonnets, and make tea? (And they look rather dashing in their fisherman's sweaters.) I hope there is another book to follow the girls into the next semester.
I read an e-book provided by the publisher through NetGalley.
The characters are amusing, the action is adventurous, and I wouldn't mind signing up for a semester at Rapscott's School myself. Who wouldn't want to live for a while in a big lighthouse with two corgis who can keep checklists, tie rain bonnets, and make tea? (And they look rather dashing in their fisherman's sweaters.) I hope there is another book to follow the girls into the next semester.
I read an e-book provided by the publisher through NetGalley.
June 5, 2016
I'm giving this 3 stars because I liked it...and I also didn't like it. I think my 7-year-old self would have adored this book. My adult self thinks it suffers from Trying to Be Clever. I like that the story is incredibly positive. There are a few moments where the girls are snippy with each other, but only because they don't know better. Nothing is inappropriate or grotesque, which is a plus for me. However, it's clear that Elise Primavera is doing her best to emulate her favorite clever authors. The writing comes across as overly self-aware and somewhat contrived. This book wants to be charming and quirky so badly; as a result, it feels like it's trying very hard to be charming, and quirky. That being said, I don't think I would have noticed that when I was a kid. I would have thought it was fun, and I would have adored the corgis, Lewis & Clark. I'd recommend it to first- and second-graders who are great readers, or third-graders who aren't very independent readers. It's probably too young of a book for anyone older than 3rd grade.
May 30, 2019
What a treat this book is! I needed a diversion when I picked it up and it was just the thing to keep me from weeping over another book (see my review for How to Be a Good Creature).
Ms. Rapscott runs a school for the daughters of the busiest people in the world, who arrive in special boxes on the porch of her lighthouse in need of learning some of life’s most important lessons—like how to keep a secret…and how to eat birthday cake and ice cream for breakfast. Ms. Rapscott and her assistants—corgis named Lewis and Clark, who reminded me of Gromit; yes, chuckles of this sort abound—lead Bea, Mildred, Fay, and Annabelle on various adventures, including on a search for the person who was supposed to be in the fifth box to arrive—Dahlia, whose parents were so busy that they forgot to seal her box.
Although the wonderfully named author Elise Primavera is an American, the tone and the story are very English; in fact, the book reminded me very much of what I remember of the Mary Poppins tales. And the pencil illustrations—at least, I think they’re pencil—are very fun. One of my favorite things about this book, in fact, is the series of illustrations that appears before the actual story begins.
I see that the book is intended for grades 3–6; oh, well, no matter—I would have enjoyed it when I was nine and I enjoyed it a few days ago. It’s simply fun…smile-inducing fun.
Ms. Rapscott runs a school for the daughters of the busiest people in the world, who arrive in special boxes on the porch of her lighthouse in need of learning some of life’s most important lessons—like how to keep a secret…and how to eat birthday cake and ice cream for breakfast. Ms. Rapscott and her assistants—corgis named Lewis and Clark, who reminded me of Gromit; yes, chuckles of this sort abound—lead Bea, Mildred, Fay, and Annabelle on various adventures, including on a search for the person who was supposed to be in the fifth box to arrive—Dahlia, whose parents were so busy that they forgot to seal her box.
Although the wonderfully named author Elise Primavera is an American, the tone and the story are very English; in fact, the book reminded me very much of what I remember of the Mary Poppins tales. And the pencil illustrations—at least, I think they’re pencil—are very fun. One of my favorite things about this book, in fact, is the series of illustrations that appears before the actual story begins.
I see that the book is intended for grades 3–6; oh, well, no matter—I would have enjoyed it when I was nine and I enjoyed it a few days ago. It’s simply fun…smile-inducing fun.
December 5, 2019
”’You will never be afraid of getting lost if you know how to find your way!’”
3.5. out of 5 stars
What an utterly charming read.
Where do little girls whose parents are too busy to take care of them go? To the Great Rapscott School for the Daughter of Busy Parents, of course! Under the guidance of the ever enthusiastic and exuberant Ms. Rapscott, four precocious youngsters will learn all about how to write a thank-you note, make a wish on a birthday cake, how to get lost (!!) and how to make mistakes on purpose. All these skills will be put to the test and more when they set out in search for one of their own. So grab your cheese and crackers, put on your galoshes and blow out your birthday candles, because adventures await with Ms. Rapscott and company.
Take chances, make mistakes, and get messy!!!
(Oops. That’s from Ms. Frizzle, not Ms. Rapscott!)
This book will charm the pants off of you, let me tell you. I mean, this book sounds like something I would have loved as a little girl (and some elements I love even as an adult reading this!). I mean, a school where you get to have ice cream and birthday cake for breakfast and a teacher that’s assisted by two Corgis? Heck to the yes!
Ms. Rapscott is a combination of Mary Poppins and Ms. Frizzle, which is not a problem at all in my book. She’s exuberant, relentlessly cheerful, unflappable, and energetic about everything she teaches these young ladies. She’s the kind of teacher I think every student wishes they had, because she’s unapologetically enthusiastic about everything. She had me excited about things I didn’t know I could be excited about, and I can see her appealing to those people nostalgic for Ms. Frizzle’s boundless energy.
Her four students are also equally as charming. Bea, Fay, Annabelle, and Mildred all are sent to Ms. Rapscott’s school by their eternally busy parents. They all had distinct personalities and it was so much fun to watch them grow and really blossom under Ms. Rapscott’s care. I do feel, however, that Annabelle could have used a little more character development, as I felt that she didn’t grow as much as the other characters.
One of the main missions of the Rapscott Girls is to not only learn how to be proper members of society, but to find (or not) Dahlia Thistle, the fifth student who gets horribly lost on her way to the school. The lessons learned and the adventures that ensue are both hilarious and insightful at the same time.
Ms. Rapscott and her girls will enchant you. With their endlessly engaging personalities and exciting, outlandish adventures, they’ll weasel their way into your heart and make you want to go on an adventure yourself.
That and you’ll want to immediately petition your work to make it mandatory that you have birthday cake and ice cream at least once a week served by Corgis.
3.5. out of 5 stars
What an utterly charming read.
Where do little girls whose parents are too busy to take care of them go? To the Great Rapscott School for the Daughter of Busy Parents, of course! Under the guidance of the ever enthusiastic and exuberant Ms. Rapscott, four precocious youngsters will learn all about how to write a thank-you note, make a wish on a birthday cake, how to get lost (!!) and how to make mistakes on purpose. All these skills will be put to the test and more when they set out in search for one of their own. So grab your cheese and crackers, put on your galoshes and blow out your birthday candles, because adventures await with Ms. Rapscott and company.
Take chances, make mistakes, and get messy!!!
(Oops. That’s from Ms. Frizzle, not Ms. Rapscott!)
This book will charm the pants off of you, let me tell you. I mean, this book sounds like something I would have loved as a little girl (and some elements I love even as an adult reading this!). I mean, a school where you get to have ice cream and birthday cake for breakfast and a teacher that’s assisted by two Corgis? Heck to the yes!
Ms. Rapscott is a combination of Mary Poppins and Ms. Frizzle, which is not a problem at all in my book. She’s exuberant, relentlessly cheerful, unflappable, and energetic about everything she teaches these young ladies. She’s the kind of teacher I think every student wishes they had, because she’s unapologetically enthusiastic about everything. She had me excited about things I didn’t know I could be excited about, and I can see her appealing to those people nostalgic for Ms. Frizzle’s boundless energy.
Her four students are also equally as charming. Bea, Fay, Annabelle, and Mildred all are sent to Ms. Rapscott’s school by their eternally busy parents. They all had distinct personalities and it was so much fun to watch them grow and really blossom under Ms. Rapscott’s care. I do feel, however, that Annabelle could have used a little more character development, as I felt that she didn’t grow as much as the other characters.
One of the main missions of the Rapscott Girls is to not only learn how to be proper members of society, but to find (or not) Dahlia Thistle, the fifth student who gets horribly lost on her way to the school. The lessons learned and the adventures that ensue are both hilarious and insightful at the same time.
Ms. Rapscott and her girls will enchant you. With their endlessly engaging personalities and exciting, outlandish adventures, they’ll weasel their way into your heart and make you want to go on an adventure yourself.
That and you’ll want to immediately petition your work to make it mandatory that you have birthday cake and ice cream at least once a week served by Corgis.
June 11, 2015
There is no need to apply to Great Rapscott School for the Daughters of Busy Parents. If you are among the few children whose parents are busy enough to qualify, they will fill out the application for you. They will also send you a box, into which your parents may seal you, so that the box may fly you directly to the school. The five little girls who make their way to Great Rapscott by these extraordinary means are a sad set of specimens, known for being loud, lazy, bumbling, and older/younger than their years, respectively. Fear not, though! Ms. Rapscott and her assisting corgis (Lewis and Clark) will straighten them out in no time.
Ms. Rapscott's Girls is like a literary fusion of Roald Dahl, P.L. Travers, and an amalgamation of every boarding school novel ever written. In fact, it's so thoroughly infused with the spirit of Roald Dahl that as I listened*, I couldn't help but picture the characters as if they were drawn by Quentin Blake. Like that of Dahl, Primavera's prose is full of keen satire and sharp wit, but it lacks Dahl's fatalism. In fact, she seems to be commenting on Dahl's worldview when she allows the children to break out of the awful qualities for which they are "known," and which are actually only bad habits they've gained through their parents' neglect.
That makes the novel sound darker and heavier than it is, though. It's really a confection of a book, filled with the aforementioned helpful corgis, bumbershoot trees, perilous parachute journeys, and wormholes that lead to the Alps. It's difficult to judge a book like this in terms of the Newbery criteria, in part because it doesn't feel like a very American book to me: this combination of satire and fancy is very British.
So: are the characters fully developed? Not according to the terms of realistic fiction, but for this genre, yes - and they experience growth over the course of the book. The settings are likewise both ridiculous and well-realized. Stylistically, the prose is highly derivative, but also sparkling and agile. Interestingly, for a book that's working within a potentially moralistic genre, the themes of self-reliance and self-determination are imparted with a light hand.
It feels like too slight a book to win a place in the Newbery pantheon. Also, though it's uplifting in the end, it has the kind of bite that doesn't play well in a typical Newbery book. But then again, the committees have been doing an admirable job of redefining "Newbery book," so who knows? Either way, it's lots of fun.
*Yes, I experienced this one, like so many others, as an audiobook. I have no idea what the illustrations look like, but I gather that it's heavily illustrated. Also, the audiobook is read by Katherine Kellgren, and it is wonderful.
Ms. Rapscott's Girls is like a literary fusion of Roald Dahl, P.L. Travers, and an amalgamation of every boarding school novel ever written. In fact, it's so thoroughly infused with the spirit of Roald Dahl that as I listened*, I couldn't help but picture the characters as if they were drawn by Quentin Blake. Like that of Dahl, Primavera's prose is full of keen satire and sharp wit, but it lacks Dahl's fatalism. In fact, she seems to be commenting on Dahl's worldview when she allows the children to break out of the awful qualities for which they are "known," and which are actually only bad habits they've gained through their parents' neglect.
That makes the novel sound darker and heavier than it is, though. It's really a confection of a book, filled with the aforementioned helpful corgis, bumbershoot trees, perilous parachute journeys, and wormholes that lead to the Alps. It's difficult to judge a book like this in terms of the Newbery criteria, in part because it doesn't feel like a very American book to me: this combination of satire and fancy is very British.
So: are the characters fully developed? Not according to the terms of realistic fiction, but for this genre, yes - and they experience growth over the course of the book. The settings are likewise both ridiculous and well-realized. Stylistically, the prose is highly derivative, but also sparkling and agile. Interestingly, for a book that's working within a potentially moralistic genre, the themes of self-reliance and self-determination are imparted with a light hand.
It feels like too slight a book to win a place in the Newbery pantheon. Also, though it's uplifting in the end, it has the kind of bite that doesn't play well in a typical Newbery book. But then again, the committees have been doing an admirable job of redefining "Newbery book," so who knows? Either way, it's lots of fun.
*Yes, I experienced this one, like so many others, as an audiobook. I have no idea what the illustrations look like, but I gather that it's heavily illustrated. Also, the audiobook is read by Katherine Kellgren, and it is wonderful.
May 19, 2016
I knew Ms. Rapscott's Girls would be delightfully ridiculous when I read the first page and saw, at the end of the notice about Great Rapscott School for Girls of Busy Parents,
"Too busy to bring your daughter to Great Rapscott School? Not a problem! For your convenience we have provided this easy to use self-addressed box in which to safely mail your precious daughter. No postage necessary. Crackers and cheese are free."
Ms. Rapscott accepts the daughters of the five busiest parents in the world. The parents' names and their reasons for being so enormously busy are absurd. The girls are
Beatrice Chissel, kicked out of every school she'd attended, Known for Being Loud;
Mildred A'Lamode, out of shape TV watcher (the only way for her to see her parents was by watching them on their TV show) Known for Being Lazy;
Fay Mandrake, older sister of two sets of octuplets, Known for Not Being Able to Do Anything Right;
un-merry Annabelle Merriweather, Known for Being Old for Her Age; and
small Dahlia Thistle, Known for Being a Late Bloomer.
Unfortunately for Dahlia, whoever put her in her box "failed to pull off the kwik-close tape to secure the E-Z shut flaps," and Dahlia fell out. All that was in her box was her stuffed lamb Harold.
The summer term at Great Rapscott School (held in a lighthouse) begins with the girls learning that they will be taking a course in How to Find Your Way. Ms. Rapscott tells them they will be graded on "pluck, enthusiasm, spirit of adventure, brilliance, and self-reliance." Also, they have to find Dahlia Thistle. They cannot go home until they pass. And there are no pajamas.
But they get ice cream and birthday cake for breakfast every day.
The four girls are initially dismayed and unhappy, but soon begin to learn all sorts of useful things that their parents were too busy to teach them, like pot drying, table washing, how to find a missing sock, how to choose a good cantaloupe, the uses of dental floss, and how to write thank you notes, as well as things their parents never thought of teaching them, like how to ride a seaskimmer, how to get lost on purpose, and how to change bad luck into good.
Ms. Rapscott and her two assistants (corgis Lewis and Clark) take the girls out looking for Dahlia Thistle. When that fails they take them out to NOT look for Dahlia Thistle. Which is, of course, when they find her. Because when you stop looking, you find things where you least expect them.
Having found Dahlia Thistle and passed the course, the girls get to go home for a visit (though they are no longer keen to go). But they will return to Great Rapscott School for the fall term. I'm looking forward to it.
"Too busy to bring your daughter to Great Rapscott School? Not a problem! For your convenience we have provided this easy to use self-addressed box in which to safely mail your precious daughter. No postage necessary. Crackers and cheese are free."
Ms. Rapscott accepts the daughters of the five busiest parents in the world. The parents' names and their reasons for being so enormously busy are absurd. The girls are
Beatrice Chissel, kicked out of every school she'd attended, Known for Being Loud;
Mildred A'Lamode, out of shape TV watcher (the only way for her to see her parents was by watching them on their TV show) Known for Being Lazy;
Fay Mandrake, older sister of two sets of octuplets, Known for Not Being Able to Do Anything Right;
un-merry Annabelle Merriweather, Known for Being Old for Her Age; and
small Dahlia Thistle, Known for Being a Late Bloomer.
Unfortunately for Dahlia, whoever put her in her box "failed to pull off the kwik-close tape to secure the E-Z shut flaps," and Dahlia fell out. All that was in her box was her stuffed lamb Harold.
The summer term at Great Rapscott School (held in a lighthouse) begins with the girls learning that they will be taking a course in How to Find Your Way. Ms. Rapscott tells them they will be graded on "pluck, enthusiasm, spirit of adventure, brilliance, and self-reliance." Also, they have to find Dahlia Thistle. They cannot go home until they pass. And there are no pajamas.
But they get ice cream and birthday cake for breakfast every day.
The four girls are initially dismayed and unhappy, but soon begin to learn all sorts of useful things that their parents were too busy to teach them, like pot drying, table washing, how to find a missing sock, how to choose a good cantaloupe, the uses of dental floss, and how to write thank you notes, as well as things their parents never thought of teaching them, like how to ride a seaskimmer, how to get lost on purpose, and how to change bad luck into good.
Ms. Rapscott and her two assistants (corgis Lewis and Clark) take the girls out looking for Dahlia Thistle. When that fails they take them out to NOT look for Dahlia Thistle. Which is, of course, when they find her. Because when you stop looking, you find things where you least expect them.
Having found Dahlia Thistle and passed the course, the girls get to go home for a visit (though they are no longer keen to go). But they will return to Great Rapscott School for the fall term. I'm looking forward to it.
April 15, 2015
Ms. Rapscott runs a board school for girls that is all about adventure, courage and birthday cake, with candles. When a new summer term begins, five little girls are mailed to the school in their boxes. Mailed because their parents are some of the busiest people in the world and can’t be bothered to drop their children off at school in person. Four little girls make it safe and sound but the fifth has fallen out of her box because it wasn’t sealed properly. Ms. Rapscott has to teach her remaining students some of the basics of life like bathing, brushing teeth, and the importance of stout boots when going on adventures. But most of her lessons are much more fun and involve things like riding the wind into the sky and skimming the surface of the water on seals. As the girls learn how to take care of themselves and embrace adventure, they are also locating the missing student, by trying not to find her.
Funny and delightfully whimsical, this book is at its heart a book that shows that little girls can be just as daring, naughty and adventurous as boys. These are girls who have flaws, like shouting all the time, being a know-it-all, and just wanting to spend time watching TV or asleep. But in each of them is a little adventurer who if fed enough attention and cake will rise to the opportunities before her.
The art in the book adds a delightful richness to the tale as well as breaking up the text so that the book is more approachable for young readers. Done in full double-page spreads, the illustrations show the different parts of the school as well as important moments in the story. At the beginning and end of the book, they appear in a series of illustrations that welcome the girls to the school and then send them home at the end with a promise of adventures to come.
Enter a world of magical wonder in this book for young readers where adventure awaits everyone. Appropriate for ages 7-9.
Funny and delightfully whimsical, this book is at its heart a book that shows that little girls can be just as daring, naughty and adventurous as boys. These are girls who have flaws, like shouting all the time, being a know-it-all, and just wanting to spend time watching TV or asleep. But in each of them is a little adventurer who if fed enough attention and cake will rise to the opportunities before her.
The art in the book adds a delightful richness to the tale as well as breaking up the text so that the book is more approachable for young readers. Done in full double-page spreads, the illustrations show the different parts of the school as well as important moments in the story. At the beginning and end of the book, they appear in a series of illustrations that welcome the girls to the school and then send them home at the end with a promise of adventures to come.
Enter a world of magical wonder in this book for young readers where adventure awaits everyone. Appropriate for ages 7-9.
March 18, 2015
Cozy adventure for girls who want to live in a magical white-utopia. Characters lack ethnic diversity. Not sure who the audience for this is.
***************Rant ******************************
Seriously --? Why is every character white? One girl has straight black hair and slanty eyes, so maybe she's Asian. So the ironic humor is based on Busy Parents who neglect their daughters. Maybe the author felt uncomfortable making some of those negligent parents non-white. (or Asian) Hmmmmm.....Still ambivalent.
************* end of rant********************************
***************Rant ******************************
Seriously --? Why is every character white? One girl has straight black hair and slanty eyes, so maybe she's Asian. So the ironic humor is based on Busy Parents who neglect their daughters. Maybe the author felt uncomfortable making some of those negligent parents non-white. (or Asian) Hmmmmm.....Still ambivalent.
************* end of rant********************************
November 29, 2022
At the beginning of this book five girls are introduced whose parents are too busy to spend time with them or teach them the useful skill of life, such as Finding Your Way, or the difference between trash bags, or even what a birthday cake is. All five girls are shipped off to Ms. Rapscott's school. At the beginning one of the girls is lost and the rest of the book is spent trying to find her as the characters of the other four girls are developed.
I thought this was a delightful little book and was very entertained by it.
I was a little worried that the character development of five girls of the same aged introduced at the same time would be sidelined and written poorly, but I think Elise Primavera did a great job balancing all five girls' development and the plot.
This wasn't one of my favorite books of all time, but I'm giving it five stars because there was nothing wrong with it and I'd be doing the author a disservice by giving her anything less.
I thought this was a delightful little book and was very entertained by it.
I was a little worried that the character development of five girls of the same aged introduced at the same time would be sidelined and written poorly, but I think Elise Primavera did a great job balancing all five girls' development and the plot.
This wasn't one of my favorite books of all time, but I'm giving it five stars because there was nothing wrong with it and I'd be doing the author a disservice by giving her anything less.
February 23, 2018
In this spirited novel aimed at middle readers, girls of parents who are too busy for them, learn life lessons in a unique and delightful way. The characters are in line with Willy Wonka and Mary Poppins. The girls find themselves arriving at school in boxes and when one box arrives empty, the class is off on an adventure to find their lost classmate. Learning to depend on others and themselves, this wonderfully crafted story leaves the reading not wanting to put the book down. A well structured story creates an ending where you will want the sequel "Making Mistakes on Purpose" ready to read.
Read
March 15, 2019Ms. Rapscott (along with her trusty corgi assistants, Lewis and Clark) run "The Rapscott School for Girls of Busy Parents". Parents so busy, in fact, they don't have time to pack their girls up and send them off to school. Naturally Ms. Rapscott provides a handy little service of sending them a box in which to ship the girls in. Through a series of adventures, the girls learn Ms. Rapscott's lessons in courage, strength, bravery, and teamwork. Highly entertaining and funny (dark humor, along the lines of a Series of Unfortunate Events). The audio version is read by Katherine Kellgren, who does a great job of distinguishing voices for each character.
May 17, 2022
While walking along the canal yesterday, I saw a penny laying on the ground. I bent over to pick it up, saw that it was tails up, and immediately abandoned it. Ms. Rapscott would be so proud of me!
This story was great fun! The narrator was over-the-top, which some may find annoying. Not me, I thought it added to the production value and loved it!
Audiobook
Narrated by Katherine Kellgren
Duration: 03:40:21
This story was great fun! The narrator was over-the-top, which some may find annoying. Not me, I thought it added to the production value and loved it!
Audiobook
Narrated by Katherine Kellgren
Duration: 03:40:21
April 7, 2023
When I tell you I love this book with my whole heart, I fully mean it. This was my absolute favorite as a child, something I’ve read many times. The story is very endearing, and the strange habits of the school are really interesting and fun to read as a child or adult. It was a wholesome coming of age with twists along the way, showing great character development.
January 25, 2021
This is a super cute, girls adventure story that is great on audiobook! The author is so imaginative and funny and my whole family liked it. The histories of the girls, and mostly their parents, was the best part. Hilarious!
November 23, 2017
Not my favorite of the Battle books I'm reading this year, but it was entertaining.
March 20, 2018
The girls and I listened to the audiobook, and the narrator was absolutely fabulous. A fun story that is a mix of Mary Poppins and Roald Dahl, with a little bit of LumberJanes thrown in for good measure. So much fun and with good messages, as well. We will be excited to read the sequel!
February 25, 2019
I like ms. Rapscott's girls because, I feel like I am there with the characters. I highly recommend this book.
October 2, 2017
3.5 stars. My seven-year-old really like this one, and I thought it was okay, so we are splitting the difference for our rating.
September 1, 2019
We LOVE this book! I'm so glad I found it! My kids have it practically memorized. The audio book is so fabulous. Mark was listening to it on repeat for a few weeks.
April 19, 2015
The Great Rapscott School for Girls of Busy Parents is a brilliant idea for a boarding school! Parents who are too busy with their jobs to give their girls even the minimal care required receive mysterious letters inviting them to send their girls to Ms. Rapscott's School for free. Five bratty girls are invited to enroll in this boarding school located in an old Light House. Transportation is provided free of charge. Most of the girls arrive packed in large boxes blown in by a storm, one girl mysteriously doesn't make it, only her unfastened box arrives. Beginning with Beatrice, the first arrival, the pupils are all delightfully full of flaws. In Mrs. Piggle Wiggle or Mary Poppins fashion, Ms. Rapscott cleverly begins nipping their bad habits right away. When Mildred a whiny student complains, Ms. Rapscott quips, "Now dry your eyes and pull up your socks! And sit up straight Mildred. A Rapscott Girl never slouches."
This adventure packed story is full of delightful magic, Ms. Rapscott's adorable Welsh Corgi's, clad in various outfits, help her run the school carrying out all her commands obediently. The girls go on wild adventures in search of the missing student. The black and white illustrations are spectacularly rendered, often placed in a series of double spread illustrations telling the story visually. Elise Primavera is wonderfully talented both as an illustrator and storyteller. Imaginative girls who love stories with lots of magical adventures will be demanding the sequel soon.
This adventure packed story is full of delightful magic, Ms. Rapscott's adorable Welsh Corgi's, clad in various outfits, help her run the school carrying out all her commands obediently. The girls go on wild adventures in search of the missing student. The black and white illustrations are spectacularly rendered, often placed in a series of double spread illustrations telling the story visually. Elise Primavera is wonderfully talented both as an illustrator and storyteller. Imaginative girls who love stories with lots of magical adventures will be demanding the sequel soon.
September 28, 2015
Delightful!
Filled with magic, adventure, humor and wonder, this story takes you away to the most wonderful lighthouse. Ms. Rapscott's School for Girls with Busy Parents. These girls learn many things at the school, things only children of busy parents need to know.
As a parent, reading the book I lovd how the author used magic and adventure to teach self-love, confidence and more. These girls struggled with these issues having such busy parents, and Ms. Rapscott had to teach these girls they were still very much loved. How hard that must be!
I loved the pencil illustrations too! Being a very visual person, it really brought the story to life. Parents and kids are going to love this book. It is so much fun to read, plus they learn moral content in a fun way.
I hope for another book, taking us to the next semester in September. That would be ideal!
Filled with magic, adventure, humor and wonder, this story takes you away to the most wonderful lighthouse. Ms. Rapscott's School for Girls with Busy Parents. These girls learn many things at the school, things only children of busy parents need to know.
As a parent, reading the book I lovd how the author used magic and adventure to teach self-love, confidence and more. These girls struggled with these issues having such busy parents, and Ms. Rapscott had to teach these girls they were still very much loved. How hard that must be!
I loved the pencil illustrations too! Being a very visual person, it really brought the story to life. Parents and kids are going to love this book. It is so much fun to read, plus they learn moral content in a fun way.
I hope for another book, taking us to the next semester in September. That would be ideal!
February 21, 2015
I got this book from Goodreads First Reads.
Middle-grade me would've loved this book. Twenty four year old me still found it enjoyable, but not great. Parents who don't want to deal with their kids basically send them off to a boarding school housed in a flying lighthouse run by a woman named Ms. Rapscott, who teaches the girls to love themselves, how to be good friends, and basically ever other elementary school moral to ever exist. Being honest, I think my favorite characters were the two dogs, and immensely enjoyed the pictures that accompanied every 20 pages or so of story. Can there be a spin off book where they just ride the seals all day?
Middle-grade me would've loved this book. Twenty four year old me still found it enjoyable, but not great. Parents who don't want to deal with their kids basically send them off to a boarding school housed in a flying lighthouse run by a woman named Ms. Rapscott, who teaches the girls to love themselves, how to be good friends, and basically ever other elementary school moral to ever exist. Being honest, I think my favorite characters were the two dogs, and immensely enjoyed the pictures that accompanied every 20 pages or so of story. Can there be a spin off book where they just ride the seals all day?
June 13, 2015
Daughters of the busiest parents in the world are invited to a special, fantastic boarding school. It's sort of like Mary Poppins running an elementary Hogwarts, sort of like my beloved Annie's Adventuresof The Sisters Eight series. But the very best things is the two corgis who are Ms. Rapscott's stout assistants: Lewis and Clark are like Moe the Dog in Tropical Paradise.
Library copy
Library copy
Read
February 3, 2017Four girls have been chosen to go to Ms. Rapscott school for girls of busy parents. At first the girls didn't like it there and they didn't get along with each other. Than, Ms. Rapscott made the girls find there way back to the lighthouse when they got lost. The girls eventually liked it more and more. Dahlia Thisle was a lost Rapscott girl who couldn't find her way to the lighthouse, the girls mission was to try a find Dahila Thisle. At the end, the girls found the lost girl and brought her back to the light house. The girls got a badge because Rapscott had taught them everything the needed to know. The would be back next September!
July 22, 2025
Whenever I find a book containing a school setting, I am hesitant to read it. Those are usually not to my liking. But what made me decide to read this one was the synopsis. It sounded as if those girls were going to have some peculiar adventures at a peculiar school with a peculiar teacher. I was not disappointed! I liked each of the students and Ms. Rapscott herself. How considerate of her to have a school for girls of parents who are so busy, they don't even know that their daughters are gone. This was a humorous book; I definitely recommend it.
Note: Using new rating system starting 2025.
June 26, 2015
Ms. Rapscott runs a school for girls of extremely busy parents. parents so busy that they probably didn't even notice their daughters went to yet another boarding school! Along with her intrepid corgis, Lewis and Clark, Ms. Rapscott teaches the girls the fine art of getting lost, and finding yourself. Along the way, the girls learn the valuable lessons, of hygiene, compassion, manners, and being self-sufficient. Whimsical and reminiscent of Mary Poppins and Nanny McPhee.
April 12, 2015
The book definitely has potential and it will be interesting to see if the author continues with the story in a series. The main character, Ms. Rapscott's is a wonderful character as are the girls but there could have been more development and growth of the characters which perhaps will come later if more books are written. It will also be interesting to see if the horrible parents of the children end up coming in to the story more.
July 16, 2015
I read this to my eldest daughter (age 7) recently and neither of us are sure we liked the book. There were definitely things I liked about it but on the whole it seemed disjointed and left a lot of unanswered questions (like why were the girls only at school for three weeks?) If there is a message to the whole thing I don't know what it is and if there is a follow-up I'm probably not going to bother with it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 13, 2015
So sweet and quirky and refreshing. It felt like Willy Wonka mixed with Mary Poppins with a heavy dash of Amelia Earhart. Plus there are two pet corgis with clipboards. It doesn't make much sense..is more inspirational than practical..but I still loved it and will recommend it to plenty of girls ages 8-10.
May 4, 2015
This one took me a while to read because I got distracted from it with Outlander and Dragonfly in Amber [much more compelling reading as an adult than this one. ;-)] I think there may be more books so I hope they're a little more entertaining. Ms. Rapscott kind of bugged me.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 308 reviews