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Afternoon of the Elves
Hillary doesn't believe all the mean things she hears about Sara-Kate. Sure, she wears weird clothes and she lives in a dumpy house, but if Sara-Kate's as bad as everyone says, how could she take such good care of the elf village in her backyard? She and Hillary spend hours fixing the tiny stick houses and the miniature Ferris wheel so the elves won't move away. But as Hillary is drawn further into Sara-Kate's world, she learns there are other mysteries besides the elves. Why doesn't anyone ever see Sara-Kate's mother? And why isn't anyone allowed in her house? This updated edition will bring new life to Janet Taylor Lisle's best-selling novel.
128 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 1989
68 people are currently reading
1958 people want to read
About the author
Janet Taylor Lisle
43 books50 followersJanet Taylor Lisle was born in Englewood, New Jersey, and grew up in Farmington, Connecticut, spending summers on the Rhode Island coast.The eldest child and only daughter of an advertising executive and an architect, she attended local schools and at fifteen entered The Ethel Walker School, a girl’s boarding school in Simsbury, Connecticut.
After graduation from Smith College, she joined VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America). She lived and worked for the next several years in Atlanta, Georgia, organizing food-buying cooperatives in the city’s public housing projects, and teaching in an early-childcare center. She later enrolled in journalism courses at Georgia State University. This was the beginning of a reporting career that extended over the next ten years.
With the birth of her daughter, Lisle turned from journalism to writing projects she could accomplish at home. In 1984, The Dancing Cats of Appesap, her first novel for children, was published by Bradbury Press (Macmillan.) Subsequently, she has published sixteen other novels. Her fourth novel, Afternoon of the Elves (Orchard Books) won a 1990 Newbery Honor award and was adapted as a play by the Seattle Children’s Theater in 1993. It continues to be performed throughout the U.S. Theater productions of the story have also been mounted in Australia and The Netherlands.
Lisle’s novels for children have received Italy’s Premio Andersen Award, Holland’s Zilveren Griffel, and Notable and Best Book distinction from the American Library Association, among other honors. She lives with her husband, Richard Lisle, on the Rhode Island coast, the scene for Black Duck(2006), The Crying Rocks (2003) and The Art of Keeping Cool, which won the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction in 2001.
After graduation from Smith College, she joined VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America). She lived and worked for the next several years in Atlanta, Georgia, organizing food-buying cooperatives in the city’s public housing projects, and teaching in an early-childcare center. She later enrolled in journalism courses at Georgia State University. This was the beginning of a reporting career that extended over the next ten years.
With the birth of her daughter, Lisle turned from journalism to writing projects she could accomplish at home. In 1984, The Dancing Cats of Appesap, her first novel for children, was published by Bradbury Press (Macmillan.) Subsequently, she has published sixteen other novels. Her fourth novel, Afternoon of the Elves (Orchard Books) won a 1990 Newbery Honor award and was adapted as a play by the Seattle Children’s Theater in 1993. It continues to be performed throughout the U.S. Theater productions of the story have also been mounted in Australia and The Netherlands.
Lisle’s novels for children have received Italy’s Premio Andersen Award, Holland’s Zilveren Griffel, and Notable and Best Book distinction from the American Library Association, among other honors. She lives with her husband, Richard Lisle, on the Rhode Island coast, the scene for Black Duck(2006), The Crying Rocks (2003) and The Art of Keeping Cool, which won the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction in 2001.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 318 reviews
September 19, 2018
Hillary becomes friends with Sara-Kate, a girl who everyone at school laughs at and avoids. Sara-Kate wears odd clothes and looks uncared for. Her dad isn't around and her mum isn't seen outside the house. Sara-Kate gradually trusts Hillary enough to let her help with an elf village that is in her back garden. Houses made of leaves and twigs and a bicycle wheel turned in to a ferris wheel appear by magic and the girls absorb themselves in daily care of the elves habitat, and they live in hope of catching a glimpse of the magic.
Hillary begins to suspect something is wrong in Sara-Kate's house, but she has promised not to tell and she does what she can to help. When snow comes it isn't just the elf village that suffers.
The story does a good job making you see the problems from the children's viewpoint. As an adult, if you knew a family like Sara-Kate's you wouldn't hesitate to get them some help by instantly making a phone call, but as the story drew you in to the girls friendship and magical
This was a read aloud and we both really enjoyed the story and the characters, we loved the outdoor, creative play. The end was slightly disappointing for us, we didn't like the way maybe that was a realistic scenario of the time, I hope today that would be handled differently. As readers involved with these characters we wanted to know but we never found out.
Hillary begins to suspect something is wrong in Sara-Kate's house, but she has promised not to tell and she does what she can to help. When snow comes it isn't just the elf village that suffers.
The story does a good job making you see the problems from the children's viewpoint. As an adult, if you knew a family like Sara-Kate's you wouldn't hesitate to get them some help by instantly making a phone call, but as the story drew you in to the girls friendship and magical
This was a read aloud and we both really enjoyed the story and the characters, we loved the outdoor, creative play. The end was slightly disappointing for us, we didn't like the way maybe that was a realistic scenario of the time, I hope today that would be handled differently. As readers involved with these characters we wanted to know but we never found out.
June 15, 2017
This book was interesting to revisit as an adult. I read it multiple times as a child and something about it always stuck with me. It is surprisingly nuanced, honest, and ambiguous for a children's book, and I think that's part of what I enjoyed as a child. It didn't speak down to me. Despite the slightly dream-like quality of much of the book, it felt real and immediate to me as a kid. There is so much complexity in this slim volume that I would need to write a much longer review to truly do it justice. It's a slightly unsettling book with an ambiguous ending and no true resolution, but that's part of the strength of the book, not a weakness.
May 27, 2017
This review also appears on my blog, Read-at-Home Mom.
Sara-Kate Connolly is in fifth grade for the second time, and everyone, including fourth graders, like Hillary, knows to stay away from her. Her house is dark and dilapidated, and the yard is overgrown with brush. Plus, Mrs. Connolly never comes out of the house. It’s not safe to play at the Connollys’ house, and Hillary’s mom would prefer that she didn’t. The only thing is, Sara-Kate has an elf village in her backyard. She invites Hillary over to help her maintain it, and from that first afternoon Hillary is hooked - not just on elves, but on Sara-Kate herself. As their friendship grows, Hillary becomes convinced that Sara-Kate herself might be an elf. She also learns, over time, and quite by accident, the horrible truth of Sara-Kate’s sad and mysterious life.
This is one of the creepiest children’s books I have ever read. I am so thankful I did not discover it when I was a kid, because I’m not sure I could have handled its eerie tone and unresolved ending. Though this is a realistic fiction book, it’s also something of a psychological thriller. Hillary believes in Sara-Kate’s well-constructed fantasy so thoroughly that she becomes almost blind to the fact that Sara-Kate and her mother are nearly starving to death. She becomes obsessed with the elves to the point that she continues visiting them after Sara-Kate is gone, and she becomes distant from her own friends and rebellious towards her mother. Sara-Kate’s house is described using details one would attribute to a haunted house, and a little shiver of fear and anticipation went up my spine each time Hillary thought she saw Sara-Kate’s mom appear in the window. When Hillary finally makes her way into that house and sees the state of things inside, I felt like I was watching a horror movie, just waiting for something to jump right out at me. I wouldn’t say I enjoyed it - the whole story actually really freaked me out.
This book was published in 1989, and received a Newbery Honor in 1990, but though it is more than 20 years old, it reads as though it could happen any time. Despite it creepiness, the story does raise a lot of important issues that seem relevant to almost any time period. It shows the way poor families, or families in need of serious help, can sometimes fall through the cracks. It questions whether the help given to such families is adequate or truly helpful. It shows the ways in which traumatized children can cope through fantasies, and even helps Hillary to become her own person, in a very weird way. What makes the book so unsettling is that nothing is neatly resolved. The reader is left to grapple with difficult questions on her own, and to come to her own conclusions, whatever they may be.
Kids can read this book on their own, but I think this is one of those stories that really needs to be shared and discussed so kids can process what they have read. After finishing the book, I didn’t even want to walk around my own house in the dark. It’s that kind of disturbing and eye-opening story, and I think kids who read it will have a lot of their own questions and worried thoughts upon finishing it. It’s a beautifully written novel, and in some ways quite similar to my favorite book by E.L. Konigsburg, Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth, but a feel-good beach read it is not. Recommend it to those strong upper elementary readers looking for a challenge, and to fans of horror stories. Also check out this discussion between the author and a group of students, formerly at her website, and now at Internet Archive, which sheds at least a little bit of light on the story.
Sara-Kate Connolly is in fifth grade for the second time, and everyone, including fourth graders, like Hillary, knows to stay away from her. Her house is dark and dilapidated, and the yard is overgrown with brush. Plus, Mrs. Connolly never comes out of the house. It’s not safe to play at the Connollys’ house, and Hillary’s mom would prefer that she didn’t. The only thing is, Sara-Kate has an elf village in her backyard. She invites Hillary over to help her maintain it, and from that first afternoon Hillary is hooked - not just on elves, but on Sara-Kate herself. As their friendship grows, Hillary becomes convinced that Sara-Kate herself might be an elf. She also learns, over time, and quite by accident, the horrible truth of Sara-Kate’s sad and mysterious life.
This is one of the creepiest children’s books I have ever read. I am so thankful I did not discover it when I was a kid, because I’m not sure I could have handled its eerie tone and unresolved ending. Though this is a realistic fiction book, it’s also something of a psychological thriller. Hillary believes in Sara-Kate’s well-constructed fantasy so thoroughly that she becomes almost blind to the fact that Sara-Kate and her mother are nearly starving to death. She becomes obsessed with the elves to the point that she continues visiting them after Sara-Kate is gone, and she becomes distant from her own friends and rebellious towards her mother. Sara-Kate’s house is described using details one would attribute to a haunted house, and a little shiver of fear and anticipation went up my spine each time Hillary thought she saw Sara-Kate’s mom appear in the window. When Hillary finally makes her way into that house and sees the state of things inside, I felt like I was watching a horror movie, just waiting for something to jump right out at me. I wouldn’t say I enjoyed it - the whole story actually really freaked me out.
This book was published in 1989, and received a Newbery Honor in 1990, but though it is more than 20 years old, it reads as though it could happen any time. Despite it creepiness, the story does raise a lot of important issues that seem relevant to almost any time period. It shows the way poor families, or families in need of serious help, can sometimes fall through the cracks. It questions whether the help given to such families is adequate or truly helpful. It shows the ways in which traumatized children can cope through fantasies, and even helps Hillary to become her own person, in a very weird way. What makes the book so unsettling is that nothing is neatly resolved. The reader is left to grapple with difficult questions on her own, and to come to her own conclusions, whatever they may be.
Kids can read this book on their own, but I think this is one of those stories that really needs to be shared and discussed so kids can process what they have read. After finishing the book, I didn’t even want to walk around my own house in the dark. It’s that kind of disturbing and eye-opening story, and I think kids who read it will have a lot of their own questions and worried thoughts upon finishing it. It’s a beautifully written novel, and in some ways quite similar to my favorite book by E.L. Konigsburg, Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth, but a feel-good beach read it is not. Recommend it to those strong upper elementary readers looking for a challenge, and to fans of horror stories. Also check out this discussion between the author and a group of students, formerly at her website, and now at Internet Archive, which sheds at least a little bit of light on the story.
June 19, 2024
Perhaps being hungry and cold and angry and alone didn't mean you couldn't still be an elf. In fact, maybe those were exactly the things elves always were.
。✧ 。✧ 。
did you ever make fairy houses as a child? little structures, ideally at the base of a tree or a stump or a rock wall, tiny houses that fairies might like to occupy. i loved to adorn mine with flowers and acorn caps.
this classic middle grade novel is about hillary, a kid whose next door neighbor, sara-kate, is odd and antisocial and dirt poor. they bond over constructing homes for the elves that sara-kate says inhabit her run-down backyard.
i love the sense of wonder and imagination in this story. hillary is determined to see elves for herself, though she's told they don't like to be seen, for fear of being misunderstood. it's all rather dreamlike and ambiguous.
it turns out sara-kate has been secretly holding down her household alone, the electricity and heat often shut off, living off occasional child support checks from her father. meanwhile her mentally ill mother remains a reclusive non-character in the story. sara-kate is raising herself.
the tricky part of the narrative is that hillary, a "normal kid" who the reader is meant to identify with, can hardly comprehend sara-kate's situation. how can she, at nine years old, well-fed, clothed, and with two attentive parents? consequently, the story veers into a somewhat distasteful mythologizing of sara-kate and her poverty, describing her as otherworldly and elfish herself.
eventually
December 27, 2011
This was an OK read for me - I liked it, but I didn't like it. I liked some of the issues it presented, but what I never like in a book is confusing the reader. Reading this book as an adult was probably different than reading it as a kid, but I wouldn't really feel like handing it to any 9-12 year old I know. I think some of it was judgmental despite the main story line - accepting and befriending someone even though most people make fun of them. It also never shows any kind of concluding discussion between the main character and her mother, which seems weird to me. I don't like the way the book leaves you wondering, or the bizarre ending paragraph, or how Hillary never actually comes to a conclusion about what's true and what's not. At any rate, I wouldn't want my children to model their parent-child relationship after this one (and I sincerely hope I'm doing my end of that), and so I wouldn't really recommend this book.
February 15, 2018
WARNING: Review contains spoilers.
Sometimes you pick up a book based on its cover or the description on the back/cover jacket, and get something entirely different than you were expecting. Such was the case with "Afternoon of the Elves" -- I picked it up thinking it would be either a light fantasy or at least a tale of friendship between two very different girls. The book ended up being far different than I expected... but despite being haunted and even horrified by what I read, I found this book to be a short but wonderfully complex story about poverty, mental illness, and the unlikely bond that is forged between two girls from very different families and ways of life.
Hillary is a child from a comfortable middle-class family, who is warned by classmates and parents alike to stay away from her neighbor Sarah-Kate. Sarah-Kate is a strange and angry child, dressed in strange clothes and men's work boots and whose troubling behavior caused her to be held back a year. So when Sarah-Kate invites Hillary over to her backyard to play, Hillary is understandably wary. But Sarah-Kate has a surprise in store for Hillary -- a tiny village with houses made of stones and leaves, which she insists must have been built by elves. As Hillary helps Sarah-Kate tend to the elf village and watches new buildings and other delights spring up around it, she finds herself wondering what kind of special connection Sarah-Kate has with these tiny creatures, and longs to see one for herself. But Sarah-Kate is hiding other secrets about her life, and when Hillary accidentally brings these secrets to light, the consequences will shatter both girls' worlds.
For those picking this book up expecting a childlike fantasy... it's not. The elf village, despite playing a big role in the book, isn't its primary focus. And while there are scenes in this book that have a magical feel to them, the book leaves it very ambiguous whether anything fantastic or otherworldly actually happened. It gives the book a feeling of magical realism, and while some readers might be bothered by the lack of concrete answers, I found that leaving some things up to the reader to decide actually made for a richer reading experience.
The book's primary focus is on the unlikely friendship that springs up between Hillary and Sarah-Kate... as well as the vast differences in their upbringings. While Hillary comes from a loving and well-off family, Sarah-Kate comes from a troubled home and dire financial circumstances, and has to resort to incredible lengths to survive and keep what's left of her family together. And though the book never comes right out and says it, it's heavily implied that Sarah-Kate has some deep-seated mental and/or emotional troubles as well. I would have liked to have learned more about Sarah-Kate's eventual fate and see if her story ended happily at all... but perhaps the takeaway here is that we never do learn the endings of some stories, and some people will touch our lives in profound ways and then vanish, leaving it up to us to decide what to do with what they have given us.
I expected a light YA fantasy in picking this up... and got a surprisingly dark and complex, but deeply touching, story about an unlikely friendship and a girl's determination to survive and find light and beauty in her circumstances. It might be a disappointment for those actually expecting fantasy creatures to make an appearance, but it has enough maybe-magic sprinkled throughout to be tantalizing... and the emotional impact more than makes up for any disappointment.
Sometimes you pick up a book based on its cover or the description on the back/cover jacket, and get something entirely different than you were expecting. Such was the case with "Afternoon of the Elves" -- I picked it up thinking it would be either a light fantasy or at least a tale of friendship between two very different girls. The book ended up being far different than I expected... but despite being haunted and even horrified by what I read, I found this book to be a short but wonderfully complex story about poverty, mental illness, and the unlikely bond that is forged between two girls from very different families and ways of life.
Hillary is a child from a comfortable middle-class family, who is warned by classmates and parents alike to stay away from her neighbor Sarah-Kate. Sarah-Kate is a strange and angry child, dressed in strange clothes and men's work boots and whose troubling behavior caused her to be held back a year. So when Sarah-Kate invites Hillary over to her backyard to play, Hillary is understandably wary. But Sarah-Kate has a surprise in store for Hillary -- a tiny village with houses made of stones and leaves, which she insists must have been built by elves. As Hillary helps Sarah-Kate tend to the elf village and watches new buildings and other delights spring up around it, she finds herself wondering what kind of special connection Sarah-Kate has with these tiny creatures, and longs to see one for herself. But Sarah-Kate is hiding other secrets about her life, and when Hillary accidentally brings these secrets to light, the consequences will shatter both girls' worlds.
For those picking this book up expecting a childlike fantasy... it's not. The elf village, despite playing a big role in the book, isn't its primary focus. And while there are scenes in this book that have a magical feel to them, the book leaves it very ambiguous whether anything fantastic or otherworldly actually happened. It gives the book a feeling of magical realism, and while some readers might be bothered by the lack of concrete answers, I found that leaving some things up to the reader to decide actually made for a richer reading experience.
The book's primary focus is on the unlikely friendship that springs up between Hillary and Sarah-Kate... as well as the vast differences in their upbringings. While Hillary comes from a loving and well-off family, Sarah-Kate comes from a troubled home and dire financial circumstances, and has to resort to incredible lengths to survive and keep what's left of her family together. And though the book never comes right out and says it, it's heavily implied that Sarah-Kate has some deep-seated mental and/or emotional troubles as well. I would have liked to have learned more about Sarah-Kate's eventual fate and see if her story ended happily at all... but perhaps the takeaway here is that we never do learn the endings of some stories, and some people will touch our lives in profound ways and then vanish, leaving it up to us to decide what to do with what they have given us.
I expected a light YA fantasy in picking this up... and got a surprisingly dark and complex, but deeply touching, story about an unlikely friendship and a girl's determination to survive and find light and beauty in her circumstances. It might be a disappointment for those actually expecting fantasy creatures to make an appearance, but it has enough maybe-magic sprinkled throughout to be tantalizing... and the emotional impact more than makes up for any disappointment.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 19, 2015
I first read this book in fourth or fifth grade, because I was obsessed with everything magic-related. Elves, fairies, goblins, unicorns, etc. The cover art is still so evocative. Reading it for a second time much later in life gave me a better understanding of the more complicated social themes that went over my head when I read it as a child. This is one of those books that is worth a re-read as an adult when you have some class consciousness and perspective on your own childhood.
I will say, however, that the last line is still a mystery to me.
I will say, however, that the last line is still a mystery to me.
March 14, 2016
This 1990 Newbery Honor award winner, is hauntingly complex.
Hillary is a child of comfortable middle class who is curious about Sara Kate, the neighbor girl who wears raggedy clothes, sporadically attends school and lives in a dilapidated house.
The story becomes darker as Hillary is enticed to explore Sara Kate's magical elfin village, complete with tiny houses of autumn leaves for roofs, bottle caps used for swimming pools and teeny stones for bitty lawn ornaments.
When the little village becomes an obsession for Hillary, she finds that secrets abound in the larger ramshackle house inhabited by Sara. Forbidden to play next door, Sara disobeys her parents and is increasingly drawn to the magic of the village and her elfin, waif-like neighbor whose mother hides behind the darkened windows in the unmagical abode.
This is an excellent tale of societal impressions, of doors that are closed and windows that are barred, of judgment rather than assistance. It is a tale of magic vs. cold, cruel reality. It is a story of friendship, but it is ever so much more than this. When Hillary's eyes are opened she sees things that her comfortable, safe life never dreamed possible.
Highly recommended!
Hillary is a child of comfortable middle class who is curious about Sara Kate, the neighbor girl who wears raggedy clothes, sporadically attends school and lives in a dilapidated house.
The story becomes darker as Hillary is enticed to explore Sara Kate's magical elfin village, complete with tiny houses of autumn leaves for roofs, bottle caps used for swimming pools and teeny stones for bitty lawn ornaments.
When the little village becomes an obsession for Hillary, she finds that secrets abound in the larger ramshackle house inhabited by Sara. Forbidden to play next door, Sara disobeys her parents and is increasingly drawn to the magic of the village and her elfin, waif-like neighbor whose mother hides behind the darkened windows in the unmagical abode.
This is an excellent tale of societal impressions, of doors that are closed and windows that are barred, of judgment rather than assistance. It is a tale of magic vs. cold, cruel reality. It is a story of friendship, but it is ever so much more than this. When Hillary's eyes are opened she sees things that her comfortable, safe life never dreamed possible.
Highly recommended!
July 25, 2023
Some of the issues tackled by this book remind me of other Newbery recipients, but much of the story is wholly original.
I like the flow of the words and the way the relationship between Hillary and Sara-Kate is never certain; it seemed anything might happen. Sara-Kate is an enigmatic figure, and it was a joy for to watch as Hillary figures out that friendship is worth the hard work it requires, even if (or perhaps because?) that friend is as unusual as Sara-Kate.
The undertow of magic is visceral but ever-present, and I can see why this was named a Newbery Honor book. Janet Taylor Lisle's storytelling has a special quality.
I like the flow of the words and the way the relationship between Hillary and Sara-Kate is never certain; it seemed anything might happen. Sara-Kate is an enigmatic figure, and it was a joy for to watch as Hillary figures out that friendship is worth the hard work it requires, even if (or perhaps because?) that friend is as unusual as Sara-Kate.
The undertow of magic is visceral but ever-present, and I can see why this was named a Newbery Honor book. Janet Taylor Lisle's storytelling has a special quality.
July 24, 2021
A girl befriends her next door neighbor who has a house overcome with weeds and garbage but has a magical miniature village that the girls build upon. Real life intrudes on their magical life but the village makes it wonderful.
January 5, 2013
I had high hopes for this books because it is a Newbery Honor. Overall, I thought it was depressing and did not offer any kind of satisfactory conclusion for Sara-Kate. Hillary, the main character, who befriends Sara-Kate is blind to all of the problems Sara-Kate has (hence her willingness to believe in the elf village in the backyard). I felt Hillary was too naive, and I did not like the fact that Sara-Kate is neglected for so long and no one notices.
January 14, 2012
(My review as posted on www.therustykey.com.)
Recommended for: Girls, Ages 8 and up
One Word Summary: Enchanting.
From the book’s first sentence, “The afternoon Hillary first saw the elf village, she couldn’t believe her eyes,” you know exactly what to expect. You expect a book about a young girl, perhaps a bit of an elf skeptic, who finds herself in a world where elves leave traces of themselves for humans like her to find and study.
What you may not expect is for the tale that follows to be so absorbing, so charming, so full of haunting imagery and lonely pain. You may not expect such delicate insight and a pitch-perfect description of the blossoming of an unlikely friendship. And you certainly may not expect that by the end of the book you too will find yourself wanting to believe in elves.
Well, I suggest you revise your expectations and head for your nearest library.
The last thing Hillary expected to find in the overgrown and junk-ridden backyard of her neighbor Sara-Kate was an elf village, but there it sat, tiny and perfect, with a circle of huts and a miniature well with an acorn cup for a bucket. At first Hillary thought it was made by mice or had some other explanation, but Sara-Kate, a gangly and awkward girl in men’s work boots who never played with the other kids, seemed to know so much about elves and the way they worked that Hillary found herself wondering if it was perhaps true.
Each day, Sara-Kate would comb the backyard for a new sign of elfin handiwork: a bottle cap filled with water clearly used as an elf swimming pool, or an abandoned bicycle wheel with tiny seats, propped upright and slowly spinning in the air like a Ferris wheel. She would show them to Hillary, who found her excitement growing with each new discovery. Soon they were combing the knee-high weeds for signs together, and the more Sara-Kate taught her about the way elves live and work, the more Hillary began to notice similarities in Sara-Kate. Was it possible that Sara-Kate, with her miniature elfin wonderland, was in fact hiding a giant-sized secret?
I read this book as a young child but didn’t rediscover it until a friend recently lent it to me after a nostalgic trip through her own childhood books. As far as discovering old treasures, this is a true delight. A Newbery Honor Book that deserves many additional honors, Afternoon of the Elves is a quick read for anyone who clapped loudest when Tinkerbell needed their help, or who still secretly believes their stuffed animals come to life when they leave the room. This kind of magic—in book form or in your backyard—is as rare as it is special.
Recommended for: Girls, Ages 8 and up
One Word Summary: Enchanting.
From the book’s first sentence, “The afternoon Hillary first saw the elf village, she couldn’t believe her eyes,” you know exactly what to expect. You expect a book about a young girl, perhaps a bit of an elf skeptic, who finds herself in a world where elves leave traces of themselves for humans like her to find and study.
What you may not expect is for the tale that follows to be so absorbing, so charming, so full of haunting imagery and lonely pain. You may not expect such delicate insight and a pitch-perfect description of the blossoming of an unlikely friendship. And you certainly may not expect that by the end of the book you too will find yourself wanting to believe in elves.
Well, I suggest you revise your expectations and head for your nearest library.
The last thing Hillary expected to find in the overgrown and junk-ridden backyard of her neighbor Sara-Kate was an elf village, but there it sat, tiny and perfect, with a circle of huts and a miniature well with an acorn cup for a bucket. At first Hillary thought it was made by mice or had some other explanation, but Sara-Kate, a gangly and awkward girl in men’s work boots who never played with the other kids, seemed to know so much about elves and the way they worked that Hillary found herself wondering if it was perhaps true.
Each day, Sara-Kate would comb the backyard for a new sign of elfin handiwork: a bottle cap filled with water clearly used as an elf swimming pool, or an abandoned bicycle wheel with tiny seats, propped upright and slowly spinning in the air like a Ferris wheel. She would show them to Hillary, who found her excitement growing with each new discovery. Soon they were combing the knee-high weeds for signs together, and the more Sara-Kate taught her about the way elves live and work, the more Hillary began to notice similarities in Sara-Kate. Was it possible that Sara-Kate, with her miniature elfin wonderland, was in fact hiding a giant-sized secret?
I read this book as a young child but didn’t rediscover it until a friend recently lent it to me after a nostalgic trip through her own childhood books. As far as discovering old treasures, this is a true delight. A Newbery Honor Book that deserves many additional honors, Afternoon of the Elves is a quick read for anyone who clapped loudest when Tinkerbell needed their help, or who still secretly believes their stuffed animals come to life when they leave the room. This kind of magic—in book form or in your backyard—is as rare as it is special.
June 16, 2021
I've had this one on my list for a long time, but it didn't capture my imagination nearly as much as I thought it would. This is definitely not a work of fantasy or even magical realism, though I do appreciate that Lisle avoided a "Scooby Doo" ending, leaving the more mysterious elements open to interpretation. I was hoping for a richly rendered imaginative world within a work of realism (Bridge to Terabithia? The Egypt Game?), but I didn't find myself drawn in by the elves' playground as I wanted to be.
This is decidedly a work of realism, which is fine, but its subject and modality feel pretty dated at this point. There was a real push during the 1970s and 1980s to publish MG books that dealt with hard kid issues, including poverty, abuse, and mental illness, and sometimes they were truly insightful, beautiful, and moving (Dicey's Song comes to mind). Other times, and especially when the narrative centers on a middle-class white kid who is friends with a child experiencing these hardships, they come across as a bit patronizing and disingenuous. Unfortunately, I felt that was the case with this book. While there are thematic emphases on shifting perspective, empathy, and other important skills, the fact alone that Sara-Kate isn't telling her own story, but is the object of Hillary's (and Lisle's) storytelling, is frustrating at best and problematic at worst.
I may have enjoyed this more as a child, when logical explanations and Scooby-Doo unmaskings felt like a way to make sense of a truly startling world. As an adult, however, I thought it lacked enchantment and somehow skimped on the realism, too.
This is decidedly a work of realism, which is fine, but its subject and modality feel pretty dated at this point. There was a real push during the 1970s and 1980s to publish MG books that dealt with hard kid issues, including poverty, abuse, and mental illness, and sometimes they were truly insightful, beautiful, and moving (Dicey's Song comes to mind). Other times, and especially when the narrative centers on a middle-class white kid who is friends with a child experiencing these hardships, they come across as a bit patronizing and disingenuous. Unfortunately, I felt that was the case with this book. While there are thematic emphases on shifting perspective, empathy, and other important skills, the fact alone that Sara-Kate isn't telling her own story, but is the object of Hillary's (and Lisle's) storytelling, is frustrating at best and problematic at worst.
I may have enjoyed this more as a child, when logical explanations and Scooby-Doo unmaskings felt like a way to make sense of a truly startling world. As an adult, however, I thought it lacked enchantment and somehow skimped on the realism, too.
July 24, 2016
I have mixed feelings about this one. I read it because my daughter is completing a local library challenge and one of the topics is about mental illness of a character. So I looked at various books available in our local library that are targeted for pre-teens. This won a Newberry Honor, so I thought it would be the first one for me to read before making a suggestion to my daughter. I think adults reading this will see the tragedy more clearly than the kids will, but I still worry that this one has too open-ended of a conclusion that it will possibly scare my pre-teen. I don't think kids should read this story without an adult on hand to have a follow-up discussion. The topics are too heavy and because they are not explicit, it may make it too open for interpretation--and incorrect conclusions can be drawn.
I do think that kids need to be able to explore mental health issues though and other issues of neglect as they might experience this indirectly and it gives them a safe way of examine in these issues. But again, this shouldn't be done alone and I think the parent should read the book first and introduce it to their child at the right timing for their own kid to be able to emotionally and intellectually handle the discussions that will result.
I do think that kids need to be able to explore mental health issues though and other issues of neglect as they might experience this indirectly and it gives them a safe way of examine in these issues. But again, this shouldn't be done alone and I think the parent should read the book first and introduce it to their child at the right timing for their own kid to be able to emotionally and intellectually handle the discussions that will result.
October 22, 2016
This is about a strange little girl, Sara-Kate, who entices a neighbor, Hillary, to become her friend through the mystery of an "elf village" in her run down back yard. It turns out that Sara-Kate's mother is ill and they are very poor. Against the odds and reason, Hillary is drawn to Sara-Kate and her backyard. In the end, Hillary's mom discovers how sick Sara-Kate's mother is and gets them help. Unfortunately, this help involves Sara-Kate leaving to live with relatives and her house being repaired and sold.
This book was a slow starter for me. I also think that the ending was kind of sad or depressing. I suppose we're to see the changes in Hillary; to see how she's has grown or sees the world differently now. But, I think we are still left wondering without a clear image of what will be. Maybe the author's intent was for the reader to decide for himself.
I think that this book could be used as a read aloud. There are a lot of things, such as interactions with others, that could be addressed with students. I think a teacher would have to direct the discussion in a way so that the focus would be on the positives in the characters. Students could also come up with their ideas of why the author ended the book the way she did.
This book was a slow starter for me. I also think that the ending was kind of sad or depressing. I suppose we're to see the changes in Hillary; to see how she's has grown or sees the world differently now. But, I think we are still left wondering without a clear image of what will be. Maybe the author's intent was for the reader to decide for himself.
I think that this book could be used as a read aloud. There are a lot of things, such as interactions with others, that could be addressed with students. I think a teacher would have to direct the discussion in a way so that the focus would be on the positives in the characters. Students could also come up with their ideas of why the author ended the book the way she did.
August 30, 2021
This was my second time reading this book... and the first time I was maybe 7 or 8. I vaguely remember it being a magical story about elves. It is not. It's a nuanced, complex story of child neglect. It hits a LOT different nearly 30 years later. I have to wonder if I understood this at ALL when I was a child or if my memory is off.
July 18, 2024
This was my favorite book in the 3rd grade so obviously I had to give it a reread about 10 years later. Did not disappoint.
April 24, 2023
I enjoyed this children's book but it felt too short for the intense plot it introduced. I didn't want it to end so abruptly because I was just starting to get into the beauty of the book. Overall though, a lovely book that was strangely enchanting and moving
June 6, 2019
Nine-year-old Hillary lives with her parents in their nice home and their lovely garden, which her father keeps immaculate. She goes to school and hangs out with her popular friends and lives in a nice little bubble. The neighbor girl, Sara Kate, lives in a run-down house with her mysterious and rarely-seen mother (her father isn't around), wears raggedy clothing and strange old boots to school, and has no friends because all the girls think she's strange. When Sara Kate invites Hillary over to her yard, which is full of trash and briars and weeds, to see the village that the elves created, Hillary accepts, much to her friends' scorn and disapproval. She gradually becomes friends with the cautious and caustic Sara Kate and spends most of her time with her in the elf village (which she believes in her heart is real), but is never invited inside the house. After Sara Kate stops coming to school and is never in the yard anymore, Hillary braves walking into the dilapidated house to look for her, and in that moment her bubbled life begins to change. Well written, lovingly crafted, and absolutely heartbreaking. An important read for middle grade kiddos.
May 26, 2017
Starts out really good, but the ending is so harsh that it kinda spoils the whole book. The friendship that develops between the two girls is real, it's the kind of friendship I see with my kids all the time. And they're fairy town, and all the imaginative work that goes into is really good. But, and maybe this is what most kids think, in the end the parents spoil everything. *WARNING SPOILER* I just couldn't hold it in. They were so cruel to the girl who wanted nothing more than to stay with her mom. Even if that meant living in poverty, and taking care of herself. Yes, I can see the need to call child protective services, but then to be so cruel as to say she was holding her mother prisoner is just wrong. The child had a real problem, get help for her mom and lose her forever, or stay with her and risk being cold & hungry. You have to give her some credit for trying.
May 10, 2023
An old kids’ favorite that definitely still holds up. This is one that manages to really play with tension: for a child there is the suspense of a good mystery in Sara Kate and the elves, and adults are horrified on Sara Kate’s behalf. There’s a scene in particular where the reader will feel genuine terror as Hillary gaily enters the belly of the beast which utilizes dramatic irony just too well—and then, in the end, so much is left unsaid through Hillary’s childhood perspective that you’ll find yourself thinking of the book, on and off, for days. Goes very much beyond my impressions of it as a Weird Girl Book. If it didn’t use the term “Oriental” for a person on one page it’d be an easy 5 stars; great for Haddix fans & just about anybody looking for well-plotted kidlit.
September 27, 2019
I didn't get this one. It wasn't a smooth read. A middle class girl befriends her poor neglected neighbor girl and classmate who takes care of her mother who has suggested mental health or unknown medical issues and is bullied at school for being different. Lots of opportunity for a positive message to be delivered but it just ended with the mother and girl being swiftly dealt with and removed from the community. There were obvious signs that the mother and daughter were in need but no one reached out to help them. Very sad book. I don't really know what the author was trying to accomplish with the story. Odd children's book.
May 27, 2010
Hillary doesn't believe all the mean things she hears about Sara-Kate. Sure, she wears weird clothes and she lives in a dumpy house, but if Sara-Kate's as bad as everyone says, how could she take such good care of the elf village in her backyard? She and Hillary spend hours fixing the tiny stick houses and the miniature Ferris wheel so the elves won't move away. But as Hillary is drawn further into Sara-Kate's world, she learns there are other mysteries besides the elves. Why doesn't anyone ever see Sara-Kate's mother? And why isn't anyone allowed in her house?
February 5, 2018
This book was so dark. I'm not sure how I would have read it as a child, but as a mom I'm extremely frustrated by the adults who encourage the judgment of a child for things beyond her control, encourage her isolation because of symptoms of trouble that make my heart break, and are the feeders of the cruel gossip mill that is this school.
May 20, 2017
I got totally engrossed in this book right up until the end and then turned the page to find that it stopped unexpectedly. I'm not sure what the reader is supposed to think at the end, but I really wanted more.
March 17, 2023
newbery: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Surprisingly well-done, still interesting though there has been competition. More in group comments. Btw, I greatly prefer the original cover.
Surprisingly well-done, still interesting though there has been competition. More in group comments. Btw, I greatly prefer the original cover.
March 25, 2022
What a strange story. Really not what I was expecting and I was quite disappointed. I really wouldn't recommend this, particularly not to children.
As I own this book, I'm actually considering burning it so that no-one else has to read this copy.
I feel sad and very let down.
As I own this book, I'm actually considering burning it so that no-one else has to read this copy.
I feel sad and very let down.
March 16, 2023
Sara-Kate's predicament is heartbreaking.
Hillary being swept up into SK's fantasy world ( which is the girl's coping mechanism) is depicted credibly.
Very open-ended, but I personally liked that.
A book for thoughtful children.
Hillary being swept up into SK's fantasy world ( which is the girl's coping mechanism) is depicted credibly.
Very open-ended, but I personally liked that.
A book for thoughtful children.
September 26, 2017
In italiano, "La ruota degli elfi", negli Istrici di Salani.
Un po' disturbante, difficile da leggere e da spiegare ai bambini, utilissimo per insegnare ad accettare chi è diverso da noi.
Un po' disturbante, difficile da leggere e da spiegare ai bambini, utilissimo per insegnare ad accettare chi è diverso da noi.
May 16, 2020
My 5th grade teacher read this book to our class but I couldn't remember the story. I only remembered that a girl had a unkept backyard that was like a junk yard.
I decided to read this book as an adult and no wonder I blocked this book from my memory. Actually, I still didn't recognise the story as I read it. I probably spaced off while my teacher read the book.
It's mainly about this girl, Sara-Kate, who is poor. She doesn't have friends at school and people think she is mean and wears "ugly boots". Her house is run down and she makes an elf village in her backyard. Her middle-class neighbor, Hillary, comes to see the elf villages. Sara-Kate tells her that real elves built the village and Hillary is naive enough to believe in the elves and fails to see that her friend is living in poverty.
I tried to flip through the book to figure out how old Hillary is. I feel like she is too old to believe in elves. Her friends at school don't believe in elves and are also frustrated with her for believing Sara-Kate's elf stories.
Sara-Kate's mom is sick and you never really get a good glimpse of her or get to know her. Sara Kate tries to take care of her mom. She tries to pay the bills but she isn't always able to, she buys and sometimes steals food, does the laundry, etc.
It bothers me no one in the community, at school, or even her only friend, Hillary or Hillary's family notice that something is wrong with Sara-Kate's situation until months maybe even a year later. Why was she neglected for so long?! I am also annoyed that it seems like Hillary never comes to a conclusion about what's real and what's not. She still believes in elves and thinks that Sara-Kate might have been an elf.
The part in the book that was upsetting to me was when Sara-Kate tells Hillary about this guy "Pierre the Package" who she read about in a newspaper. She said, "He's awful. He's horrible....he's got no arms or legs have arms or legs. Just a stump for a body." She explains to her friend Hillary, that Pier has to learn to do everything with his mouth. "He types letters to people by holding a stick in his mouth to hit the typewriter keys. He turns on lamps and faucets with his teeth. He makes sandwiches and feeds his dog. Yup, he has a dog, a cute little terrier that jumps up in his wheelchair and licks the mess of his face after dinner. And listen to this. The way Pierre reads a book is by flicking the pages over with his tongue." Then her friend Hillary covers her mouth and says "Ugh! Ugh!"
Why did the author include that little bit in the story?! It's not funny and it has nothing to do with the story! It's mean to people with disabilities!
This book should not have a Newberry Honor award!
I decided to read this book as an adult and no wonder I blocked this book from my memory. Actually, I still didn't recognise the story as I read it. I probably spaced off while my teacher read the book.
It's mainly about this girl, Sara-Kate, who is poor. She doesn't have friends at school and people think she is mean and wears "ugly boots". Her house is run down and she makes an elf village in her backyard. Her middle-class neighbor, Hillary, comes to see the elf villages. Sara-Kate tells her that real elves built the village and Hillary is naive enough to believe in the elves and fails to see that her friend is living in poverty.
I tried to flip through the book to figure out how old Hillary is. I feel like she is too old to believe in elves. Her friends at school don't believe in elves and are also frustrated with her for believing Sara-Kate's elf stories.
Sara-Kate's mom is sick and you never really get a good glimpse of her or get to know her. Sara Kate tries to take care of her mom. She tries to pay the bills but she isn't always able to, she buys and sometimes steals food, does the laundry, etc.
It bothers me no one in the community, at school, or even her only friend, Hillary or Hillary's family notice that something is wrong with Sara-Kate's situation until months maybe even a year later. Why was she neglected for so long?! I am also annoyed that it seems like Hillary never comes to a conclusion about what's real and what's not. She still believes in elves and thinks that Sara-Kate might have been an elf.
The part in the book that was upsetting to me was when Sara-Kate tells Hillary about this guy "Pierre the Package" who she read about in a newspaper. She said, "He's awful. He's horrible....he's got no arms or legs have arms or legs. Just a stump for a body." She explains to her friend Hillary, that Pier has to learn to do everything with his mouth. "He types letters to people by holding a stick in his mouth to hit the typewriter keys. He turns on lamps and faucets with his teeth. He makes sandwiches and feeds his dog. Yup, he has a dog, a cute little terrier that jumps up in his wheelchair and licks the mess of his face after dinner. And listen to this. The way Pierre reads a book is by flicking the pages over with his tongue." Then her friend Hillary covers her mouth and says "Ugh! Ugh!"
Why did the author include that little bit in the story?! It's not funny and it has nothing to do with the story! It's mean to people with disabilities!
This book should not have a Newberry Honor award!
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