Papa's Daughter

The Franzons #2

by Thyra Ferre Bjorn

Nice, clean copy. Ex-libris sticker inside front cover. /lh

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Classics, Young Adult, Romance, Christian, Christian Fiction

196 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1958

Reviews

[Trace · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another installment of the Franzon saga! This time focused on the eldest daughter Button and told from her perspective. Not quite as lighthearted as the first book in the series, this one delves into the topic of depression (and at a time when not much was known about depression); but it still contained that main theme of faith in the Lord and heartwarming stories about the Franzons. Thoroughly enjoyed it!

[Alexa Nielsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was a teenager a friend loaned this book to me. I was about half way through it when my mom noticed me reading it. She came into my room and gave me 3 books that belonged to her and told me she loved them when she was a teenager. I then started at the beginning with Papa's wife. I read all 3 within days and they have become my favourites since then. I have read them many times over the years and are especially dear to me since my mother passed. It was because of these books that mom allowed me access to all her books and I was left them in her will. We shared many hours in discussions in regards to her collection which contained many kinds of topics.

[Celestia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I couldn't sleep a few mornings ago and got up at 4 AM and read this book. I just finished it last night. What a treat! It has more sadness than the prequel but is just as good. I love the faith in God that the author promotes. The stories from her childhood are very funny. After she grows up the stories are sadder but they all end well.

[Vivian · Rating 3 out of 5]

In which we follow "Button" from her childhood in Lapland Sweden to her mature years in America. Button (her life-long nickname) is the second child of eight born to a middle-aged pastor and his young wife. The reader has the sensation that this is an autobiographical novel as the main character's flaws are related and the lessons she learned to overcome them. It is an engaging story and there are some faith-promoting gems nestled into the narrative.

My goal to read one book I own each month is what induced me to read this. I found a sticker inside the front cover with my grandmother's name and address on it. One of my sisters saw me reading it and recalled reading it when she was young at grandma's house. Now I want to pass it along to another sister so she can have the pleasure of reading it.

Not particularly well written but harmless in its shortcomings. It exudes a somewhat charming naivete.

[Carolyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the sequel to Papa's Wife. Here was the other side of the story about first daughter Button, who was a dreamer growing up in a pragmatic, strict home. Button was not like Mama. She constantly got into trouble at home. She had to relearn how to be happy after she suffered from depression when she was an adult. It was not as inspiring in the same way as the first book, due to the darker story of her recovery. But it is informative, yet rather simplistic than newer fiction.

The heroine seems to be an embellished version of the author.

[Wendy Johansen · Rating 2 out of 5]

How things have changed for women since 1958. This was written at the very beginning of the women's liberation movement by a woman who was apparently just beginning to understand that women can be independent. It's obvious the protagonist is struggling to balance her expected roles as wife and mother with her personal "calling." Scant mention was made of the atomic bomb. Also of the choice to not marry, still being called an old maid. An ok read, if nothing more than giving a historic perspective of how things once were. It is a bit "churchy" too.

[Schuyler · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always struggle with books where the main character struggles with depression. Those stories I always find emotionally draining. But in spite of that, I love the continued themes of love for family, as well as Button's journey of following her dream to write books.

[Sabra · Rating 5 out of 5]

This swiss family story is wholesome and good reading.

[Ron · Rating 1 out of 5]

Poorly conceived and poorly executed. Little sense of time or place; poor characterizaion.

Not recommended for anyone; a waste of paper.

[Trish · Rating 1 out of 5]

I found the main character unlikeable and depressing.

[Snickerdoodle · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a neat book. Easy to read. Made me laught and cry and think. I became very fond of Button. Left me wanting to read more.

from the dust cover:
The story of Papa's Daughter opens in Swedish Lapland, the northernmost province of Sweden, five years after the turn of the century. In Pastor Franzon's household, the second child, Charlotta Maria (nicknamed Button) was "a sinner" ... Led into mistakes by a too-fertile imagination, she collected swear words, she stole, she lied. She put a head of cabbage on her pillow and sneaked out at night to meet her boyfriend. Then the Franzon family moved to America where things were different. Button met and married Eric Bjork

[Melissa King · Rating 4 out of 5]

Its not as light-hearted and idealized as the first book in the series, but it’s very relatable and lovable. The last page brought me to tears, as I am also a person of two countries and I’m learning to let my other country go. I don’t know anybody else who can relate to this specific type of pain, so reading this was like salve for my heart.

[Courtney · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was such a a different feel from the first! This book takes on the viewpoint of Button, Papa's eldest daughter and her trials she faces. My understanding is that Button is actually Thyra herself and this was in some ways, a raw memoir of loss, mothering, and identity. It was refreshing to see real emotion played out and resonate with much of the realities of life.

[Margaret · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a sweet and wholesome story about a Swedish girl, daughter of a minister, who longs to become a writer. It is the second in the series, after Papa's Wife. I loved both of these old- fashioned books.

[LaRissa Campbell]

I remember reading this as a young girl. It was my grandmother’s. I only remember that I was invested because she had read it and I wanted to be connected to her. I honestly don’t remember anything about it.

[Caroline Grayson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good read found on my mother's bookshelf when I was a teen. I didn't know there was a third book, or I would have read that one also.

[Heather Bork · Rating 2 out of 5]

Silly and trite. Nowhere near to the goodness of Papa’s Wife.

[Grace · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet read, short and simple. Finished in a few days.

[Sarah Quanbeck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ahhh she had a marvelous way with words. Her stories are like a hot cup of coffee in the morning - they satisfy something that I can’t explain.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

This second book in the Franzon Family saga tells the story of the eldest daughter, Charlotta "Button" Franzon. While this book has much the same voice and style of the first book, "Papa's Wife", it is not nearly as lighthearted. In this installment, Button deals with loss and battles depression. Despite being somewhat darker, I still really enjoyed this book. After reading it, I felt as if I was another member of the Franzon family, observing all the events from the sidelines.

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I rarely make time to read anymore, so most books take me quite a while to get through. This one, however, I finished in just a couple of days. Once I had finished reading Papa's Wife, I just had to dig into this next book, and I think I liked it even more than the first. It is such an endearing and relatable story.

[Becky · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I was younger I enjoyed the prequel, but this one was pretty boring. I felt like the writing lacked in brilliance or color, and I never got to the point where I loved the characters. Disappointing- probably had too high of expectations.

[Norma Nill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this book because someone told me it changed her life. Is there any stronger recommendation? I'd recommend this story, which swept me along, to women who want to see what it was like to grow up in a Christian family in Sweden and the US in the early 1930s.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book a lot. But I felt that it was too heavily edited. I missed hearing about their new lives in America and how they managed. Also, for such an important character, the news of Papa's death was so off-hand. Too much glossing over of details, I thought.

[yvette · Rating 5 out of 5]

one of 2 of my favorite books of all time.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this following Papa's Wife

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved these books. I have read them over & over & enjoy reading them to our kids.

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

An inspired message and great real life stories.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember reading this when I was about 10-11 years old and loving it then-I think I enjoyed it far more as an adult though. A great read!

[Evelyn Veldkamp · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good. sweet books, all of them by Bjorn are quite good. Have read more than once.