I read Noel Streatfeild’s books in July and in August. I immensely enjoyed the four books I read and my summer 2023 is great because of Noel Streatfeild (1895-1986). Here are the four books I read.
Ballet Shoes
G.U.M (Great Uncle Matthew) adopted Pauline, Petrova and Posy into his family but he left them to Sylvia and Nana. The money ran out, they took boarders to help cover the expenses. The boarders also helped the children with education. The children were developing their talents along the way. Pauline loved to act, Petrova wanted to fly and Posy longed to become a ballerina.
“We three Fossils vow to try and put our name into history books.”
The Painted Garden
After an accident, John could not write, he thought he was finished as a writer. Thing changed when aunt Cora invited John and his family to California. The children Rachel, Jane and Tim have to give up things that dear to them for the trip to California. Rachel was good at dancing, Tim was great at playing piano, Jane thought she was only good at nothing. However, she ended up an actress in the film The Secret Garden in California. Grand things happened to Rachel and Tim too. Rachel met the famous ballerina Posy Fossil (Posy of Ballet Shoes) and Tim played for radio. The struggle of the want to be important can be spared, for everyone was granted with the personalized true desire at the end.
“I’d like just once to have been really important.” Jane
“In what way?” Mr. Browne
The Growing Summer
Father was sick oversea, mother must hurried to take care of him, the children were sent to stay with great aunt Dymphna in Ireland. A very challenging situation for them and they managed to have a good time! How to please aunt Dymphna? Easy, recite a poem. She might like books, but Alex refused to give her book as a present. Why?
“Not another book, her floors are covered with them already.” Alex groaned.
A Vicarage Family
This book is a fictionalized autobiography of Streatfeild, about her childhood in the years before the First World War. In this book, I encountered Victoria, she was the original version of Jane in The Painted Garden and Petrova in Ballet Shoes. The sisters and brothers that also appeared in other books. I have to laugh at the bad condition of their holiday house, it reminded me of the funny horrid house in The Growing Summer. Some characters mentioned in the book were like aunt Cora in The Painted Garden and great aunt Dymphna in The Growing Summer. And John, who could see Victoria’s talent and encouraged her to write. I envy Victoria for the book box that John sent to her. Oh John, I cried so hard for him.
“Woudn’t be a joke if you wrote a play and I acted in it?” John said.
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