Meet Felicity Audiobook

Meet Felicity written by Valerie Tripp is the first book in the Felicity series by American girl.
Meet Felicity came with the Felicity doll, who was wearing her "meet" dress as shown on the cover of the book. The book was also available to buy on it's own or as part of a boxed set of books.

I had already watched the American Girl movie on Felicity and the movie was not my favorite amongst the American Girl stories. This is probably due to the era. I love reasoning about the 1930's and 1940's and find this early area about patriots generally not as interesting.

Surprisingly I found this book a lot more interesting that I imagined it would be. I believe this is in part tp the fact that the first book in the series really only focuses on Felicity's relationship she develops with a horse she calls Penny. How she tames the horse and how she seta it free to escape a violent owner.

I was definitely encouraged to read further books in this series woth greater interest than I originally anticipated. The American Girl Felicity audiobooks I got as a cd pack for $20 off ebay including postage. That covers all books that are in the Felicity boxed set. The audiobook is well read with nothing in it distracting from getting the story across to the listener. A great read / listen to.

Beverly Gray at the World's Fair

This is it. Book number 6 and the only book in the series I have not read yet.
I have been enjoying starting the series at book 1 in preparation for this books arrival and will be happy to read on in order after this is finished in order to piece things together as they happened. The first time around I read the series in whatever order I could get them off eBay with a good condition dust jacket, this time I am reading to link the entire story together.

I decided to read one chapter as is was real late when I finished reading Beverly Grays Career and ended up reading 5 chapters. This is pretty much how this book read. Never a chapter alone as perhaps intended but like with any great compelling book in large digestible chunks, each time looking and thinking " I only have so many chapters left." it brought back memories as how I felt each time a Beverly Gray book arrived the first time I read the series. Even for me a inn tube person I considered getting a camera out to capture the arrival of this rare prize. It is great to find a series you can get really excited about. For me that excitement has come from Beverly Gray and Trixie Belden mainly now and The Secret Seven and Famous Five growing up.
Reading the series in order has also put the characters in better order for me. I can understand now why you would have 12 Alpha Deltas, as it allows Beverly to travel but still be with friends in adventures and mysteries. I do wish that Clair Blank as an author spent more time describing her characters. Most I would not have the faintest idea as to their facial features, hair color etc. Some Alpha Deltas I barely know anything about, where I grew up on Enid Blyton books where the characters seemed to be defined in a lot greater detail.

The story starts with Lois leaving on a ship for Paris to study art for a year. Ralf Mathews, Larry Owens and Paul Benson, all suitors in Beverly Gray's Career are all present.
Connie has arrived and we learn her name is really Constance Elwood and Connie is for short. Connie Elwood and Kathleen Ryan move in with Lenora and Beverly just after Lois leaves.

Lenora, Connie and Beverly leave for Chicago and Beverly runs into Shirley ( not a long time till they saw Shirley again as was stated would be the case in Career ) Kathleen Ryan stays in New York and Jim Stanton turns up. Kathleen raves about how good looking Jim is and I can't remember anyone carrying on about Larry being as good looking. Would of been good to have seen a movie and have them side by side to see who they picked for the actors to play Larry and Jim.

Beverly and Virginia become involved in a murder at the world's fair. When Lenora becomes a part of the investigating team, Lenora shows a spunk and prowess that Beverly seems to drift in and out of. Lenora states she loves detecting and again I think here is a girl who doesn't know what she wants to do for a career but she knows exactly what she loves doing. I then start to thinking is detective work that different to reporting? Why doesn't Beverly show more passion for pursuing the bad guys like Lenora does? Would a good reporter really hold off on a scoop story to get a fuller story later? Lenora spends a long time convincing Beverly that they should break into someones room to investigate. Lenora has a sense of urgency and gunho whilst Beverly is more contemplative.

The ending to the story was superb and again a great lead into the next adventure. The main mystery finished some time earlier and poor Beverly was attacked by a tiger and suffered yet another marriage proposal from poor Jim. You think he would get fed up of being shot down. We also learn of Shirley's fate. If the world fair hadn't of dated this book then the new invention showcased at the world fair of television definitely did. Funny to see Lenora scared of a cable car too considering they are so tame by today's standards.

Reading the books in order has done a lot to fill in gaps of who's who and learn more about the Alpha Deltas.

The Hudson River Mystery Trixie Belden

After reading The Sasquatch Mystery I was craving to read a Trixie Belden book that had a true Trixie vibe as I felt that for at least half of The Sasquatch Mystery I wasn't really in Trixieland.
Even though The Hudson River Mystery wasn't the next mystery in the series and I have been reading I grabbed it from the shelf because I wanted a mystery at home on Crabapple farm and I knew if the mystery was on The Hudson then the mystery was going to be at home.
I wasn't disappointed.
The story starts with Trixie doing chores at zcabapple farm with Honey giving a helping hand. Even Dan managed to turn up early in the story and even though it was a minor role it was great to see him back instead of hearing the usual he is working excuse.
Trixieisms to the max in this book didn't disappoint me. Gleeps, jeepers, Di and Dan both being present, Mart playing with words, being called Ms. schoolgirl Shamus, Mart telling Di she is attractive, Di calling Mart cute, Jim having a sparkle in his eyes talking to Trixie, what more could you want?
You get a bit of a history lesson of The Hudson with this one, reminiscent of what you got in The Mystery in Arizona.
Gosh I even learnt what to do if my car fell in a river and started sinking..... Hopefully I will never have to use that knowledge.
Add to this a good mystery based on Trixie thinking she saw a shark in The Hudson River and I was truly in Trixieland again. FINALLY.
What a great read and just what I needed.

American Girl A Kit Mystery Midnight in Lonesome Hollow

Midnight in Lonesome Hollow is a 1930's mystery starring Kit Kittredge of the American Girl Doll Series.

This book is set in Kentucky in 1934 where Kit is going to visit her Aunt Millie to help her set up a library.

The writer Kathleen Ernst has done a great job in looking at the traditions of the place and time whilst placing an emphasis on learning and reading without it being "thrown in your face". The book teaches you a lot about the 1930's whilst still sucking you into a good mystery. Don't get me wrong it's not a huge mystery but the charm of the book teaching you about The Great Depression with a mystery involvement is wonderful as long as your one who enjoys learning about history.

Kit comes across as quite a lot younger than Julie in the Julie Mystery series although this really isn't the case. I wonder why that is? I'll have to think further on that one as I read more Kit and Julie mysteries. I got more of both whilst in the USA this year.

But I have also found the website www.bookdepository.co.uk has free shipping worldwide and I can pick up more in the American Girl Mystery Series really cheaply.

One negative, being set in Kentucky rather than on home soil Kit doesn't have best friend Ruthie there for the story which is a shame, I'm a huge Ruthie fan.

Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew Mall Madness

Not my usual type of reading. Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew Mall Madness is an early readers book. Out of curiosity for how they are written I thought I would give this a go. The mystery seems to be centred on the idea that if you can do basic addition sums (maths) then you will have the answer to working out this story. Very predictable, though perhaps not for a young child it is aimed at. An okay read for the age group it is aimed at though I'm not convinced the moral of the story is all there. Seems a bit off somehow. If you have read it you will probably understand.

Trixie Belden The Sasquatch Mystery

This is probably the hardest Trixie Belden book I have found to get interested in. In fact for the first 10 chapters I didn't like it. I thought that Trixie's cousins, Cap, Knut and Hallie held too much of the story and Trixie almost came across as a loner, an outside looking on the events rather than being the focal point of them that she usually is. Jim I felt suffered even worse as I can't remember him doing anyhting of use for the first 10 chapters and seemed like a tag along friend of the Belden Boys.

As for Miss Trask tell me what kind a chaperon watches one of the kids in her care disappear after getting in a fight with a Sasquatch in front of her eyes and decides that its okay for the kids to stay there and also doesn't seem too bothered that the police aren't taking the disappearance seriously and just waiting for the kid to show up.

Okay one last vent then I will get up to the good bits I promise. And as for a Sasquatch Mystery anyway who came up with that as a lame theme? Someone who had spent their time watching 70s shows like the Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman who eventually went the Big Foot root when running short of ideas right?

Now if you can hold out for the stupidity of the first 10 chapters to be over then you do get to a good story (funnily when they drop the Sasquatch scenario and concentrate on people villains.)

Though why does poor Di have to suffer so much? The author mustn't like her as poor Di seems to be cast as "dumb" in this book. Which is one better than poor Dan who despite the cast of thousands still can't get a spot on this camping trip even though he is suppose to have a thing for Hallie Belden. Damn the 70's series that doesn't allow for romance in their books.

American Girl Mystery - Julie, The Tangled Web

I loved the character Julie after reading this book. It is not your classic mystery so it did surprise me that I liked it but then again I liked one of the early Trixie Belden books which really wasn't a mystery, so this style mystery book wasn't a shock to me.

Julie lives in San Fransisco in the 1970's with her mother and sister (her parents are divorced).

In this story she likes the new girl in her class Carla Warner but Carla tells Julie a number of stories that don't add up and causes some major confusion and concern for Julie.

I bought more Julie books to read in the American Girl Mystery Series based on the strength of this book.

The premise of the book is great as it comes from the famous quote from Sir Walter Scott:

"Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive."