CINDA by Janet Lambert

 

I honestly can't tell which of these covers is most horrifying! Just kidding, the one in the center definitely is. But it's too bad about Cinda's wretched face, because the beach scene looks like tons of fun!

We have a new heroine! Cinda Hollister is 14 and quite the busybody. She has two older brothers - Warren [War-horse] and Lindsay [Jinx]. Warhorse is from the David Parrish school of strong, big-hearted, seriously repressed boys and Jinx is of the Bobby Parrish school of horn-dogs.  There is another brother and sister, Bobo and Buff, but they are babies. Actually, the girl, Buff, is kind of funny. She plays a lot of make-believe in a way that makes it clear that she is doing a lot of eaves-dropping. I hope she gets to grow up in these Hollister books!

So the story is thus - there is a cousin Paula who is 15 and butt-hurt that her mother has found love after having lost her husband in WW2 when Paula was but a baby. Her sister has taken Paula in while the newlyweds are in Europe and Auntie and niece are visiting in Cinda's town. 

Because Paula is such a dud, Cinda decides to fix her. And she does. End of story.

There is also a bit where the kids trade in some crap boats for a good boat for their father. And they show Paula how to be a family. Also, they are at the beach. Did I mention that? My favorite part is when a college boy asks Cinda out to a dance and she turns him down by telling him that she is, in fact, jailbait. But she does it in such an engaging way that no one is embarrassed and even her brothers are proud of her. 

This is a nice book for the younger girls and while it does have boats, which is not great, at least it doesn't have horses! (I kid, because I just started HIGH HURDLES at the gym last night and now I am all horsed up!) Like all of Lamberts heroines, Cinda is a sweet kid who thinks about others and tries to make the world a better place. I have not yet put together a hierarchy of Lambert heroines - although I love Dria, Candy and Susan for their self-awareness - but she's similar to Penny. She's Penny-light, if you will.

You will enjoy Cinda, just don't look too closely at the covers because you will surely go blind!

A DREAM FOR SUSAN by Janet Lambert

 

Oh the Jordans! What a lovely family! Except for Gwenn, of course. Our heroine for this tome is Susan. She was little in the previous books, but Tippy took some notice of her in WELCOME HOME, MRS JORDAN and Janet hinted in one of the letters to "her girls" that Susan would eventually be a focus.

Susan has Alcie's sweet personality and Gwenn's smokin' hot looks - as indicated by the quite creepy way that Bobby Parrish tries to groom her as a future wife. She is also a twin to the lackluster Neal. He shows up halfway through the book, impressing no one.

When the story begins, Susan is on top of the world. She is about to leave her dull boarding school to move to Turkey with her father, the General [salute!], who will be stationed there. She will act as his hostess and be able to sleep as late as she wants. I can't remember if there is any mention of schooling, but whatever, school sucks. We don't like our girls over-educated in Lambert-world. That's boy stuff. 

Things go amiss right away. After a glorious send off, Susan receives a call in the night from the General [salute!], telling her that his "orders" have changed and he has to go to Japan where he won't be able to have family. This smells of bullshit, which I believe Marjorie Parrish calls out later. He has taking the Asian post to help his career which should, by rights, be over. 

Susan pleads with him to let her tell the headmistress and Alcie, who is scheduled to pick her up and get her on her way to Turkey the next morning. Except she doesn't. She just goes with her sister and tells her once they are home. 

Her thoughts about wanting a home are really heartbreaking. This is a girl who remembers very little of a time when she wasn't shunted off somewhere to make the General [salute!]'s life easier. Alcie feels this and offers to let her stay in her honeymoon house with her and Jon. But Susan is already having second thoughts. She is planning on going back to the boarding school and then perhaps getting a little house with her brothers for the next year. 

Enter Bobby Parrish.

This old creeper is sent from his parents to go get Susan with the story that the Parrishs are missing Tippy so much that they are miserable and they are desperate for Susan to stay with them. She comes down for "a visit" and ends up staying. 

She loves it there. Marjorie and Trudy give her all the maternal love that has been missing since Jennifer went to England. She thrives. If that wretched Bobby was not lurking around it would be great. She loves visiting with Penny and Caroll and their families as well. 

There is a little side-bit about how she kind of ghosted her boarding school friends which is quickly resolved. And then, come to find out, Joe and Lettie are going to get a house of their own and will be vacating the gatehouse. Guess who is going to live there?? Our little Susan and her dull brothers. It's a dream come TRUE for Susan!

Also, Jonathan's little brother Keith is quite into Susan and it makes Bobby jealous because he is a CHILD. I swear, if Bobby and Susan get married someday I will go bonkers. Other than that - this was a sweet one that I thoroughly enjoyed. 

Next up we have a whole new heroine - Cinda!

WELCOME HOME, MRS. JORDAN by Janet Lambert

 

I found it interesting that this book doesn't appear to have one of the 60s style covers that most of the other Tippy books have. Maybe because it is about young marrieds, they didn't rerelease it. This cover is bonkers. Peter looks like a giant, Tippy looks like she is made out of pipe cleaners and the dogs look completely demented - particularly Rollo.

So it turns out Tippy and Peter are to be married and the preparation is very fun to read. Tippy assumes they are going to Germany right after the wedding (which will be as soon as Peter gets his orders) but it turns out they are going to Panama! That wacky army!

The wedding is lovely and there is a nice bit about Susan Jordan - Peter's half-sister, about whom the next book is going to be written. 

The wedding takes up the first six chapters and there is a lot of exposition about who is who and how they are all related. You get this a LOT when the Jordans are involved because there are so danged many of them. 

The next section is the transport to Panama. Tippy and Peter get to have a stateroom to themselves, despite him being a lowly lieutenant, because of nepotism. They meet some other young military types and it seems fine. Tippy is straight-up army, Peter is so lucky to have her because she can take care of herself while he is doing his job.

But once they get to their cute little house, things go off the rails a bit. Tippy is bored by the other wives, she throws a party for the brass and it goes kerflooey (although her guests find it delightful) and worst of all she is desperately homesick. She writes to Penny, but Penny tells her to suck it up. Harsh!

Peter is a little nervous that Tippy is still missing Ken and it takes a while for him to realize that is not the case. 

But then a hero shows up. And, shockingly, it is the worst character in all of Lambert - it's Gwenn! Her stupid husband Bill is a movie star and he tells her that he doesn't want her to work, because she is his wife. But actually, she just sucks. Anyway she has had a tantrum so she runs off to Panama, as one does. 

Well, this is just what Tippy needs! She loves solving other people's problems and she is off to the races with Gwenn. She ends up spending something like $18 on long distance to call Bill to tell him to call Gwenn and beg her to come back. Which is just what Gwenn was planning on happening. 

It works - Gwenn leaves without saying goodbye (and takes one of Tippy's outfits with her) and Tippy realizes how much more wonderful her life is that nasty old Gwenn. Her attitude changes about the other young military wives and finally makes some good friends. She comes clean with Peter about the homesickness, which she had been trying to hide. Classic Tippy... He understands and they share a chair and talk it out. 

You know, I think these crazy kids just might make it work!

As always, Carly of Carly's Malt Shop has a great take on WELCOME HOME MRS. JORDAN here. 

RAINBOW AFTER RAIN by Janet Lambert

 

Check out these covers! It's our Tippy Parrish at her most tormented! When we last left Miss Tippy, she was still desperately sad over the loss of her fiancee, the inimitable Ken Prescott. Even though she was specifically told "Don't Cry Little Girl".  But there's a new/old man about her thoughts - Peter Jordan. You can see him in the window of the original cover.  He doesn't rate a spot on the hipper newer cover that is selling the career girl angle. 

So Tippy is a career girl. She is the assistant to the set designer on a television show. SO HIP!! But she hates it. It's a lot of stress, but what is she going to do, right? Then her boss, the tough-as-nails Miss Turnbull gets injured and Tippy takes over. And Penny is trying to pressure her to become an actress - as if!

The problem (and there always is a problem) is that Peter has come up from Texas, where he is stationed, and he wants to spend time with Tippy. She wants to spend time with him too, but this JOB! So he thinks she's not that into him, she's not sure he's that into her. And they are both crazy about each other. It's really just a matter of time.  

Enter Alcie and Jonathan Drayton.  Alcie knows her brother and Tippy belong together and she doesn't have the patience for that little lunkhead to figure it out herself. So she plots a party wherein she is going to make it look like Peter and her sister-in-law Christie are interested in each other. They are both aware of this plan and give in to Alcie because she is lovely. The description of the party is wonderful and the depiction of the Drayton's early marriage is a delight. We also get to catch up with some of the characters from the Drayton books. 

Tippy feels like she is betraying Ken, but Peter is growing on her. He also calls her Childie which makes me want to kill him.* But other than that - he is pretty great. He pulls her out of her funk and forces her to start living again. 

There is a bit with Tippy practically being forced to be an actress, but she quits her job instead and helps another working girl get her big break. 

There's some goofy stuff about Peter leaving, Tippy chasing him, a kiss and they're engaged. Wrapped up with a little bow. It was fine, but not as good as the previous book or the one that comes after!

*Carly, of Carly's Malt Shop says it well - "I cannot get behind this nickname at all. How is it pronounced? Child-EE? CHILL-dee? Either way, it's such a strange nickname that it trips me up every time I read it. Not to mention, the child part is a little creepy in a way that 'cherub' isn't." *Check out her take on RAINBOW AFTER RAIN here. 

FIFTEEN by Beverly Cleary [chapter 11]

 Before I get started, I wanted to put a link to Constance's excellent take on FIFTEEN from a modern reader's perspective - https://perfectretort.blogspot.com/2020/10/1956club-fifteen-iconic-teen-novel-of.html

And now - the final chapter!

CHAPTER 11 - All's Well That Ends Well

After the flower delivery incident, Jane finds herself the subject of good natured ribbing and interest. She even makes the gossip column! And Stan calls every day for an hour. Two weeks fly by with Jane thinking of some post-steak snogging. Stan is still tan - I bet he laid out in the sun slathered in baby oil as he convalesced. 

When the big night arrives, he looks wonderful. Jane eyes his ID bracelet like Smaug eyes his precious. His shoes are SUPER shiny. He clearly fussed. He brings up the hidden bike story and Jane confesses that she knew, but she could tell he didn't want her to know so she never said anything. She says it was a nice equalizer because he seemed so sophisticated to her. Meanwhile, Stan says he thought she was so poised. What a nice mutual admiration society. They are charmed to find out that they both have the same theory about how bicycles are considered an indicator of maturity. 

The steak bake is a big deal. Buzz and Greg are helping out. Marcy is nowhere to be seen. Lazy. 

Jane and Stan want to be alone together. So they go into the woods. (Perhaps this book is why I was always willing to go into the woods with boys.) They try to talk and chew the horrible steak. Stan gets spoony and Jane gets indigestion the next day from gulping a huge gob of meat. They further bond about funny family phrases for the weather. Sir Puss practically inserts himself even when nowhere in sight. 

They agree to gnaw at the steaks like animals, but even that isn't enough to make it palatable. Stan makes a doggie diner joke proving that someday he will be a good dad. Jane realizes that she is already able to laugh about the Chinatown disaster date. 

They give up on the meat and Stan starts fondling his ID bracelet "Will you go steady with me?" practically screaming from his eyes. Then effing Buzz shows up with Julie. NO JULIE!! ABORT!! ABORT!! Julie does her best, but clearly Buzz needs to be drowned in the stream. He educates them with the news that the "movie" is THE JOHN QUINCY ADAMS STORY and Stan and Jane decide to bail. 

But Buzz will not buzz off, no matter how hard Julie tries. Stan clears things up, but before they can clear out, Mr. Degenkalb calls him back. What is with the adults in this town?? Other than Mr. DeLuca, they hate love! They plan to sneak out once the movie starts, but Degenkalb sits next to Stan. Move over, Miss Erickson, there is a more horrible teacher than even you in teen literature. 

Everyone is sneaking away to Nibley's or the drive-in and Jane is down to clown. She wants to go to Lookout Point. (Shades of THE CHEERLEADER!) Then - as Jane hates John Quincy Adams as she has never hated a president before - Stan takes her hand and puts his ID bracelet on her wrist and this becomes the best freaking movie she has ever seen! 

When they finally get to Jane's house, curfew looms. And just as things are about to get good, they talk about how thrilled they both are to be going steady and Sir Puss outdoes himself in making it all about him to the detriment of Jane's love life. But Stan kisses Jane, and awkward one, half off her mouth. But she loves his soft lips and knows that they have all the time in the world to learn how to kiss TOGETHER!

Then Mr. Crandell makes a final appearance and the party is over. 

"Smiling to herself, Jane turned and walked toward the house. She was Stan's girl. That was all that really mattered." I have not found that to be the case. And honestly, while many young people feel like a relationship is going to make their life perfect, what we learn from this book is that, while much of Jane's soul-searching comes from the desire to "catch" Stan, she really does develop some healthy ideas about being true to herself and recognizing that sometimes things go badly and you just have to have confidence in yourself to get through it. 

And, of course, we learn that Sir Puss is the worst. Well, him and Buzz.

The end!

FIFTEEN by Beverly Cleary [chapters 9 & 10]

Chapter 9 - The Purdy's Telephone Does Not Ring

At the beginning of the chapter, Jane lets us know she is a girl with a plan too. "But first she would go to college and have a career. Just what career, she did not know - an airline stewardess, or a writer of advertising copy for a big department store, or perhaps a job at the American embassy in Paris - something like the girls in the pages of Mademoiselle, who always managed to be clever about clothes, and to be seen in interesting places with men who had crew cuts." 

Jane is all daydreams about Stan and honestly can't worry about watching the kid. Mrs. Scruggs insists on talking about milk when Stan might call. For the love of Pete, Mrs. Scruggs, shut up and hang up! Finally she does and Jane starts lunch. Patsy's repast is the stuff of nightmares, chopped liver and bacon - call DSS Jane, that's child abuse! Lunch was a lot more work before microwaves, just saying. 

All the childproofing that the wise, if chatty, Mrs. Scruggs put in place is off and when the phone rings - just a friend of Marilyn Scruggs - Patsy goes wild while Jane is distracted. But she is ultimately a good little nugget and Jane gets her fed. Then the little brat spends precious potential-Stan-calling time saying "I'm fine." to her mother over and over again. 

Jane comforts herself by thinking that Stan might not want to call her at a stranger's house. We find out that Jane makes 50 cents an hour. Well, back in the good old days you could get a pack of smokes for a quarter so...

When the job is over, Jane can't help but mention the possibility of a phone call. Marilyn Scruggs shows that she knows the skinny. 

Jane gets home to find her mother hogging the phone. Once she FINALLY hangs up, she has to call back because of that stupid Sir Puss. It's almost as if that cat hates romance!

Jane goes up stairs, fondles her back-scratcher and starts knitting Stan a sock. But the lack of Stan calling is ominous. Finally, Jane resigns herself. He's mad and he's not going to call. 

She is pining and Mr. Purdy tries to lighten the mood to no avail. Mom gets it, though. 

Goodbye, sock. 

• If she were a pin curl girl she would make a radio request.
• If she were an intellectual she would write hokkus.
• If she were earnest, she would write to the Teen Corner in the newspaper for advice.
• If she were a cashmere sweater girl, she would date a bunch of other boys and forget. 

But she's just a Jane Purdy type of girl and has no idea how she is going to get through this. 

She questions why she even tried to be like the wretched Marcy. She decides to be herself from now on. And we are all so pleased for her. She planned, "When she saw Stan she would act glad to see him, because no matter what had happened that was the way Jane Purdy felt."

Meanwhile, Julie - wing-woman extraordinaire - is at a cool-kid party and is hiding in the closet to call the now zen Jane. She cares not about the kiss and is the best friend ever. Turns out Stan is in the HOSPITAL! He isn't mad, he's sick! Too bad about the appendix Stan, but HURRAH!! Jane wonders how she behaves in this situation. I think we all remember how this next part...blooms.

CHAPTER 10 - Birnam Wood 

Jane wonders for three days what to do and settles on sending flowers. It's lovely to get flowers. And it is fun to get them because you know the person who sent them will love them. Unless they are a lady of the evening. They don't care for cut flowers - beauty cut down in it's prime and all that. I believe I learned that from the TALES OF THE CITY books - another wonderful Bay Area set masterwork. 

Jane decides to send some nice MASCULINE flowers. She checks with her mom who thinks a "loving hands at home" bouquet from the garden would be a very nice thing to do. Oh Mom, how tacky. (Although the ANNE OF GREEN GABLES books make homemade bouquets seem lovely.) But Jane needs some testosterone fueled MAN FLOWERS! She decides to visit DeLuca's Flowers after school tomorrow. 

After school the next day she is on her way. It is her first time doing something grown up (since dinner in the city, that is) and she is feeling confident. She has a hard time saying "masculine flowers" out loud but Mr. DeLuca is on the case. He's no Mr. Nibley, he knows what is what and saves the day with gladiolas. "Nothing sissy about glads, is there?" he asks, knowing full well that there is not. Anyone want to write the fan fic about how Mr. DeLuca and Mr. Nibley fall in love? 

One little wrinkle - there's no delivery under $5 and the flowers are $3.50. Now I would have tipped Mr. DeLuca the other dollar fifty and got them delivered. But if Jane had thought to do that, we'd miss out on a delightful story. Instead, she decides to just drop them off at the hospital, cool as a cucumber. She starts writing out the card. 

Then she sees the flowers. 

It's a three foot long ode to being a man. And Mr. DeLuca is so pleased and Jane has already paid. She's stuck. Marcy would have said, "Just wrap them plainly you silly man!" But Jane and I try to be thoughtful customers. She decides to just be herself and deliver the damn things. 

Of course, she has to walk right by Nibley's. There is a herd of boys out front, including the loathsome Buzz, who objectifies her legs. Jane hits that work, junior grade with a zinger. Her dad would be proud! Well, she has learned at the feet of a master. 

Then Marcy comes out and is a stone cold bitch, bringing up the dance. Jane smacks her down, twice! This new Jane Purdy takes no guff from anyone. Julie and Liz, who make a much nicer couple than Julie and Buzz, are headed into Nibley's. Julie reacts with just the right amount of concern and offers to go with Jane. She demurs. She'll be okay. Liz sounds a little superior about having read the Scottish play, but maybe Jane is reading into it. She'll have to read it as a junior so why bother now? 

She makes another witticism and a boy in a "second year letterman's sweater" - Ooh, a bigwig! Maybe a SENIOR! - offers to accompany her. She declines this offer as well. He seems smitten with this original recipe Jane Purdy. 

Jane gets to the hospital to learn that Stan has been discharged. The nurse just gives Jane his address - it was a different time - and she giggles to herself and carries on. 

She gets to Poppy Lane and meets Stan's horrifying little sister to whom he is probably the world's greatest hero. Stan's mother is a delight and asks if she is the Jane Purdy Stan speaks of so highly and invites her to dinner sometime. The little sister says, "Boy does Stan like you!" And now I love her. 

Jane's ordeal is over and she is ecstatic! She is even feeling kindly to that old troublemaker Sir Puss. He is having none of it. He has a lot of personality for a cat. 

Then Stan calls and says the flowers were sure pretty. Yeah, Stan, sure pretty MASCULINE! He says he was a little mad about the Buzz situation, but only because he wished it was him. He asks her to go to the steak bake and movie and she says yes. I predict a 99% chance of kissing! 

This is going to be the longest 2 weeks of Jane's life. 

FIFTEEN by Beverly Cleary [chapters 7 & 8]

CHAPTER 7 - THE LONG, DARK, DANCE-NIGHT OF THE SOUL

Jane confides in Julie and sets the WHS telegraph in motion. Julie will do recon and report back. PLEASE don't let it be Marcy that Stan is taking. In the meantime she throws away her back scratcher and unravels Stan's Christmas socks. Julie finds out that it isn't Marcy and offers Jane a babysitting gig the night of the dance. 

Jane decides to put the dance behind her and concentrate on her studies and get a scholarship to one of those Eastern women's colleges. Oh Jane, we've all dreamed of attending Vassar. The babysitting job is for a lovely nerd in a comfy house, perfect for a solid study night. But Jane opts for self-reflection. 

As usual, the Krushes perfectly illustrate her state of mind and Bev gives a perfect description of the all consuming sadness you hopefully leave behind when you leave high school. "Ten years from now I'll look back on this night and laugh, Jane thought. But she knew in her heart it was not true. In ten years she might look back, but she would not laugh, not even then. This night was too painful to laugh about ever."

CHAPTER 8 - GIRL FOR SALE

Janie calls first thing in the morning. It turns out that Stan's date, the diminutive Bitsy, is an old family friend. Julie wasn't a fan if her size, but admits that she was perfectly darling. Nonetheless, the girls let their claws out a little. Turns out Stan is a wonderful dancer according to Julie. 

Then the doorbell rings and Jane has to hang up. It's Stan and he's hell bent on talking this out. Jane wants to be stone-hearted, but accepts a ride to her her babysitting job, albeit cooly. 

Turn's out, Stan has a car! It's a very old car, but Jane can't help herself. She loves it and tells him so. He says he wanted her to be the first girl to ride in it. Minds out of the gutter, pervs. Jane channels her inner Marcy and waves a "Hello there!" to a girl from her math class. Oh Jane, be careful, girl! 

It gets even better. It turns out that Bitsy was a previous engagement and Stan would have preferred to take Jane. There is a delightful litany of ways that Bitsy annoyed Stan. Then Jane gets a little nervous because they are essentially parking. She decides to get a chaperone in the person of Julie. 

As they drive, Jane works on her "new Marcy gesture" of brushing her hair out of her eyes. Are you nervous that Jane will become a Marcy clone? Fear not, and read on. 

Jane is fascinated by the word carburetor - "this is the first time she met the world in conversation." 

The picture is delightful - Julie and Buzz are very excited about the car. Cleary writes, "With the two boys under the hood, Jane and Julie looked at each other and, without uttering a word, carried on a conversation." And then describes the conversation perfectly. Then they talk about the car out loud because all the real stuff was said silently. 

Then Buzz freaking ruins it all because he is going for the laugh rather than reading the room. I've done it myself. Then Jane, being all Marcy-fied sells her first kiss to Buzz for 50 cents which he gives to Stan. Gross on all counts. 

Stan is pissed. He is quiet as they drive away and he throws the half-dollar in the bay. 

Jane realizes a small part of her wanted to pay back Stan for the long, dark, dance-time of the soul that she just went through. She's so self actualized. She wholeheartedly apologizes and Stan accepts it. 

But he is pale...so pale.

FIFTEEN by Beverly Cleary [chapters 5 & 6]

 CHAPTER 5 - Dinner in the City

Jane is ready early and her gloves are driving her bonkers. Don't worry Jane, in 10 years you will only need them for the opera. Stan is the man in the gray flannel suit, but without all the trauma. Well, there is a little trauma - he couldn't get the car so they have the loan of the Doggie Diner truck for their big excursion. Jane is a good sport not like that bitch Marcy. Who is dressed like a whore - in HEELS! And a silk blouse! Has she no shame?

Jane is hungry. This will be important later. Poor Julie is wearing a girdle and it is constricting. I feel you Julie. Everything is golden until Buzz turns out to be racist and spouts "fried lice" like the lout that he is. Stan, however, is a citizen of the world and the most honorable boy ever. He knows in fricking 1956 that it is wrong to make fun of the way people talk.  Particularly people who speak more languages than you do, Buzz.

Parking is, of course, a nightmare. Jane talks herself out of being caught up in Buzz's litany of weird foods. She wisely realizes that "It Smells to Heaven" would seem horrible to people not familiar with it. "It was only a question of what you are used to. So wise, our Jane. 

They decide to go to a cool hole-in-the-wall where the locals eat. Fricking hipsters. Stan greets an old school chum who waits tables there. He is sophisticated!

They decide to each order a dish and pass them. This is how I like to eat unfamiliar foods too! That way the person who orders it can describe it and if you don't like it they just get to eat more of their favorite. But I have never eaten with Marcy who - when Jane says she'd like chow mein - says "Only tourists each chow mein." AHHHHHHHHHHH!!! Stan, angel, sticks up for Jane, and her terrible choice in Chinese food. 

They toast the coming semester and the food arrives. Jane is flummoxed. There are little brown hands in the wonton sauce. She gives chopsticks the old college try while Marcy gives Stan the old college try. The shrimp roll is HOT. She drops food on her blouse. She is in misery. But when Buzz wises off, she slaps him down handily. Maybe she is getting an idea of how to handle him from watching Marcy with her "don't care" attitude. (Which is clearly covering up for the fact that she cares deeply. Still don't like her.)

Jane is not having fun and feels like she has ruined the date with her shitty attitude. They do fortune cookies and hit the road. The couples split off and plan to meet up later. Then Stan gets Jane a back scratcher and the sun comes from behind the clouds, metaphorically - it's dark and foggy in real life. She gets a burger and milk at a nearby diner and Stan apologizes for the way the dinner went. Marry him at once, Jane. A spouse who can apologize even when it's not their fault is more precious than gold! It turns out that it was Jane's sweet lack of response to having to ride in the Doggie Diner truck that stole Stan's heart. 

CHAPTER 6 - Why Doesn't He Just Ask, Already??

Jane's back scratcher is tied to her mirror - shades of Betsy? She is knitting Stan a pair of Christmas socks and could not be more adorable. Kismet and the Woodmont High administration made their schedules and lockers compatible and she has a reputation of being "Stan's girl" among those who pay attention to such things. 

Turns out there's going to be a dance featuring Bob Starr and his All-Stars and won't Jane and Stan look wonderful there! Mr. Purdy mines comedy gold with his Doggie Diner material, barking whenever the phone rings. But it isn't Stan, it's Julie. Buzz has asked her to the dance and he can get the car that night. Maybe they can double! But Jane would prefer a solo car date. Really, Jane - down girl! [arf]

At school, Stan is clearly avoiding the dance issue and speaks of having to rush to the "libe". The libe, Stan? Really? I am irritated with him for the first time.  Jane is left hanging by her locker with Liz Galpin, girl beatnik. In the corresponding picture, Liz looks super-cool and artsy and Jane looks like the saddest girl in all the land. 

George asks Jane to the dance and she LIES about having another date. Oh Jane, you don't owe that future billionaire any excuses. Just say "No thank you." and leave it at that. His feelings are hurt, but Jane is a girl in love and has too many feelings of her own to worry about. 

Things are getting weird and people are making assumptions. But Jane evades the truth. She is on a slippery slope relationship-wise. She finally just spills the story of the George incident to Stan. He is inexplicably relieved. What now??

Academics take a back seat as Jane worries the situation in her mind. She once again inadvertently provides comic relief to her class and feels the stirrings of self-loathing that can only be caused by a teenaged boy. 

Gosh, I'm sorry to leave you with such a cliff hanger. Blame Ms Cleary for the fantastic pacing of this book!

FIFTEEN by Beverly Cleary [chapters 3 & 4]

CHAPTER THREE - A Perfect Date

Jane washed her hair two times in the last three days and clearly it is a cry for help. She finally decides what to wear had has to press her garment. There is so much pressing of clothes in these malt shop books! And so many rules about what to wear. Gloves? No gloves? Hats? No hats? For the love of all things holy...girdles? SO much grooming. 

And there are worries about the date itself - will Stan be a hot-rodder? Will he be like the dreaded George and order an ice cream cone to go and talk about rocks? Oh the horror!!

Jane worries about her parents as she continues to groom herself. Will her mother wear stockings? Will her father make some of his awful dad-jokes like the hilarious "It spoiled his appetite to realize he had a pinhead for a daughter." bit. They are having "It Smells to Heaven" for dinner. Seriously, Mrs. Purdy? Why tonight of all nights??

Jane has some lipstick anxiety. Was lipstick a sticking point? I remember Natalie Wood in REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE fighting with her dad over it. 

Jane's parents clean up nicely, and Stan does too. Of course her dad can't resist the "cat coming in on little fog feet" joke - it's clearly one of his greatest hits. And Sir Puss is a complete jerk, cleaning his ... area. Stan is cultured and laughs at the Sandburg reference. 

There is a slight problem in that Stan just STANDS THERE. Why, oh why won't he sit? It finally occurs to Jane that he is too well brought up to sit while a lady stands and she grabs a seat. Sitting and standing has become so complicated thanks to boys.

They finally leave and Stan hopes it is okay to walk. Jane is thoroughly relieved. She does some real estate data analysis which adds up to Stan being of about the same social class. Whew! He wants to be a veterinarian - he has plans! 

At the movie, Jane folds her hands in her lap so he doesn't think she is the type of girl who expects to have her hand held sitting in the dark. She is one step away from giving him a scrap of her dress! She notices the admiring glances of some Woodmont High girls and glories in them. 

At Nibley's, she makes note of the social configuration of the room in a perfectly teenaged way. There are some excellent observations about the mood in the room - Cleary is excellent at bringing these to light. LOVE ME ON MONDAY is playing, but I believe it to be a made up song. Prove me wrong. Songs do add so much to courtship in books, do they not? Even fake songs. 

Mr. Nibley is the worst! "Aren't you out pretty late? Don't you like chocolate coke floats anymore? What kind of fertilizer is your father using on his begonias this year?" READ THE ROOM, NIBLEY!! Finally he pisses off and the conversation begins. What to talk about? Jane is mesmerized by Stan's lashes and ID bracelet and can't think of a thing. But he gets her started on babysitting stories and they are off to the races.  Stan is not one of those backward jerks who think it is unladylike to make a little money. 

Then Marcy and Greg come in and they are the WORST! Marcy drinks coffee. Marcy appears to already have had a date with Stan.  Greg is the big man on campus, but Jane clearly prefers Stan's calm strength. Jane doesn't like to play softball (kindred spirit!) and realizes that Stan is already in with the in-crowd. 

It seems that the date went well. Stan says, "I'll be seeing you." which is kind of vague. Jane starts to spiral. She felt so young and unsophisticated. She goes to the window and sees Stan wrestling his bike out of her bushes and calms right down. She smiles - he probably had a curfew and needed to haul butt home and was embarrassed of his mode of transport. He's just a kid like her! "Things looked different now, and all because of a bicycle."

CHAPTER FOUR - Let My People Go!

LOVE ME ON MONDAY is the soundtrack to Jane's life now. Stan waits until Tuesday to call her. Oy. He offers to drive her to her babysitting job. Dreams do come true! She doesn't mind riding in the truck at all. Take that, Marcy, you cow. They head over to the no-down-payment-to-vetrans side of town. She is a babysitter with a plan. Stan remembers the dress she was wearing the first time they met. They pull into a neighborhood that is going to explode into 1960s teen-angst-ville in 10 years. Jane and Little Joey Dithridge threaten to chop each other into little pieces and Stan says his goodbyes. 

Jane dreads parental pushback to all the time she is spending with Stan. So far, she's playing it cool. And cool she is when she orders coffee next time they are at Nibley's. And Stan pops the questions! Does she want to go on a dinner date to THE CITY?? Hell yes, Jane screams at the top of her lungs. Oh wait, that was me.

She knows her parents are going to flip but she seems 100% down to sneak out if need be. It won't be a solo date - Marcy (gag), Greg, Buzz and a rando girl to be named later will be coming with. And the Krushes KRUSH the illustration of the envious girls and Jane's pure pleasure. Even though some animal from Memorial Junior High School (my husband's former Junior High - maybe it was him) has defaced Stan with a Maynard G. Krebs beard. 

The best part of the whole thing? They will be taking the CAR! Bev Cleary is excellent at getting into the mind of kids as evidenced by every single thing she has written, but she is also adept at teens and clearly understands the importance of a car. 

The dinner is going to be Chinese food and Jane is a little nervous. She has found Chinese food to be slithery in the past. This is a minor worry as "Jane lay awake, tense from coffee and excitement." She adorably imagines the date and Sir Puss makes his dreadful presence known. Her father's response reminds her of her biggest worry - getting permission to go. 

The next day Jane scores Julie the spot as Buzz's date before she has even brought her plans up to her parents! They fantasize about the great event. It seems that they are going to play the old - "Jane/Julie's mom said she can go - can I?" Card that works when your parents know your friend's parents but not too much. 

Jane is a boss! Her opening salvo is "Stan is taking me to the city for dinner Saturday. I think I'll wear my gray suit." Damn girl! Way to just put it out there as a done deal. It doesn't work of course. There is much discussion. The phrase "This Stan Crandall" works its way into the conversation. Jane has lots of good ammo:

• Most of the kids are 16.
• The city is only 10 miles away.
• You get a lot for your money in Chinatown. (Okay, that's Mr. Purdy helping out.)
• Stan can borrow the car.

But when her mother asks if Julie's mom has given permission, Jane tells the truth. Good girl! Her mom brings up the fear of juvenile delinquency that was so prevalent at the time, but Jane assures her that she and Stan aren't like those teens. STAN HAS PURPOSE!! It is Stan's commercial driving license that does the trick for Mr. Purdy. He is on team romance. 

Julie has gotten permission as well and everyone is happy. The girls have to decide on hats, gloves and rounded collars - so baby-ish, but what can you do? - and there is excitement in the air. Mr. Purdy doesn't understand all the excitement. He is to be pitied. 

Jane imagines, as many do, that having a boyfriend will make school perfect. I have not found that to be the case. At Nibley's on Thursday Jane and Julie project their voices a little more than usual when they talk about going "to the city for dinner with Stan and Buzz." It's adorable and I would have done the same thing. Although a boy who is monologuing finds it irritating because everyone is way more interested in the girls' plans than his indeterminate IQ score.

The day before the big day Jane has an easy-peasy babysitting job and daydreams all through it. And the picture on page 107 proves that teenagers have always been untidy and forevermore will be. 

Brace yourselves - you know what is coming next!

SUMMER FOR SEVEN by Janet Lambert

 

Seven teenagers is a lot of teenagers to have on your farm. Oh the DRAMA!! But Dria's Gran is determined to fill up the house with a bunch of her friends to make her summer special. Here are the dramatis personae -

• Rob - Dria's boy-next-door, hard-working and stubborn
• Joey - Rob's little brother, only 13 or so but destined for butler-hood
• Holly - Dria's best friend, something of a spoiled snob
• Millie - A bobby-soxer, a little loud, a little sloppy, lives on the wrong side of the tracks and just lost her mom.
• Willie - Millie's twin brother. Smart but wants to get ahead by any means necessary - feels looked down upon by the "haves".
• Chad - A local boy Dria met on the farm the previous summer.

Well, Janet has sure mixed them up into a stew this time around. Rob, Chad and Willie are working as farmhands, Holly, Millie and Joey are working a farm stand and Dria is prepping STAR DREAM for some horse shows. 

The drama is mostly Holly being a snot to Millie and/or Willie and Dria cleaning up after her. I am sure it will come as no surprise at all that Millie learns to have better grooming habits and Holly learns to not be such a bitch. Will learns he's as good as anyone else and he loves farming. Joey learns not to hit Dria with his car again. (A weird and seemingly unnecessary plot twist at the end.) Rob and Chad learn they both love Dria and Dria learns she loves showing horses. 

Gran ends the book praying to live another year to see her "summer children" again. I would like that too...

DON'T CRY, LITTLE GIRL BY Janet Lambert

 

The first 72 pages of this are the whirlwind love story of Tippy Parrish and Ken Prescott. They are IN LOVE and he is soon to ship off to Korea. They spend a brief time together and she shows her military aplomb when he ships out. She will wait for him. She has a tablecloth and everything!

The next 62 pages are Tippy trying to fill her days and have a little fun. Ken has insisted on it, so she tries. She finally has a bang-up snow-storm weekend at West Point where she nearly forgets to pine for Ken. 

BIG FREAKING SPOILER AHEAD!!!

And the last 56 pages is her dealing with his death. Yep, our beautiful, if a little creepy, Ken is no more. And Tippy grieves and it's kind of beautiful. Lambert knows her way around the military as well as around loss and if there was ever a character poised to make us feel her pain, it is Tippy. 

There is a bunch of Peter Jordan and a big scoop of Alcie - who marries Jon Drayton!! Bobby tries to help out and their fighting and lousy relationship gets a bit of a makeover. It's all quite delightful except for the senseless death part. 

But don't worry, as I type this I am a quarter of the way into RAINBOW AFTER RAIN and if you have a hard time figuring out the point of that title, well, perhaps you need a nap.

Don't forget to check out CARLY'S MALT SHOP for an excellent, more detailed review!

STAR DREAM by Janet Lambert

Okay, I am not going to lie, this looked super-horsey to me and I almost stopped in my tracks and didn't go on. But I have to say that Dria Meredith is a lovely character. She is capable, friendly, a good sport and hard working - just like all of Lambert's protagonists. And her defining characteristic is a love of horses and old people. Typical teen. 

The premise is that Dria's dad is estranged from his mother. She was widowed young and took over her husband's business and made it a huge success but was angry when her son decided not to take over, but went off to live his own life in the newspaper business. But when Dria's mom needs to go to the Mayos for health reasons that are, in true Lambert fashion, pretty vague, Dria is to spend the summer with the old battle-axe. 

There is also Aunt Emily who is a spoiled brat and her daughter Camilla Lou who is one of Lambert's patented shallow/snotty girls. But there is also Gran, who is lovely. And it is Gran's farm so her word is law even though Mama (Dria's grandmother makes everyone call her Mama so she doesn't feel as old) thinks the world is hers. 

And then there is Star Dream. He is a horse. Dria falls in love with him. And there is Chad. He is a farm-helper, friend of the family. He loves Dria. But it will be AGES before that comes out...

Dria helps everyone get along and in the end Gran decides to let Emily and Camilla Lou paddle their own canoe (with Mama providing the paddles, metaphorically) and moves in with Dria's family. And she gives Dria the horse. 

You may notice that this is a much shorter post than usual. I am not note-taking in as detailed a fashion because it was taking me AGES to get through the books. And I really want to move along. Hence the shorter posts. 

FIFTEEN by Beverly Cleary [chapters 1 & 2]

 

Here is our lovely Miss Cleary! We probably know a lot about her. If you don't know anything about her, read A GIRL FROM YAMHILL and/or MY OWN TWO FEET. She passed away this year at the age of 104. If one of the other Cleary-book group read leaders wants to give a snapshot of her, they can. Or you can read her wikipedia page. 

I am going to spend my background paragraph on Beth and Joe Krush. They illustrated this book beautifully! They were both born in 1918 and met in art school in Philadelphia. They worked separately but helped each other with deadlines and such. Their styles are amazingly similar. There is a quote I found from Joe that I just love from a very interesting article in honor of his 100th birthday. 

"I don't consider myself an artist," Krush tells me. "I'm an illustrator. Most artists, if they're painting something and you don't understand it," that's your problem. "If I illustrate something and you don't understand it, I failed."

I think the illustrations in FIFTEEN are just adorable! They do add so much to the story [which is delightful in its own right.] The Krush's papers are divided between the University of Southern Mississippi and the Kerlan Collection at the U - home of some of Maud's papers! They're definitely BT adjacent. 

Another interesting tidbit - Joe Krush was a courtroom sketch artist at the Nuremberg trials. The Krushes were married during WWII so I wonder what Beth was up to at the time. If you are curious you can see this interview with Joe which I have not yet watched, but plan to someday!

Since I love links, here are a few that give an idea of how other people percieve this book. FANCY links!

From SLATE we have "Stories for the Square Girls", from THE PARIS REVIEW we have Sadie Stein's love letter to FIFTEEN, and CARLY'S MALT SHOP (which I adore for her Janet Lambert reviews) has a lovely overview. There is also an entire homemade site dedicated to the book and I am trying to find out the circumstances under which it was created. I'll let you know what I find out. For now, it is unattributed, but rich with information!

Here is the schedule I am hoping to keep for the remainder of the group read. We shall see how well I hold to it. 

MONDAY, AUGUST 23 - 1&2

THURSDAY, AUGUST 26 - 3&4

SATURDAY, AUGUST 28 - 5&6

MONDAY, AUGUST 30 - 7&8

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 2 - 9-11

And now, join me as we look at the book that taught me about horse meat, Chinatown, fog, disappointment and not settling for any partner who wasn't nice! I will be posting my stream of consciousness from my most recent re-read and putting some questions at the end. No pressure to answer the questions, I have been TERRIBLE this group read about taking part - many travels, many travails - but I have loved the posts and responses as an observer. Also, I believe roll call is starting soon, so make sure you mark your subject heading so that those who don't want to read about FIFTEEN can avoid it, and live their misguided, Stan-Crandell-free lives. 

(Just kidding! Opinions are opinions and we are all entitled to them! But if you don't root for Jane, your opinion is horrible...)

CHAPTER 1 - "HELLO THERE" AND A BOY

When we meet Jane, she is visioning a boy. She's counting convertibles and stepping on cracks. She has the perfect boy in mind. I wonder if he will show up. Then we are introduced to Marcy who is the worst. "Hello there!" she says. Ick. Jane compares herself to Marcy unfavorably - there is a metaphor involving cashmere sweaters that I don't get, not owning any myself. 

Jane considers the only boy she has dated - George - who carries money in a change purse. Oh, George, honey, no... He is not enough to get her into the gossip column in the school paper. It seems a horrible idea to have a gossip column in the school paper. 

So we are post-war and Levittowns are springing up. Jane considers the two new neighborhoods in Woodmont. First there are the Bayaire Estates offering "no down payment to veterans." But Jane isn't headed there today. Today she is going to babysit in one of the "California modern, architect-designed, planned for outdoor living" houses. The Nortons are FANCY.

Neither Jane nor her best friend Julie like babysitting for the Nortons. Sandra is a holy terror. But they pay and someday when those girls need money they will take anything they can get. Mrs. Norton is a "Hello there" girl all grown up. Her house is antiseptic and her family smokes a lot. Probably not Sandra, but you never know. 

So Sandra, demon that she is, lets Cuthbert the dog out and Jane has to go under a bush to get him out as Marcy and Greg go by seeing the whole thing. Humiliating! Sandra is starved for power and forces Jane to speak French. Fortunately, Jane is a good student who remembers much of her French. But then she can't remember how to say "bottle of blue ink" and Sandra threatens to spill it on the rug. (And she looks completely demented in the picture. I had never noticed before because the boy looks so dreamy!)

Luckily a very nice, strange boy comes in and through the power or pig-Latin is able to save the carpet. Sandra falls asleep and Jane is able to relax. And daydream about this boy!

QUESTIONS - 

Babysitting horror stories? Let 'em rip!

The Dansiks were three boys I baby sat for (6, 8 & 10) every Saturday. The parents owned a deli and the mom had no time for housecleaning so I would do a little cleaning while the demon-children played in the yard. One day they buried the garden hose, nozzle down and filled in the hole and made the walls of the hole collapse in, trapping the hose. It didn't seem a big deal, but Mrs. Dansik lost her mind. She had never thanked me for the housework anyway, or for keeping her spawn alive despite their predilection for bad decisions. So when I was fired, I was not disappointed. Although I missed the sandwichs. I got my job at the public library as a children's room page the next month and the rest is history. 

Meet-cute stories? I want to hear them!

I worked in a bookstore my freshman year of college. I went home for the summer, but got my job back the next fall. When I came in for my first shift, there was a very cute boy in stone-washed jeans and a magnificent mullet working behind the counter. Reader, I married him. 

CHAPTER 2 - THE PURDY'S TELEPHONE RINGS

It is completely adorable how Jane hints around to get the Doggie Diner truck to swing by the house. Sadly, Sir Puss, the family cat, puts the kibosh on it. In Jane's opinion the only qualification a Purdy dog needed was "a good appetite." HA!

Jane talks to  her best friend Julie on the phone and is cagey about meeting a boy. At first I thought she was a bad friend, but then I realized she just didn't want her parents to hear and start asking incessant questions the way parents do. She overhears her mother refer to her as "a sweet, sensible girl" and wants to hurl. 

AND THEN STAN CRANDALL CALLS!!!! 

AND HE WANTS A DATE!!!!!!!!

The details of the call are adorable. You can revisit pages 44-46 to watch the magic happen.

After Jane accepts, she needs to get her parent's permission and it is not going to be easy. Mr. Purdy catches on right away - "Aha! Horse meat! The plot thickens!"The whole Doggie Diner thing is ripe for comedy. When Mrs. Purdy begins laughing at "horse meat" Jane nearly busts into tears and wails, "It's U.S. government inspected horse meat!" I don't think of this book as being funny, necessarily, but boy, Cleary is excellent at adding those details. 

Mrs. Purdy is clearly on team George and says he is going to grow up nicely. But Jane wants a boy who is fun NOW! The Purdy's figure out why George is possibly a social liability and thaw and finally acquiesce. Jane is immediately thrown into a fantasy of going with Stan. If I've learned one thing from Jane Lambert, it is that going steady was only for fast girls! Is Jane fast??

Julie is awesome, frankly I am more a Julie than a Jane in real life - see girdle struggles in chapter 5 for details. The whole family being able to hear you on the phone issue is an irritation that today's kids will never know. Who was your ride-or-die in high school? 

[Sad story, I didn't have one! I went to three different high schools and while I usually had a nice group of music nerds to hang out with, there was no Anne Marie Walton - my elementary school best friend from whom we heartlessly moved away. I have several now, so it all turned out okay. And it makes me extra-kind to the kids in the library at the high school who sneak their lunch in so that they don't have to eat alone.]

GOING STEADY??? How were your parents about dating? Was there an age set? Did they have to meet the person first?

[My older sister was wild and I had no game, so it wasn't a big deal. Although my mother did warn me against "petting" which is the one word that I can't abide to this day. The less said about that, the better.]

And that's it for the first two chapters! I hope you enjoyed reading them as much as I did. I can't WAIT to hear how Jane's date goes. Julie and I will just be sitting here eating iceberg lettuce and dreaming about fries until she gets back to spill the tea.