Nom de Plume

I can’t remember where I read a recommendation of this kiddie lit, but got it from the library and read it in a couple of hours. The Penderwicks — a family of four sisters, their father, and faithful dog — rent a summer cottage in the Berkshires. The owner of the property is a dragon, but her son and gardener are a delight. I was rather expecting this to be a magical novel a la Harry Potter for some reason (the description on the front says it’s “A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting boy”). It’s not. But then again, it doesn’t need to be. This was one of those old-fashioned kids books in which the ordinary seems magical. Birdsall remembers what it was like to be a child — and she knows how to write about it.

Eloise Kelly is a graduate student who goes to England to research the Scarlet Pimpernel and the Purple Gentian, two dashing spies during the Napoleonic Wars. Imagine her surprise when she is given full access to the papers of an old English family and discovers a third spy forgotten by history. Her excitement knows no bounds at the prospect of learning more about the Pink Carnation — and so does her irritation with the gorgeous nephew in the family. Love in two time periods! A Regency-esque romance! Compelling plot! What’s not to love? Finished the book and realized that it was the first of the series — and thank heavens the second book is already written and I am only number nine in line at the library. Light reading at its best. Very fun and highly recommend.