Book Review: Betsy-Tacy

Betsy-Tacy

by Maud Hart Lovelace

Harper Trophy

122 pages

Betsy-Tacy is the first book in the Maud Hart Lovelace’s Betsy-Tacy series.  A Library is a Hospital for the Mind currently has a Maud Hart Lovelace challenge going on that runs through October 31, which coincides nicely with the rerelease of the final six Betsy-Tacy books, published in twosomes in three volumes.  I have the three volumes which were sent to me by the publisher for review, but I wanted to start at the beginning and read the first four books in the series.  Luckily they weren’t hard to find.  They are written for the younger crowd and Betsy-Tacy starts off when the girls are five, so the reading base for that particular book is not much older.  I think that’s probably one of the most fun and endearing aspects of the series; the reader is able to grow with the series.  Unfortunately for me, I was not introduced to Betsy and Tacy as a child, but it’s still fun to read them as an adult.

Betsy-Tacy begins when Tacy moves in across the street from Betsy right before Betsy’s fifth birthday party, which Tacy attends.  The two become fast friends and from that point on, they become inseparable.  Betsy-Tacy is based on the life of the author, Maud Hart Lovelace, and her childhood friend Bick, so much so that the birthday party story actually happened, down to the details of Betsy’s dress and the gift she received from Tacy. 

The first book follows them through fun times as well as sad, and for me, reading about little girls from times long ago is always fun (think of The Little House on the Prairie books).  The series takes place at the beginning of the nineteenth century in a small town in Minnesota.  A time when children still were care free and horses and buggies were still the norm. It was fun to imagine being a child during that time.  And speaking of imagination, the imaginations of Betsy and Tacy are involved in some of the most entertaining parts of this book.

For those of you interested in reading this series and join the challenge, don’t hesitate because it’s impossible not to fall in love with this series.