thebookmagpie's review
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
amberisreading's review
3.0
I had fun reading the first one and also had fun reading the sequel but it was a bit short to me and some things weren't really properly explained. Other than that Heidi Grows Up was enjoyable :)
librarydeb's review
5.0
I am sorry to say that I have never read this book before. I love the Heidi movie and read the original book as a young girl but never the sequels. Until a few years ago I am not sure I even knew there were an sequels. A catholic school near our home closed down and they donated a bunch of books to the little library I was working at. I bought this book and Heidi's Children for 10 cents each. Hardback. Original (I think) copies from 1938 and 1939. Wikipedia says, the sequels "were neither written nor endorsed by Spyri, but were adapted from her other works by her French translator, Charles Tritten in the 1930s, many years after she died."
In spite of the fact that the books were not written by the original author I found the books comforting and wonderful. It was like visiting with friends from my childhood. All the characters from the original book were there and some new ones as well. What a sweet book. I am excited to read the next one, Heidi's Children; and the final one in the series, Heidi Grand'mere, if I find a used copy as I could not find a place to download a free copy to read on Kindle, pdf, or in any other format.
"'The violin didn't sound like that when I played it up on the Alm,' said Heidi, looking at the instrument in perplexity.
'The violin is all right,' her music teacher told her. 'It is only the girl who feels the strangeness of her surroundings.'
'When I look at the lake,' said Heidi, 'I do not feel strange any more.'
'Then play by the window, child.'
'Indeed I will!' cried Heidi, rushing to open the shutters. 'Now I will play for the grandfather and the good doctor and Brigitte and Peter up in the mountains. I will even play for the blind grandmother in her garden most fair.'
'And where is that?' gently asked her teacher.
'Where the blind see,' said Heidi devoutly. 'The grandmother used to tell me about it when I read hymns to her, and then I learned to play for her and it made her happy. But now she hears only heavenly music.'
'What sweet faith,' murmured Monsieur Rochat taking out a large handkerchief to wipe his eyes. Then he said with confidence, 'You will play, Heidi. but you will always play best for those who most need your music.'" pg 28-29
This would also make a wonderful read-aloud... so clean and sweet and pure.
Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge prompt(s) –
#25 A book with only words on the cover, no images or graphics
In spite of the fact that the books were not written by the original author I found the books comforting and wonderful. It was like visiting with friends from my childhood. All the characters from the original book were there and some new ones as well. What a sweet book. I am excited to read the next one, Heidi's Children; and the final one in the series, Heidi Grand'mere, if I find a used copy as I could not find a place to download a free copy to read on Kindle, pdf, or in any other format.
"'The violin didn't sound like that when I played it up on the Alm,' said Heidi, looking at the instrument in perplexity.
'The violin is all right,' her music teacher told her. 'It is only the girl who feels the strangeness of her surroundings.'
'When I look at the lake,' said Heidi, 'I do not feel strange any more.'
'Then play by the window, child.'
'Indeed I will!' cried Heidi, rushing to open the shutters. 'Now I will play for the grandfather and the good doctor and Brigitte and Peter up in the mountains. I will even play for the blind grandmother in her garden most fair.'
'And where is that?' gently asked her teacher.
'Where the blind see,' said Heidi devoutly. 'The grandmother used to tell me about it when I read hymns to her, and then I learned to play for her and it made her happy. But now she hears only heavenly music.'
'What sweet faith,' murmured Monsieur Rochat taking out a large handkerchief to wipe his eyes. Then he said with confidence, 'You will play, Heidi. but you will always play best for those who most need your music.'" pg 28-29
This would also make a wonderful read-aloud... so clean and sweet and pure.
Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge prompt(s) –
#25 A book with only words on the cover, no images or graphics
jennyanydots's review
3.0
Picks up a few years after Heidi, and written by the author's translator after her death. Heidi goes to school, Heidi makes a new friend, who comes to stay with her in the Alps over the school vacation, Heidi goes back to school, but we don't see any more of her time there, because the next thing we know she's home again, instead of going to study the violin in Paris, and has applied to teach in the village school, and then she's waiting to find out if she gets the job, and then in the very next paragraph it's her first day, but she doesn't have any pupils because the last teacher scared them so much. The biggest problem here was the way time was condensed so much. I'd say the book must cover 2-3 years, but it jumped around so much - months passed from one sentence to the next. It's a commendable effort at picking up someone else's original story, but it is very gappy. I read this when I was about 9 or 10, and I must say it hasn't aged as well as the original, but I'll keep my eyes out for the final volume.
bookmagpie's review
5.0
I will never reread this because I would probably hate it, but GOD did I love this story when I was a kid. I read it before I read the first Heidi book, and I think that ruined my enjoyment of the first. I adore this book, even though it's basically fanfiction, and I love finding out what happened to all the characters I loved the first time round. I laughed, I cried, I It's not great writing, but I don't even care.
Spoiler
cheered when Peter and Heidi finally get married.e_bibliophile's review
4.0
I got my copy of [b:Heidi|20893529|Heidi|Johanna Spyri|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1400844158s/20893529.jpg|1738595] by [a:Johanna Spyri|49|Johanna Spyri|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1201029829p2/49.jpg] with the Puffin in Bloom collection. This collection is a delight to eyes no matter how old you are. The book brings on a flood of childhood nostalgia. The cartoon adaptation on this story is associated with some of my earliest memories as a little child.
It's a very lovely book as far as you handle it from a kid's point of view. As an adult who usually relishes Children's Literature, I still was going to lose it had the author mentioned the 'gust of wind through the old fir trees' one more time. Also it has some religious tone with a at the end.
Main Characters:
• Heidi: an orphan little girl who is sent by her selfish aunt to live with her grandfather in the Swiss mountains. She represents everything that is simple, pure, and innocent. Actually she's too good to be true.
• Uncle Alp: Heidi's grandfather. He has a bad reputation and everyone in the village fears approaching him, so he lives in solitude up the mountain with his two goats until the day Heidi comes.
• Peter: the goatherd of the village. He's a poor kid who lives with his mom and blind grandmother. I liked the naughtiness of his character which provided some realistic balance to the perfect image of Heidi.
• Clara: a rich girl on a wheelchair who befriends Heidi after the latter is taken away by her aunt (again) to spend some time as a companion to the invalid girl. The little girls grow a sweet friendship.
It's a very lovely book as far as you handle it from a kid's point of view. As an adult who usually relishes Children's Literature, I still was going to lose it had the author mentioned the 'gust of wind through the old fir trees' one more time. Also it has some religious tone with a
Spoiler
far-fetched miracleMain Characters:
• Heidi: an orphan little girl who is sent by her selfish aunt to live with her grandfather in the Swiss mountains. She represents everything that is simple, pure, and innocent. Actually she's too good to be true.
• Uncle Alp: Heidi's grandfather. He has a bad reputation and everyone in the village fears approaching him, so he lives in solitude up the mountain with his two goats until the day Heidi comes.
• Peter: the goatherd of the village. He's a poor kid who lives with his mom and blind grandmother. I liked the naughtiness of his character which provided some realistic balance to the perfect image of Heidi.
• Clara: a rich girl on a wheelchair who befriends Heidi after the latter is taken away by her aunt (again) to spend some time as a companion to the invalid girl. The little girls grow a sweet friendship.
katekat's review
4.0
I have always loved classic children's literature and have read much of it. This particular book is one of my favorites and I think it is equally good when you it as an adult or as a child. The characters are engaging and realistic and the story draws you in.
stephybara's review
3.0
I had forgotten how much overt discussion of God (Christianity) there is in this book. I had not forgotten the descriptions of the food - I would like to eat toasted cheese on bread in the Alm uncle's cottage!