A very obscure connection, but a cool "parallel" nonetheless—close, sibling duos that give off the same energy:
Skye Penderwick 🤝 Rafal Mistral
Jane Penderwick 🤝 Rhian Mistral
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I highly recommend both The Penderwicks and the SGE series. They're two of my favorite childhood book series. Who else has read both?
The Penderwicks at Point Mouette is the third book and my favorite of the series; it's basically Rise in terms of dynamics, except The Penderwicks is a much quieter book series than SGE is, and the characterizations are top-notch, vivid and distinctive. Also, the books remind me of Beverly Cleary's Ramona series and Little Women.
If anyone would like further explanation:
Skye has a temper but also has somewhat rational, cool-headed, Rafal energy in some way. Even if they're in totally different genres/contexts, their characters intersect at some point, by a lot, I think. There's the anger issues, the obsession with order, the protectiveness, the exasperation with idiocy, colder viewpoints than others', and a fascination with retribution and justice, etc.
Jane and Rhian are the siblings that get crushes easily. Jane is a little out of the loop, innocent, susceptible to being taken advantage of, daydreamy, imaginative, and a hopeless romantic, so she's not entirely like Rhian, but her character drives her in a similar direction as the one Rhian in Rise tends toward.
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Jane Penderwick being in love with Peter Pevensie from Narnia at the age of eleven........she's like me for REAL
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favorite sentence from each of the penderwick books? sorry- I know it’s hard :/
this is such a fun question i love it!! Some of these are two sentences for context:
The Penderwicks
"No, you stupid idiot, there's nothing wrong with you. You're perfect"
i love the way skye loves her sisters
The Penderwicks on Gardam Street
"Jane,' she said, climbing down from the chair. 'Remember last year when I built that model wind tower for you and you wrote those poems for me?'"
this is what kicked off the whole mess
The Penderwicks at Point Mouette
"What could happen to Jane in a half hour?"
i just think this is a very valid question in relation to jane penderwick and it amuses me
The Penderwicks in Spring
"'If you want to get out of that crib, stand up and be an American.'"
arguably the most un-batty-like thing batty has ever said it makes no sense and i love it
The Penderwicks at Last
"And away they went, the three together, prancing, leaping, gamboling into the future.”
such a perfect end to the series
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Having another one of those urges to rewrite the entire final book in a series that I started reading at the appropriate age but that destroyed my life as an adult because it ended WRONG and I am BITTER about it and there is a part of me that will never rest until things are set RIGHT.
No, I do not care that it's a middle grade series.
I WAS ROBBED AND I WILL NOT GO GENTLY INTO THAT GOOD NIGHT.
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Quotes from books I read as a kid that live rent-free in my brain:
“...Crying is hard and hungry work...” from The Penderwicks at Point Mouette
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accidentally thought about Jeffrey breaking down at the piano in Penderwicks at Point Mouette while I was driving to work and got so teary I probably should have pulled over
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August Reading Wrap Up:
The Neverending Story - Michael Ende
5/5: Full of life and imagination! This encompasses everything I expect a fairy tale to be and it fulfilled every wish I could’ve had for one. The first half was delightful and I enjoyed seeing a more fleshed out version from the movie’s and the latter half was surprisingly introspective. I love how it’s possible to read this at a young age and still enjoy it but upon rereading as an adult, you’ll find a completely new layer to relate to. It’s a book that grows with you and I think that’s beautiful.
The Penderwicks in Spring - Jeanne Birdsall
4/5: I didn’t enjoy this one as much as Point Mouette but it was still extremely comforting. I enjoyed specifically seeing Batty’s perspective on things and the kind of way she’s dealt with family trauma. It felt raw. It felt real. It reminded me of how those feelings are so strong as a kid.
The Penderwicks at Last - Jeanne Birdsall
3/5: I hate to say the series ended on a sour note but....it did a little bit. It wasn’t terrible, it just didn’t have that flavor I come to expect from these books. Most of the characters didn’t feel like they were acting like themselves and honestly the story itself was kind of boring. There were a lot of issues I had with the story direction. Jane still remains my favorite though. If I reread this series again, I’ll stick to the first three or four.
Parable of the Sower - Octavia E. Butler
5/5: I’m surprised I ending up liking this as much as I did! This was recommended by a friend and even though I’m not the biggest apocalyptic fiction person, I gave it a go. It’s shockingly realistic for when it was written, and it’s easy to see how our reality could easily fall into this kind of corruption if we don’t try to stop it. Lots of good themes, I liked the character development. It felt personal when you’d hear characters give their own personal accounts of what life has been like for them and it helped me feel like I was really getting to know them. It was extremely dark and I had to take frequent breaks. It’s important information though, so worth it. It ended with a message of hope, and I like that the most.
Parable of the Talents - Octavia E. Butler
3/5: Then this happened. Maybe I had a case of world exhaustion going straight to this from Sower but honestly, I just didn’t like this one. It felt a bit repetitive and most of the themes of how terrible the state of things is, was already established in the first book. I also felt like the format was kind of unnecessary unless you wanted to take that perspective from the beginning. The characters also felt different and I just can’t like anyone. And no one likes any one else either. There’s very few real human connection in the book an it just feels like automatons walking around. There’s also so much death and gore that I just began to feel desensitized to it. It was also much longer than the first and it felt so extreme. I just wasn’t feeling this one. I feel like the first book was solid, said what it needed to say and could have been left at that.
Sandman Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 - Neil Gaiman
5/5: Stunning universe! I fell in love with everything! The characters, the stories, and the art! Absolutely fantastic but it should come as no surprise from a author like Neil Gaiman. I read the first volume in about a day and I was so fully immersed, I cried multiple times. I’m excited to read the next two volumes soon.
Persuasion - Jane Austen
5/5: Another absolute favorite book of mine. This one is a quiet love story. The romance comes from the smallest of glances, the constant, quiet longing from each person...it’s beautiful. Despite the size, it’s packed with story and characters that feel real and developed. Also coming into a story where the two main characters already have a history is genius. I’m rambling but this has to be one of my favorite Austens.
Cain’s Jawbone - Edward Powys Mathers
Unrated: This is indeed a book. Yes. I’ve posted about this a bit on my main account but I’ve been so inconsistent at solving it. I did read the entire thing through though, so I’m giving myself a point. Step one is a success!
The Song of Achilles - Madeline Miller
3/5: This was a disappointment to me as well. It was fine. Just that. Everyone raves about this one and I’m probably missing something (a heart?) but I just wasn’t feeling this one either. Felt a bit wooden to me and since I already knew what was going to happen, I just didn’t feel like weeping, you know? There was a few scenes I thought were written really prettily but otherwise, I just kind of felt bored half way through. It also feels very one sided somehow? Patroclus really adores the way Achilles does...anything really.. and Achilles....thinks Patroclus is neat? I never feel like their attraction matches energy at all. I’ll be trying Circe sometime soon, so I hope I like it a bit better. This was still worth a read though.
Horrorstor - Grady Hendrix
3/5: This was also just fine? I liked the beginning the most. I didn’t get as much comedy as I was expecting although I really like the furniture descriptions for each page. I did listen to an audio book so I don’t know if a physical copy would help with immersion. I was also unaware that Grady Hendrix is known for his gory imagery so imagine my surprise...(I also had hope that you were a good person Basil, I’m annoyed.) Over all, it just felt drawn out. Still kind of fun to listen to while doing chores.
11 Books Read This Month!
Mini Update:
You may be noticing a lack of a Rory Gilmore challenge book for the last few months. This is because I’ve found so many other books I want to read, that I just haven’t had time for it. At this point, I think the challenge has served it’s purpose which was, really, to get me back into reading. It was in case I felt like I had nothing to read, I could glance over the list and choose something. Right now, I feel like I’m fully back into my groove pre-slump and I’m almost overwhelmed with how many I could read. Which is perfect. :)
I’m going to attempt to be a little more organized (and hopefully more professional) with this blog and other related socials in the coming months. I’d like to delve into Instagram and Tiktok a little more and have a consistent upload schedule, so keep your eye out for new content!
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Holy fuck guys Jeanne Birdsall was writing the future the whole time
The Penderwicks At Last was published in 2018, and contains a reference to the musical Hamilton, meaning At Last would have to be set in 2015 at the absolute earliest.
However, I just noticed while rereading The Penderwicks at Point Mouette that Skye is said to be reading Death By Black Hole by Neil DeGrasse Tyson. Death By Black Hole was published in 2007, making that the earliest year Point Mouette could be set in.
At Last is set 15 years after The Penderwicks and Gardam Street, and 14 years after Point Mouette, and therefore this year, 2021 is the earliest possible date At Last could be set in.
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The Penderwicks at Point Mouette
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This was past writers block. 'Writer's boulder, writer's skyscraper. Writer's Great Wall of China'
Jeanne Birdsall, The Penderwicks at Point Mouette
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Who I relate to in The Penderwicks: Skye
Why: YOUR MOTHER DID WHAT? SQUARE TF UP BITCH
Who I relate to in The Penderwicks on Gardam Street: Skye
Why: I don’t like this school project, so I’m going to create this elaborate plan to not do it, which will most likely blow up in my face.
Who I relate to in The Penderwicks at Point Mouette: Skye
Why: Holy shit responsibility is hard.
Who I relate to in The Penderwicks in Spring: Lydia
Why: Someone’s having a major life event? Fuck that, I want ice cream.
Who I relate to in The Penderwicks at Last: Mr. Penderwick
Why: HOLY SHIT THEY’RE GROWING UP SO FAST WHAT HAPPENED TO SKYE BEING 12
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the 5 penderwicks books
the penderwicks on gardam street
2. the penderwicks at point mouette
3. the penderwicks: a summer tale of four sisters, two rabbits, and a very interesting boy
4. the penderwicks in spring
5. the penderwicks at last
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The Penderwicks was the book we didn’t know we needed, The Penderwicks on Gardham Street was the book we wanted, and The Penderwicks at Point Mouette was the book we needed but did not deserve.
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the first three books are perfect and glorious in each of their own ways, but The Penderwicks in Spring is on a whole other LEVEL.
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