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A review by panda_incognito
Happy Birthday Molly! A Springtime Story by Valerie Tripp
3.0
I read this book more than any other American Girl book, because it was one that my sister randomly happened to own. I never liked how petty Molly and Emily were at the climax of this book, hence the three-star rating, but the story is full of interesting dynamics related to how British and American children experienced World War II differently.
The "peek into the past" section is also interesting. It goes through what the average American girl's life was like from birth to emerging adulthood in Molly's era, and it was here that I first learned that the 1940s invented the concept of a "teenager." Since I hated teenagers and dreaded becoming one, it helped me tremendously to learn that our culture's view of this age group was socially constructed several decades ago, and that I wasn't guaranteed to lose my mind and be unbearably rebellious and obnoxious as soon as I turned thirteen.
Of course, nothing that this book says conveys a negative view of teenagers. It just helped me deal with my biases and anxieties to learn that people's behaviors during this age were culturally influenced and prescribed for them, not guaranteed simply because they were a certain age.
Also! Earlier this year, I read a book that is set in the 1400s and narrated by contemporary characters. When these people from the Middle Ages referred to some boys as teenagers, I laughed out loud and watched all my suspension of disbelief shatter onto the floor. Clearly, more people should have benefited from this Molly book's peek into the past!
The "peek into the past" section is also interesting. It goes through what the average American girl's life was like from birth to emerging adulthood in Molly's era, and it was here that I first learned that the 1940s invented the concept of a "teenager." Since I hated teenagers and dreaded becoming one, it helped me tremendously to learn that our culture's view of this age group was socially constructed several decades ago, and that I wasn't guaranteed to lose my mind and be unbearably rebellious and obnoxious as soon as I turned thirteen.
Of course, nothing that this book says conveys a negative view of teenagers. It just helped me deal with my biases and anxieties to learn that people's behaviors during this age were culturally influenced and prescribed for them, not guaranteed simply because they were a certain age.
Also! Earlier this year, I read a book that is set in the 1400s and narrated by contemporary characters. When these people from the Middle Ages referred to some boys as teenagers, I laughed out loud and watched all my suspension of disbelief shatter onto the floor. Clearly, more people should have benefited from this Molly book's peek into the past!