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Felicity's Story Collection by Valerie Tripp

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Summary: A set of six stories that take place in 1774 that follow the story of Felicity Meriman. It covers challenges of growing up in pre-revolutionary America.

Attention Span/reading level: Small chapter books, ages 8+

Good uses for book in teaching: Conditions in pre-revolutionary America, kindness to those who aren't kind to you, settling differences, manners, 

Favorite part: 
     Child: We listened to these stories in the car and my daughter loved the parts about Felicity's horse Penny. 
     Mine:  Her relationship with her grandfather

Least favorite part: That Jiggy Nye treats Penny so terribly. 

Warnings/negative feedback: 
     The characters drink tea (but Felicity must face how to politely decline tea when her family chooses to stops       drinking it)
     Conditions in a debtors prison (cold, people sick)
     Mentions a man with a drinking problem
     Jiggy Nye beats and starves the horse Penny
     Felicity's mother gets sick and the children wonder if she will die

Review:
     Of the three sets of American Girl books that I have read so far this set has been my favorite. Felicity learns responsibility as she cares for Penny, learns manners as she attends lessons, and learns to reconcile family differences with her friend Elizabeth. She also learns that she doesn't get everything she wants. My favorite thing is she doesn't have a snarky attitude. I also enjoyed reading about some of the tensions that may have occurred as Americans decided whether or not to fight for their independence. 

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