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FIVE LITTLE PEPPERS AND HOW THEY GREW (Five Little Peppers #1)
The five Pepper children and their mother have been living in poverty since Mr. Pepper died, so buying Christmas presents is not easy. The Peppers always know that good times are just around the corner, and their adventures have enthralled generations of children.
Paperback, 283 pages
Published
October 1st 1985
by Yearling
(first published 1881)
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Community Reviews
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Aug 21, 2007
Julia
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
People who enjoy Alcott's books
Shelves:
children-ya,
classics
I have an old "antique" (well, just really, really used) edition of this book that my grandmother handed down to me when I was a kid which I suspect added to the feeling that it took me back in time. I loved it. If you liked Alcott's An Old Fashioned Girl, you will like this. If you think those old novels for children about families overcoming hardship and learning to appreciate one another despite lack of material goods, etc., etc. are painfully cheesy you will not like this.
Dec 07, 2007
Adam
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Anybody who thinks shirley temple wasn't sweet enough
When I was little I was known as the kid who read. People in our town would give me books just because I was the kid who read. (I've read since I was three). This was one such book--a neighbor woman gave the book to me. I never liked it very much because it's like a honey, chocolate, and jam sandwich. Hooo-boy!
Aug 22, 2008
Erik Graff
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
fundamentalist children
Recommended to Erik by:
Lajla Stousland
Shelves:
literature
There being no library in the nearest town, my early reading during summers with Mother and my paternal grandmother in the latter's cottage near Lake Michigan was severely limited by what was on hand, mostly books belonging to "Nanny", my grandmother. Fortunately, she was quite a reader.
Mikey Spillance novels not being of much interest yet, I picked up her old copy of the first Little Peppers novel because it was clearly a children's book. Indeed, the edition had been published when she was just...more
Mikey Spillance novels not being of much interest yet, I picked up her old copy of the first Little Peppers novel because it was clearly a children's book. Indeed, the edition had been published when she was just...more
2 likes · like · see review
My mom has raved about this book for years and couldn't believe that I hadn't read it. So when I saw it on CD at the library I decided to get it over with. The kids (the 8 to 14 crowd) and I actually enjoyed it but at the same time we kind of make fun of it by quoting the children in the sickly sweet voices that the reader uses. ("Polly, please tell us a story. Oh, do, Polly, do!" or "I must make a gingerbread boy for my poor sick man!") It has been compared to the Anne of Green Gables books but...more
Feb 25, 2012
Kate McMurry
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
children-s-book,
classic-children-s-book
Review of the Project Gutenberg Free eBook Edition of this nineteenth-century children's classic
I was delighted to discover I could instantly download to my Kindle what I presume is the Project Gutenberg free version of this nineteenth century children's classic. The formatting is not the most presentable I've ever seen in an ebook, due to missing tabs and hard returns to set off the paragraphs from each other. Fortunately, though, there are few typos, so the this version of the book is readable...more
I was delighted to discover I could instantly download to my Kindle what I presume is the Project Gutenberg free version of this nineteenth century children's classic. The formatting is not the most presentable I've ever seen in an ebook, due to missing tabs and hard returns to set off the paragraphs from each other. Fortunately, though, there are few typos, so the this version of the book is readable...more
I remember loving this book when my mom used to read it to me when I was a preschooler. Rereading as an adult, I can see why it was mother approved but it's not a very interesting book. I've seen other reviewers compare it to Louisa May Alcott or LM Montgomery, but I didn't really feel it was up to those standards.
The problem I had with it was the total angelic perfection of all the characters. The children never fought with each other, never sassed their mom, and were always hard-working and aw...more
The problem I had with it was the total angelic perfection of all the characters. The children never fought with each other, never sassed their mom, and were always hard-working and aw...more
This book will only appeal to a certain type of tween. I have known ten and eleven year-olds who have both loved and lost interest in this book. A classic, written in 1881, focuses primarily on the daily lives of five poor children living with their widowed mother in a small, dilapidated house. As is typical of novels written for children about poverty, the Pepper children knew they were poor, but did not feel poor, as they were constantly surrounded by love and family.
Small joys, generosity, ov...more
Small joys, generosity, ov...more
Nov 01, 2011
Emma Mcdonald
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
series-books,
classics
This tale is the first in a series of stories about the five Pepper children - Ben, Polly, Joey, Davie, and Phronsie. The story begins after their father has died leaving the Peppers with only their mother to provide for them. The family lives in poverty in a little brown house within a tiny community. The oldest two children do whatever they can to help "Mamsie" provide for the others. Although there are bickers and the two younger boys frequently get themselves into trouble, the family does th...more
"The Five Little Peppers" are Ben, Polly, Joel, Davie, and Phronsie. Their father died when Phronsie was a baby and Mrs. Pepper struggles to earn enough money to support the family. Despite their poverty, they are a loving family, full of spirit and adventure. Ben and Polly do what they can to support the family, but a bout with measles threatens the well being of the entire Pepper clan, especially Joel and Polly. The family has other adventures and befriend Jasper King during one of them. This...more
I read this because the Gilbreth children in Cheaper by the Dozen liked it, but I was disappointed. It seems like a lot of the plot and characters are ripped off from Louisa May Alcott's books Little Women and An Old Fashioned Girl, down to the oldest girl being named Polly! I checked, and both of these were published before the Five Little Peppers. Margaret Sidney even lived in the same area as Louisa May Alcott: Concord. Or maybe it's just that all of these books use common themes of 19th cent...more
The best word for this book is probably "cloying". I did enjoy it, because, well, I like the sickly sweet (Alcott, Montgomery, some Burnett, Grace Richmond, etc.), but even for me, it was just a bit too much.
Five Little Peppers and How They Grew is our introduction to the Pepper family, consisting of Mrs. Pepper, "Mamsie", and her five children. As in the beginning of Little Women, the family is poor, and the oldest children work to help support it; when the family befriends a rich young man and...more
Five Little Peppers and How They Grew is our introduction to the Pepper family, consisting of Mrs. Pepper, "Mamsie", and her five children. As in the beginning of Little Women, the family is poor, and the oldest children work to help support it; when the family befriends a rich young man and...more
I didn't think that I would like this book. I just read it because I needed to read something that was in my level for school and this was the first book I could find. It was really kind of cute though. I was surprised. The name sounds dumb but it's actually a fun play on words because although it suggests it, this book has nothing whatsoever to do with vegetables. It's actually about five little kids and their last name is Pepper. It was cute and I enjoyed it.
I just finished reading this to Megan for her bedtime reading. We really enjoyed it. It opened up lots of discussion about things in the book that were unfamiliar to her. While reading about Polly having to sew a button on her shoe, I was able to share a story about my grandmother and button-down shoes. What a wonderful way to pass along some of my family stories!
If I have any complaints about it, it would be that the Pepper children are just too perfect and sweet. We truly enjoyed one chapter...more
If I have any complaints about it, it would be that the Pepper children are just too perfect and sweet. We truly enjoyed one chapter...more
Another wonderful story from my childhood that has remained in my memory all these years. I also shared this one with Makayla. It is the story of hardship, love, & perserverence after the 5 Little Peppers lose their father. In late 1800 America it was very hard on their mother to keep this close-knit family together but she managed to.
This book is about a poor family of five children and their widowed mother. It's about their troubles of being poor and their ability to always look on the bright side. Sidney tells about how the family deals with their problems. The family goes through many hardships, such as an illness throughout the family and a temporary blindness occurring. They think all is over, when a twist of fate turns their spirits around. This book has a great storyline with well-developed characters. It has some tou...more
Jan 27, 2008
Maureen
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Anyone looking for a relaxing and simple book to enjoy
The five little Peppers are the sweetest, most responsible and helpful children in the world who are always happy even though they are very poor. The perfection of the Pepper children gets a little corny, but the stories about them are cute and fun to read, and there is a surprising plot twist at the end!
After finishing Cheaper By The Dozen I decided to read this since it is mentioned in the above book. Just as I was convinced that it was a very tiresome story I couldn't put it down. It went from being very victimist (could that be a word?) to fun. Now I just have to buy the other 12 or so books...
May 04, 2008
Janel
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Janel by:
Grandma Haas
Shelves:
classics,
for-children
My grandmother gave me a copy of this when I was a girl, and it wasn't a complete edition. When I read the complete book to my children, I wondered why all children's literature isn't this sweet. We love it!
Dec 13, 2010
Suzanne Moore
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
junior-childrens-classics
I read this book after learning that the Gilbreth children read it. It was mentioned in the book Cheaper by the Dozen. It is about a family pulling together and helping each other through hard times. Set in Victorian days, there aren't any modern-day distractions interferring with family life. The children are caring for their mother, who works hard to provide what she can. In fact they all have a part in keeping the family afloat since their father died. They worry for each other and share ever...more
I learned that this was a favorite of my mother's so it became a must read. She and her four best friends called themselves 'the five peppers', even through high school, so for them it was one of those wonderful shared memories that, if we are fortunate to have something similar, we consider ourselves very lucky. Those are the memories that stay with us forever. There's nothing even slightly similar or comparable to life today and life in the early 20th century other than the obvious --- family...more
A sweet tale of a poor family who worked together and sacrificed for each other. I enjoyed this book when I read it as a child. The first and second books were the best in the series.
This was my favorite book as a kid. I found it in one of my old boxes the other day and realized that I haven't thought about it for years. It was amazing... I think.. haha.
2 likes · like · see review
This was my all time favorite book when I was a child. I must of read it four or five times. I just wanted to be part of the Pepper family.
My mother made me read this. I did not like it. Forty years and a degree of early onset senility has not improved my memory of it. Pablum!
I snagged this book at Goodwill because I remembered my mother and her mother both talking about reading it when they were children, and who am I to break a family tradition like that? And even though I am in a reading slump, I read it in just four days.
The Pepper kids are way too good, way too happy, way too sweet, except when undergoing one of their dramatic mood swings, but this story was written in the 1800's so it's worth reading for anyone who likes or can overlook the saccharine, moral-la...more
The Pepper kids are way too good, way too happy, way too sweet, except when undergoing one of their dramatic mood swings, but this story was written in the 1800's so it's worth reading for anyone who likes or can overlook the saccharine, moral-la...more
this story is simple and sweet, set in a time before electricity. the mother is devoted to providing for her children, and the children bend over backwards to make life happy for their mother. (the father passed before the book begins.) there is a gentleman character, a grandfather, and he "insisting on being contrary" taught me with laser precision how i usually am. his dialogue and manner caused me a lot of introspection and commitment to do better, to not be so contrary. in that way, the book...more
This is one of the first books I actually remember reading "all by myself". It was of the same genre and feel of the Little House, Boxcar Children and Little Women books and I loved them all. Read everyone of them more than once until I was about 10 or 11 and began to turn towards more grown up themes and stories, Something about the closeness of families in the face of adversity, all pulling together and it being ok in the end made some of the lesser appealing parts of my childhood dissappear w...more
I picked this up free audio version from the library system MP3's to download. I received this book as a gift when I was 8 years old, but never finised reading it. So, it was great to "hear" the book. It seems like a common theme for poor families to somehow get befriended by someone rich, and this is no different. This theme must have given people hope, since it was written back in the late 1800's. I must have been bored with it, when I was young, and the audio version made it much easier to ge...more
I will start by saying that I am an Alcott enthusiast, from her short stories to Little Women and everything in between. This book has been compared to An Old-Fashioned Girl, one of my least favorite Alcott books. Except that book is good, and I don't feel that The Five Little Peppers is a good book.
It's dripping with sentiment. The impoverished children decide to bake a cake for their poor widowed mother ("Mamsie dear"). And I quote: "Oh, dear; of all things in the world! The beautiful cake ov...more
It's dripping with sentiment. The impoverished children decide to bake a cake for their poor widowed mother ("Mamsie dear"). And I quote: "Oh, dear; of all things in the world! The beautiful cake ov...more
I think I would have loved this as a child when I was very much into the Little House, Anne, Little Women, etc. phase. Not that I don't still love those books now, but the books get to me differently somehow. Some of the storylines seems to be a bit too similar to others. This book is a bit different from some for the fact that it's a "big" family (only 5 kids, but that's big to others). I enjoyed being part of the siblings' adventures. But I kind of lost interest and zoned out as the King child...more
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Pen name of Harriet Mulford Stone Lothrop.
The Pepper family would soon become beloved by readers all over America. Young people avidly followed the adventures of Ben, Polly, Joel, Davie, and Phronsie. While faced with many plausible trials and obstacles they remain eternally optimistic in the face of adversity, and reflect the real life issues of so many of their readers. Their universally appeali...more
More about Margaret Sidney...
The Pepper family would soon become beloved by readers all over America. Young people avidly followed the adventures of Ben, Polly, Joel, Davie, and Phronsie. While faced with many plausible trials and obstacles they remain eternally optimistic in the face of adversity, and reflect the real life issues of so many of their readers. Their universally appeali...more
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Aug 17, 2008 03:36pm
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