Heaven to Betsy & Betsy in Spite of Herself

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Heaven to Betsy & Betsy in Spite of Herself (Betsy-Tacy #5-6)

by Maud Hart Lovelace, Vera Neville (Illustrator)

4.45 of 5 stars 4.45 · rating details · 407 ratings · 48 reviews

Heaven to Betsy: Betsy Ray is loving every minute of freshman year at Deep Valley High-with new and old friends all around her...not to mention boys! But most intriguing of all is the one she and her best friend, Tacy, dub "the Tall Dark Stranger."
Betsy in Spite of Herself: Betsy is at the center of every activity as a Deep Valley High sophomore and suddenly, thanks to he...more

Paperback, 704 pages

Published September 29th 2009 by Harper Perennial Modern Classics (first published 2009)

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Jan 06, 2010 Holly rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: own-book

This book is actually 2 novels in one. Heaven to Betsy is Betsy's freshman year of high school and Betsy in Spite of Herself is sophomore year. I read the entire Betsy-Tacy series when I was in 8th grade. I never owned any of the books, I checked them all out of the library.

A few years ago I bought Emma the 1st book in the series titled Betsy-Tacy which is about the beginning of their friendship in Kindergarten. I read it aloud to Emma before she could read. Then I looked to see if I could buy...more

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Dec 26, 2009 Lawrence rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is a two-book volume

1. "Heaven to Betsy" --- Well, Betsy has certainly changed since "Downtown" when her life began to expand. In this book, she has become quite the twit --- idiotically boy crazy, shallow, boring, and, yes, actually a rather poor student. Tacy's effective absence from her life after the move to High Street certainly shows. Although Tacy still seems a bit star-struck by her childhood friend, Tacy's indifference to boys and the constancy of her life would perhaps have been a...more This is a two-book volume

1. "Heaven to Betsy" --- Well, Betsy has certainly changed since "Downtown" when her life began to expand. In this book, she has become quite the twit --- idiotically boy crazy, shallow, boring, and, yes, actually a rather poor student. Tacy's effective absence from her life after the move to High Street certainly shows. Although Tacy still seems a bit star-struck by her childhood friend, Tacy's indifference to boys and the constancy of her life would perhaps have been a foil. (Goodness, I'm starting to think these are real people!)

But, really, what could one expect after the move and beginning high school? Betsy, who up till now has been the model of a wonderful girl for us readers, has to do a lot of growing up, just as all of us readers have/had to do. That Betsy stumbles into the Vapid Swamp is exactly what a lot of us do/did. So, Mrs. Lovelace, you have done it again: Truth prevails.

This book is quite different in tone from the previous books. I think the change of illustrators exemplifies this: The style of the pictures has changed from the "story book" style of the previous books to a more "action based" style. We are no longer in the world of childhood where experience is direct, uncomplicated, and daily. Now, we learn about housework, recipes for making coffee and fudge, planning one's school work, speculations about the "Greater World", desire to leave the nest. These are the how-to's and attitudes that make us autonomous and capable people.

One issue: I am surprised at how quickly the Rays became relatively well-to-do. My impression is that they lived in the yellow house on Hill Street because there was not just that much discretionary money in the family. But, in this book, the house is much grander and at least upper middle class. A symbol here is the brass bowl that Mrs. Ray covets for the front window. Indeed, Mrs. Ray has become quite house proud. Help me here. Has business picked up for Mr. Ray? Were Mr. and Mrs. Ray thrifty savers? Does it matter whether the reader knows? I, at least, feel that I should have some insight here as Mrs. Lovelace has changed the scene so much.

2. "Betsy in Spite of Herself" --- Betsy's high school history continues with her sophomore year. In this book, Betsy makes her first big foray into the great world: She foregoes Christmas at home (!) to visit Tib and her family in Milwaukee for about two weeks. It's like a trip to a foreign country given how German/Middle European Milwaukee is. Very interesting history for me. She also makes her first manipulative conquest of a boy as part of an effort to make herself more "interesting" and, in the course of the relationship, temporarily alienates her friends and finally learns that she should be herself. The boy, Phil, makes an excellent mirror for Betsy to see how internally ugly she can be. Actually, another big event is the high school graduation of Julia, Betsey older sister. This is and will be a big event in Betsy's life as Julia, at least as Betsy interprets her wisdom sayings, has not in the long run been a good influence on Betsy. Also, I note that, although Tacy remains very close, Betsy need not run to Tacy when the Phil dumps her: She stops at the park with the fountain on the way to Hill Street and works it out for herself. Brava, Betsy! Later, Tacy and she have no need to "talk details" as they have a more adult sympathy for each other's feelings such that details don't really matter.

There are two magnificent scenes in this book. Mrs. Lovelace at her artistic best. The first is the description of the Milwaukee train pulling out Deep Valley station and the gradual visual diminishment eventual disappearance of everyone Betsy knows. The second is the long nighttime conversation that Betsy and Tib have on New Year's night. Although Betsy and Tib express some foolish ideas, they are completely open with each other about short-run hopes and dreams. This is the longest conversation, I believe, in any of the books so far.

Brava, Mrs. Lovelace.(less)

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Jan 15, 2010 Candi rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya, classics

I can't believe I am just now finding these books! Where have they been all my life? This is a wonderful true to life girl series telling the story of being young in Minnesota in the early 1900s. This book belongs on the shelf next to Anne of Green Gables and The Little House on the Prairie to be read all girls growing up. Maud Hart Lovelace took episodes and people from her own life to write these stories and they are just charming. It is also pretty fascinating that a girl in high school in 19...more

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May 09, 2011 laaaaames rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to laaaaames by: Jasmine

Shelves: favorites

I CAN'T BELIEVE BETSY'S IN HIGH SCHOOL YOU GUYS.

I had been feeling crazy guilty for never having read these as a kid, when I was in full-blown love with Deep Valley. But it looks as if the "grown-up" Deep Valley books were out of print for awhile. Man, what a frigging revelation to have them back.

Maud Hart Lovelace - bear with this comparison here, you guys - does what I think JK Rowling is really adept at - letting her books grow up with her characters. It doesn't feel strange at all - well, o...more

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Aug 04, 2012 Pamela Hubbard rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: character-doorway, historical-fiction, young-adult, relationships

Heaven to Betsy:
I THOROUGHLY enjoyed this book. I loved reading about Betsy's first year in high school. Lovelace made everything come alive and wrote the story with so much emotion, sentimentality and reality that I sympathized with Betsy as she moved to a new house and had a hard time adjusting. I celebrated with her as she made friends, had a booming social life and had boys vying for her attention. I ached for her as she felt her first heartbreak. Betsy is still the same inside, but she is...more

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Oct 04, 2010 Natalie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: classics, historical, young-adult, romance

Why did I not read these books 20 years ago? They are timeless treasures along the same lines as Ann of Green Gables...but better! Seriously. I love Betsy, her family, her insecurities and everything about her life but mostly I love that she is exactly the same as any teenage girl today even though this book is set in 1906. As a Freshman starting high school Betsy is more concerned with friends and boys and how her hair looks than anything else (sound familiar?) but somehow manages to figure it...more

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Jul 11, 2011 Cheryl in CC NV rated it 3 of 5 stars

Oh dear - a new illustrator, and the girls are starting to think about boys & even more about beauty now.

Ok, now that I'm done, my thoughts are about the same as when I picked it up. Let's see. The second of these two was a bit more realistic - money wasn't spent as freely, other people (like Tib's extended German family) were included, and Betsy actually thought things through a bit. And I suppose it's only natural that she was shallow and self-centered in the first one, as that was about...more

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Nov 26, 2011 wfpoppet rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: children-s-fiction, classics

I wanted to like this book more than I did. It was entertaining enough that I kept reading, sometimes a chapter or two past my cutoff point for the day. However, Betsy seemed rather shallow to me. Her obsession over her appearance and the way she and her sister treated beaus/potential beaus left a sour taste in my mouth (mind?). I've never read any of the Betsy-Tacy books before, so I can't make comparisons within the series, but from what I've read on other reviews this is something of a depart...more

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Jan 02, 2011 Rebecca rated it 5 of 5 stars

Maud Hart Lovelace based this series on her childhood in Mankato at the turn of the century. I remember reading earlier stories in the series as a child at elementary school. Her earlier stories are written on a more simply and childlike. I believe she intended them to grow with the reader. I was unaware that the series continued until recently and enjoyed reading about "Deep Valley". I certainly wish my childhood and teenage years were as blissful as Besty's. They are sprinkled with taffy pulls...more

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Feb 10, 2010 Rhiannon Ling rated it 4 of 5 stars

In Heaven to Betsy, Betsy Ray is 14, and about to start her freshman year. Her best friend, Tacy, and Betsy are very excited. But Tib Muller has moved away to Milwaukee! Of course, Betsy and Tacy will miss her, but both are much too excited to miss her too much. Betsy is worried that she might not get called upon by boys, but Tacy couldn't care less if she tried. But Betsy needn't worry, because Cab Lloyd calls for her on the second day of school! Sooon, Betsy has gained the attention of almost...more

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Mar 03, 2010 Teri rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010, children-young-adult

I adored both of these books. I initially was thinking 4 stars, but as I continued to read I became a huge fan of Maud Hart Lovelace, as well as Betsy Ray. I loved these stories and can't wait to read the rest.

This series is called the Betsy-Tacy series. There are four books about Betsy's elementary school days up to the time she is 12. Then there are six books about her high school years and beyond. "Heaven to Betsy" is the freshman year of high school. "Betsy in Spite of Herself" is her sophom...more

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May 02, 2010 Erin Blakemore rated it 5 of 5 stars

I was horrified to find that I haven't really read this book since about the third grade...and spent hours reading it from cover to cover in the most comforting and productive way. This is girls' literature at its very best, and combines the pleasures of constant mouthwatering eating (how on earth Betsy maintains that stooping, reed-thin figure, I will never know), insecurity and triumph, and an ensemble cast that is so well-done it actively brought me to tears many times. This is the kind of bo...more

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Feb 13, 2010 Sally rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to Sally by: Ann Johnson Davis

Shelves: youth-independent-readers

I am loving these books! Why did I not know about them when I was much younger??? These charming stories take place at the turn of the twentieth century in Minnesota and are filled with details about life in a simpler time. With all the advances in technology that dominate our time and the troubles plaguing the world, reading these semi-autobiographical novels by Maud Hart Lovelace transports the reader to the fun and angst filled times of being a teenager. Though the writing was not amazing (as...more

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May 08, 2010 Anna rated it 4 of 5 stars

HEAVEN TO BETSY:

In Heaven to Betsy, the fifth book in the Betsy-Tacy series, originally published in 1945, Betsy Ray is 14 years old and starting her freshman year at Deep Valley High. As if the changes that come with starting high school weren’t enough, Betsy’s parents uproot the family from Hill Street to High Street. Granted, the family still lives in Deep Valley, Minnesota, but Betsy has grown to love living across the street from her best friend, Tacy Kelly, and while the new house has gas...more HEAVEN TO BETSY:

In Heaven to Betsy, the fifth book in the Betsy-Tacy series, originally published in 1945, Betsy Ray is 14 years old and starting her freshman year at Deep Valley High. As if the changes that come with starting high school weren’t enough, Betsy’s parents uproot the family from Hill Street to High Street. Granted, the family still lives in Deep Valley, Minnesota, but Betsy has grown to love living across the street from her best friend, Tacy Kelly, and while the new house has gas lighting and heating (big advances at the turn of the century) and each of the Ray girls has her own bedroom, Betsy isn’t ready to leave her life on Hill Street behind.

But that’s soon forgotten when she and Tacy start school. In Heaven to Betsy, Maud Hart Lovelace introduces several new characters — Betsy’s new girlfriends Carney and Bonnie and several boys who befriend Betsy, walk her to and from school and parties, and hang around the Ray house for food and entertainment. There’s Cab, her neighbor; Herbert, a local boy all the girls think is cute; and Tony, a newcomer whom Betsy nicknames “the Tall Dark Stranger.” Tony is Betsy’s first real crush, and it takes her on an emotional roller coaster ride. And we can’t forget Joe, the boy she met in a store during a summer trip who ends up being Betsy’s academic competitor.

Betsy makes the transition from childhood to young adulthood fairly seamlessly, making friends left and right and having a grand time.

BETSY IN SPITE OF HERSELF:

Betsy in Spite of Herself, the sixth Betsy-Tacy book, originally published in 1946, finds our beloved Betsy Ray starting her sophomore year at Deep Valley High and preparing to turn 16. Betsy has a lot of friends — a lot of boy friends — but none of these boys feel anything romantic for her nor she for them. Like many high school girls now and at the turn of the century, when the book takes place, Betsy wishes she was prettier, more sophisticated, and more mysterious. When her childhood friend Tib invites her to spent two weeks with her family in Milwaukee — where she has been living for a few years, much to the disappointment of Betsy and her best friend, Tacy — Betsy has a chance to remake herself. Betsy plans a great transformation to “Betsye” — and she has her eye on the new boy in school, Phil Brandish, a sort of “bad boy” and one of the few people in the small Minnesota town of Deep Valley to own an automobile.

However, Betsy can’t fool her friends Cab and Tony, who don’t understand why she puts on airs when Phil is around, and Betsy can’t fool herself either. She is determined to grab Phil’s attention, and she succeeds in winning his affections, but when his jealousy pushes away the boys she counts among her closest friends — never mind the fact that Phil only talks about his car and doesn’t understand Betsy’s love for writing and her desire to compete against Joe Willard in the yearly essay contest — Betsy slowly grows unhappy with the relationship.

***

Maud Hart Lovelace, who began writing the Betsy-Tacy series for her young daughter (born in 1931), truly remembered what it was like to be a young girl navigating the tumultuous emotions of adolescence, and she wrote about it honestly and eloquently. Lovelace understood the lengths that girls often go to impress a boy, how sometimes they will lose themselves, but that it’s important to accept themselves as they are. This understanding of universal experiences and emotions is what makes the Betsy-Tacy books timeless.

Full reviews on Diary of an Eccentric here and here.(less)

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Apr 13, 2013 Maria M. Elmvang rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2013, 3-stars, classics, owned, ya

Heaven to Betsy
Took me forever to read this. It wasn't bad, but just never completely caught my attention so I'd only read a chapter here and a chapter there. Finally this morning I got stubborn and sat down to finish it. The irony is that it's really a fast read - I read the last 50 pages in 25 minutes.

I've heard about the Betsy-Tacy series forever and have been looking for them at least since 1996. I finally just took the plunge and bought this two-for-one book, knowing that they weren't the t...more

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Apr 21, 2013 Jen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Picked this up on a trip awhile back to Minneapolis - I had never heard of this series, but think I would have enjoyed it when I was younger. I started in the middle of the series (high school years), and will go back to the beginning most definitely. I would love to attend the fan club events that occur annually in the author's hometown Mankato...? Even if that pegs me as square!...

Finally finished this book- entertaining once I got into it. An immersion into a time that does appear to have bee...more

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Oct 07, 2009 Taylor rated it 3 of 5 stars

There’s lots to love here. Betsy and Tacy, although they are best friends, do find their own groups of friends as they enter their first year of high school but are still *best* friends. And there are boys galore in Heaven to Betsy which, come on, who doesn’t love? Betsy is a writer-in-the-making and I love how she said, “It’s good for writers to suffer.” I liked the every-girlness of this book--Betsy has a regular family and makes regular grades, she messes up sometimes and has boy drama and fa...more

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Jul 14, 2010 Kiirsi Hellewell rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: everyone!

Recommended to Kiirsi by: I found it in the library when I was a child

I wish I could give these books 100 stars. Ever since I was a kid and read the first "Betsy" book, I was hooked...in love...wanted to be one of Betsy's friends and live in Deep Valley. The 4 high school books are my favorite and I've read them so many times I lost count.

I love that these books have been re-issued and kept the original beautiful Vera Neville illustrations. Now I finally have them for my own to keep forever.

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Jun 22, 2012 Candie rated it 5 of 5 stars

I loved these books. It cracks me up, her becoming "Betsye" and her crushes on boys, all in the early 1900s. Lovelace writes about it so wonderfully and I think teenagers can identify with the characters. For example, I tried to be "Kandi" for a while in high school. I would personally be embarrassed to reveal those frivolous ventures during my teenage years (Not counting it being hidden in a Good Reads book review).

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Nov 04, 2010 Hannah rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

In Heaven to Betsy, Betsy is a freshman at Deep Valley High - thus starts the high school books from the Betsy-Tacy series! The stores of her school experiences make me wish that I could have been one of the Crowd that Betsy begins to collect in this book.

Then in Betsy in Spite of Herself, Betsy (or should I say Betsye?) tries to change her personality in order to attract one of the most popular boys in school. Or maybe it's his "auto" that she wants? =) Anyway, after she gets both, she realize...more

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Nov 30, 2009 Carrie Goodall rated it 4 of 5 stars

I loved both of these novels set in early 1900s Minnesota. There is no strongly discernible plot. Each book lasted the duration of a school year - Betsy's freshmen and sophomore years in high school. But the characters are lots of fun and there are details about the time period that I love. Even though it doesn't quite make it up there with Anne of Green Gables, Betsy and her friends are delightful and I'm ready to read the other two.

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Feb 22, 2010 Chelsea rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to Chelsea by: Jill

Shelves: 2009, classic, recced

I don't have much of a review for these books, because they mostly just make me spout lists of adjectives: comforting, old-fashioned, cozy, sweet, chummy... They also make me use words like "chummy".

Betsy reminds me in the best possible way of Anne Shirley, and all in all, it's a perfect tragedy that I didn't own this book when I was 11. Alas.

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Mar 17, 2010 Shana rated it 5 of 5 stars

What can one say about one of the best series ever? The continuing saga of Betsy Ray and her life in Deep Valley, now as a freshman and sophomore in college. (Two books in one edition here...) Betsy goes to see Tib in Milwaukee, has a nasty boyfriend whom she fortunately dumps, learns that one must prepare for big writing competitions, and most of all, still is Tacy's best friend. I am always heartbroken when they move to High Street, but what do you do?

And the next books are on order at the lib...more

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Jul 12, 2010 Carrie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult, childrens-lit

I fell in love with the Ray’s new house and “The Crowd.” I wanted to be invited over with them, especially for Sunday night lunch, although the thought of an onion sandwich makes my stomach turn...

One of my favorite things about these books is how the girls are encouraged to be themselves and follow their dreams. Mr. and Mrs. Ray encourage Betsy’s writing and support Julia’s desire to sing opera..

...Despite the passing of 100 years, Betsy struggles with many of the same thoughts and emotions tha...more

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Feb 02, 2010 jen8998 rated it 3 of 5 stars

My mother loaned me this cute read about a girl growing up at the turn of the century. Very readable with an engaging main character who is surprisingly modern in some ways given the setting

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Feb 21, 2011 Donna rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: children-s-lit, ya-teen

Written in the 1940s this sweet tale of high school girls is fit for teens and kids alike. Betsy is extraordinary only in her zest for life. Her adventures make for a charming read.

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Oct 03, 2012 Jess Candela rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2012, read-pre-calibre-tracking, read-years-ago

This might have been more like 4 stars if I'd read it for the first time now. But I remember it as a childhood favorite, and it holds up well to another reread even now, so for that it merits 5 stars.

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Dec 01, 2010 Book Club Girl rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is the first book in the high school series of my favorite series of all time and chronicles Betsy's freshman and sophomore years at Deep Valley High School.

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Oct 12, 2009 Allison rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: longtime-favorites, historical-fiction

I've read these books over and over, and this new edition immediately drew me in for yet another re-read. Utter love!

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Feb 26, 2013 Kristal Ehrhardt rated it 5 of 5 stars

The Betsy-Tacy series was my favorite from childhood! Maybe my favorite of all time.

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About Maud Hart Lovelace

Maud Hart Lovelace was born on April 25, 1892, in Mankato, Minnesota. She was the middle of three children born to Thomas and Stella (Palmer) Hart. Her sister, Kathleen, was three years older, and her other sister, Helen, was six years younger. “That dear family" was the model for the fictional Ray family.

Maud’s birthplace was a small house on a hilly residential street several blocks above Mankat...more

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Books by Maud Hart Lovelace

Betsy and Tacy Go Over the Big Hill (Betsy-Tacy, #3)

Betsy and Tacy Go Downtown (Betsy-Tacy, #4)

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Heaven to Betsy & Betsy in Spite of Herself (Betsy-Tacy #5-6)

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