This was a great chapter book to read aloud! The language is difficult for not quite four, but my daughter asked a lot of questions and we spent a lot of time recapping what happened. We talked about some of the unfamiliar concepts (horses and buggies, ladies with calling cards) and about some of the things that were familiar to her (playing dress up, pretending to drive, making up stories).

We did skip the chapter in which Tacy's baby sister dies. I think that would probably be fine for most kids of this age; it is a very gentle introduction to the concept of death, and the incident is portrayed entirely from a young child's perspective. But Penny has already lost a sibling, and her new baby sister has the same name as Tacy's baby sister, and I thought it would be too much for her. So we skipped that entire chapter, and I amended a few lines in later chapters that mentioned little Bee, and it was fine. She can read that chapter on her own when she's older.