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Anastasia Krupnik #1
Anastasia Krupnik
To Anastasia Krupnik, being ten is very confusing. For one thing, she has this awful teacher who can't understand why Anastasia doesn't capitalize or punctuate her poems. Then, there's Washburn Cummings, a very interesting sixth-grade boy who doesn't even know she is alive. Even her parents have become difficult. They insist she visit her 92-year-old grandmother who can never remember Anastasia's name. On top of that, they're going to have a baby -- at their age! It's enough to make a kid want to do something terrible. Anastasia knows that if she didn't have her secret green notebook to write in, she would never make it to her eleventh birthday.
113 pages, Paperback
First published November 30, 1978
209 people are currently reading
6152 people want to read
About the author
Lois Lowry
141 books22.7k followersTaken from Lowry's website:
"I’ve always felt that I was fortunate to have been born the middle child of three. My older sister, Helen, was very much like our mother: gentle, family-oriented, eager to please. Little brother Jon was the only boy and had interests that he shared with Dad; together they were always working on electric trains and erector sets; and later, when Jon was older, they always seemed to have their heads under the raised hood of a car. That left me in-between, and exactly where I wanted most to be: on my own. I was a solitary child who lived in the world of books and my own vivid imagination.
Because my father was a career military officer - an Army dentist - I lived all over the world. I was born in Hawaii, moved from there to New York, spent the years of World War II in my mother’s hometown: Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and from there went to Tokyo when I was eleven. High school was back in New York City, but by the time I went to college (Brown University in Rhode Island), my family was living in Washington, D.C.
I married young. I had just turned nineteen - just finished my sophomore year in college - when I married a Naval officer and continued the odyssey that military life requires. California. Connecticut (a daughter born there). Florida (a son). South Carolina. Finally Cambridge, Massachusetts, when my husband left the service and entered Harvard Law School (another daughter; another son) and then to Maine - by now with four children under the age of five in tow. My children grew up in Maine. So did I. I returned to college at the University of Southern Maine, got my degree, went to graduate school, and finally began to write professionally, the thing I had dreamed of doing since those childhood years when I had endlessly scribbled stories and poems in notebooks.
After my marriage ended in 1977, when I was forty, I settled into the life I have lived ever since. Today I am back in Cambridge, Massachusetts, living and writing in a house dominated by a very shaggy Tibetan Terrier named Bandit. For a change of scenery Martin and I spend time in Maine, where we have an old (it was built in 1768!) farmhouse on top of a hill. In Maine I garden, feed birds, entertain friends, and read...
My books have varied in content and style. Yet it seems that all of them deal, essentially, with the same general theme: the importance of human connections. A Summer to Die, my first book, was a highly fictionalized retelling of the early death of my sister, and of the effect of such a loss on a family. Number the Stars, set in a different culture and era, tells the same story: that of the role that we humans play in the lives of our fellow beings.
The Giver - and Gathering Blue, and the newest in the trilogy: Messenger - take place against the background of very different cultures and times. Though all three are broader in scope than my earlier books, they nonetheless speak to the same concern: the vital need of people to be aware of their interdependence, not only with each other, but with the world and its environment.
My older son was a fighter pilot in the United States Air Force. His death in the cockpit of a warplane tore away a piece of my world. But it left me, too, with a wish to honor him by joining the many others trying to find a way to end conflict on this very fragile earth.
I am a grandmother now. For my own grandchildren - and for all those of their generation - I try, through writing, to convey my passionate awareness that we live intertwined on this planet and that our future depends upon our caring more, and doing more, for one another."
"I’ve always felt that I was fortunate to have been born the middle child of three. My older sister, Helen, was very much like our mother: gentle, family-oriented, eager to please. Little brother Jon was the only boy and had interests that he shared with Dad; together they were always working on electric trains and erector sets; and later, when Jon was older, they always seemed to have their heads under the raised hood of a car. That left me in-between, and exactly where I wanted most to be: on my own. I was a solitary child who lived in the world of books and my own vivid imagination.
Because my father was a career military officer - an Army dentist - I lived all over the world. I was born in Hawaii, moved from there to New York, spent the years of World War II in my mother’s hometown: Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and from there went to Tokyo when I was eleven. High school was back in New York City, but by the time I went to college (Brown University in Rhode Island), my family was living in Washington, D.C.
I married young. I had just turned nineteen - just finished my sophomore year in college - when I married a Naval officer and continued the odyssey that military life requires. California. Connecticut (a daughter born there). Florida (a son). South Carolina. Finally Cambridge, Massachusetts, when my husband left the service and entered Harvard Law School (another daughter; another son) and then to Maine - by now with four children under the age of five in tow. My children grew up in Maine. So did I. I returned to college at the University of Southern Maine, got my degree, went to graduate school, and finally began to write professionally, the thing I had dreamed of doing since those childhood years when I had endlessly scribbled stories and poems in notebooks.
After my marriage ended in 1977, when I was forty, I settled into the life I have lived ever since. Today I am back in Cambridge, Massachusetts, living and writing in a house dominated by a very shaggy Tibetan Terrier named Bandit. For a change of scenery Martin and I spend time in Maine, where we have an old (it was built in 1768!) farmhouse on top of a hill. In Maine I garden, feed birds, entertain friends, and read...
My books have varied in content and style. Yet it seems that all of them deal, essentially, with the same general theme: the importance of human connections. A Summer to Die, my first book, was a highly fictionalized retelling of the early death of my sister, and of the effect of such a loss on a family. Number the Stars, set in a different culture and era, tells the same story: that of the role that we humans play in the lives of our fellow beings.
The Giver - and Gathering Blue, and the newest in the trilogy: Messenger - take place against the background of very different cultures and times. Though all three are broader in scope than my earlier books, they nonetheless speak to the same concern: the vital need of people to be aware of their interdependence, not only with each other, but with the world and its environment.
My older son was a fighter pilot in the United States Air Force. His death in the cockpit of a warplane tore away a piece of my world. But it left me, too, with a wish to honor him by joining the many others trying to find a way to end conflict on this very fragile earth.
I am a grandmother now. For my own grandchildren - and for all those of their generation - I try, through writing, to convey my passionate awareness that we live intertwined on this planet and that our future depends upon our caring more, and doing more, for one another."
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 596 reviews
April 27, 2022
I really do not know why I did not read this particular Lois Lowry novel (or the entire Anastasia Krupnik series for that matter) as a teenager, when the series was current, when it was just published. For I do so love and appreciate mature little Anastasia with a vocabulary much better than mine and self-direction enough to make her own decisions and lists (which are also always kept up-to-date). And Anastasia Krupnik’s parents, they indeed are equally wonderful, giving their daughter lots of space and consideration, even with the new baby coming (and yes, there is most definitely also some personal envy speaking here, as my parents were not even remotely as understanding and yes, as forgiving and commiserative when I was Anastasia's age).
Now my very favourite part of Anastasia Krupnik is probably the sharing of the poem Anastasia had taken so much time writing. And since her teacher actually had given Anastasia an F and explained that she had not followed directions, I can definitely thus completely understand why this teacher originally ended up on that hate-list. But I guess I can though, at least to a point, also realise and even appreciate that Anastasia did in fact not follow the exact directions of the assignment (in so far that the poem was supposed to rhyme). But was that failure worth an F, a total failing grade which basically says that her efforts were both wrong and totally unacceptable? I mean, why did the teacher not give Anastasia at least a C; an F just seems so totally mean spirited in the extreme. That being said, at the end of the novel, at the end of Anastasia Krupnik this very same teacher is then actually revealed to be a genuinely nice and caring person (albeit one with perhaps not all that much imagination, but still a comisserative and genuinely pleasant individual and not a monstrosity worthy of hatred and ridicule). And personally, I also so appreciate that her father not only has Anastasia read her poem aloud to him, but that he loves her verses and is not afraid of telling Anastasia that her poem is indeed good (that the father is not above giving praise when and where praise is due and even if it goes against the teacher), and that he, that Anastasia’s father also explains that it is the teacher who cannot understand poetry (but in retrospect, I also like the fact that Dr. Krupnik is able to commend Anastasia's poetic effort without actually being nasty towards the teacher, that he strives to show his daughter that her teacher is not trying to be deliberately mean, but that she simply has a limited and limiting understanding of lyricism, of the fact that poetry does not have to mean rhyming couplets and the like). And I guess I should also perhaps admit that when I first read Anastasia Krupnik, my initial reaction (especially towards the scene where Anastasia shares her supposedly failed poem with her father and the fact that he is not only accepting of her, but offers praise while also allowing himself to be openly critical of her teacher) was both intensely positive and congratulatory, but also one of serious and almost tearful envy (as my own parents would NEVER have acted this way, would ALWAYS have taken the part of the teacher in no uncertain terms, and were generally only interested in my endeavours and issues when there were issues, and potential problems, as parental praise was seen as promoting possible boastfulness and egocentrism).
But sadly, Anastasia Krupnik and actually the entire series, is also a continuous resident on the list for frequently banned and challenged books in the USA, often because of the fact that curse words are used and presented. Now I really do not think that there is anything all that problematic about these so called four-letter words, as they are used realistically and are also not over and gratuitously used. And yes, a university student might well use these types of words and expressions in class, during a lecture, which is perhaps why Dr. Krupnik should probably not have taken Anastasia to visit his class (I myself teach at the university/college level and students do use inappropriate language at times, which is why the few times students have wanted to be able to take their children to class, I have said that this was not such a good idea). Now if the swear words used in, featured in Anastasia Krupnik had been overused and gratuitous, I might have had somewhat more of an issue with this, but as it stands, they just make the narrative more realistic and immediate. And really, the idea of some "enlightened" parents wanting to ban, to remove this book (or the series) from library shelves etc. simply because curse words and references to alcohol consumption is presented, is simply and utter horrid and laughable (so what if off colour words are used, or that Anastasia's father drinks beer and lets her sip the foam, oh wow, how anal and silly these holier than thou book banners and book burners are, book banning and censorship is NEVER acceptable).
But indeed, I guess I was and perhaps also do even remain a bit shocked at the name Anastasia originally chose for her baby brother. For I kind of naively thought it was going to be some kind of a complicated name like her own, such as Theophilus or perhaps some literary name she had read in a book, or had heard her parents discuss. And personally, at age ten, I would not even have known what it meant (and I will not reveal the actual name, as that would be a massive spoiler, except to say that it is rather sexual in nature and tone), and would also not have wanted to ask my parents what it meant either (and when I was ten, we had just moved to Canada from Germany, so I actually doubt that either of my parents would even have known what it meant any more than I would have; they knew English, but would not likely have known much vernacular and slang).
And finally, as someone with a rather odd and difficult to pronounce first name (Gundula), I can certainly much relate to Anastasia at the beginning of Anastasia Krupnik not really liking her name and actually having some rather major issues with the same. Now I personally love her name and that she was named for Anastasia Romanov (and I also much appreciate my own name now), but having a unique name can definitely be a real hassle at school and can also lead to both inadvertent pronunciation issues (my teachers were constantly mispronouncing my name, but many of them did not at all like me telling them that) and even bullying (Anastasia being left out of the "i" club in her class comes to mind, and I remember that at least some of the mispronunciations of my own name were deliberate, like Gondola instead of Gundula, and classmates telling me that I resembled the former).
Now my very favourite part of Anastasia Krupnik is probably the sharing of the poem Anastasia had taken so much time writing. And since her teacher actually had given Anastasia an F and explained that she had not followed directions, I can definitely thus completely understand why this teacher originally ended up on that hate-list. But I guess I can though, at least to a point, also realise and even appreciate that Anastasia did in fact not follow the exact directions of the assignment (in so far that the poem was supposed to rhyme). But was that failure worth an F, a total failing grade which basically says that her efforts were both wrong and totally unacceptable? I mean, why did the teacher not give Anastasia at least a C; an F just seems so totally mean spirited in the extreme. That being said, at the end of the novel, at the end of Anastasia Krupnik this very same teacher is then actually revealed to be a genuinely nice and caring person (albeit one with perhaps not all that much imagination, but still a comisserative and genuinely pleasant individual and not a monstrosity worthy of hatred and ridicule). And personally, I also so appreciate that her father not only has Anastasia read her poem aloud to him, but that he loves her verses and is not afraid of telling Anastasia that her poem is indeed good (that the father is not above giving praise when and where praise is due and even if it goes against the teacher), and that he, that Anastasia’s father also explains that it is the teacher who cannot understand poetry (but in retrospect, I also like the fact that Dr. Krupnik is able to commend Anastasia's poetic effort without actually being nasty towards the teacher, that he strives to show his daughter that her teacher is not trying to be deliberately mean, but that she simply has a limited and limiting understanding of lyricism, of the fact that poetry does not have to mean rhyming couplets and the like). And I guess I should also perhaps admit that when I first read Anastasia Krupnik, my initial reaction (especially towards the scene where Anastasia shares her supposedly failed poem with her father and the fact that he is not only accepting of her, but offers praise while also allowing himself to be openly critical of her teacher) was both intensely positive and congratulatory, but also one of serious and almost tearful envy (as my own parents would NEVER have acted this way, would ALWAYS have taken the part of the teacher in no uncertain terms, and were generally only interested in my endeavours and issues when there were issues, and potential problems, as parental praise was seen as promoting possible boastfulness and egocentrism).
But sadly, Anastasia Krupnik and actually the entire series, is also a continuous resident on the list for frequently banned and challenged books in the USA, often because of the fact that curse words are used and presented. Now I really do not think that there is anything all that problematic about these so called four-letter words, as they are used realistically and are also not over and gratuitously used. And yes, a university student might well use these types of words and expressions in class, during a lecture, which is perhaps why Dr. Krupnik should probably not have taken Anastasia to visit his class (I myself teach at the university/college level and students do use inappropriate language at times, which is why the few times students have wanted to be able to take their children to class, I have said that this was not such a good idea). Now if the swear words used in, featured in Anastasia Krupnik had been overused and gratuitous, I might have had somewhat more of an issue with this, but as it stands, they just make the narrative more realistic and immediate. And really, the idea of some "enlightened" parents wanting to ban, to remove this book (or the series) from library shelves etc. simply because curse words and references to alcohol consumption is presented, is simply and utter horrid and laughable (so what if off colour words are used, or that Anastasia's father drinks beer and lets her sip the foam, oh wow, how anal and silly these holier than thou book banners and book burners are, book banning and censorship is NEVER acceptable).
But indeed, I guess I was and perhaps also do even remain a bit shocked at the name Anastasia originally chose for her baby brother. For I kind of naively thought it was going to be some kind of a complicated name like her own, such as Theophilus or perhaps some literary name she had read in a book, or had heard her parents discuss. And personally, at age ten, I would not even have known what it meant (and I will not reveal the actual name, as that would be a massive spoiler, except to say that it is rather sexual in nature and tone), and would also not have wanted to ask my parents what it meant either (and when I was ten, we had just moved to Canada from Germany, so I actually doubt that either of my parents would even have known what it meant any more than I would have; they knew English, but would not likely have known much vernacular and slang).
And finally, as someone with a rather odd and difficult to pronounce first name (Gundula), I can certainly much relate to Anastasia at the beginning of Anastasia Krupnik not really liking her name and actually having some rather major issues with the same. Now I personally love her name and that she was named for Anastasia Romanov (and I also much appreciate my own name now), but having a unique name can definitely be a real hassle at school and can also lead to both inadvertent pronunciation issues (my teachers were constantly mispronouncing my name, but many of them did not at all like me telling them that) and even bullying (Anastasia being left out of the "i" club in her class comes to mind, and I remember that at least some of the mispronunciations of my own name were deliberate, like Gondola instead of Gundula, and classmates telling me that I resembled the former).
April 7, 2011
Rereading Anastasia is like revisiting a place that you didn't quite remember you'd been to, but as soon as you get there everything seems familiar. Mrs. Westvessel, Washburn Cummings, the lists, her mole, her changing relationship with her grandmother, her secret bad thoughts, her poetry outfit. It was all tucked away in some obscure part of my brain, waiting to be rediscovered. I reread the book a few years ago, for the first time since middle school, probably, and listening to it on audio brought back that same feeling.
I have to confess - I almost didn't keep going with the audio version. C.J. Critt does a great job of inhabiting the world of a ten-year-old, but she inserts these long pauses into the narrative as if waiting for a slow reader to follow along the page with her. This is downright annoying at first, especially when you can hear her inhaling, but fortunately I was stuck with it on a 40 minute drive and by the time I was a few tracks in, I was hooked. It's a short book and I listened to the whole thing in one day, what with a slightly longer drive home and listening while cooking dinner.
But what's so great about Anastasia and the way Lois Lowry tells her story? Simply that I believe Anastasia is a ten year old. She's on the edge of figuring out the world - what does she love and hate? How does she reconcile her interior world with reality? She has a life that was enough like mine for me to relate, but different enough to feel exciting. She's funny. She makes lists. Also, rereading as an adult, her parents seem awesome - fully fleshed-out characters that I wouldn't mind hanging out with.
Sure, there are a few dated things in the book - the college students smoking in class, her parents finding out they're having a boy after taking a special test, not because of an ultrasound, and a few other references, but Anastasia as a character doesn't date at all. It doesn't look like the rest of the series is available on audio through my library (or maybe at all), but I'm eager to reread the whole series and discover more bits I'd forgotten (I know there's a character named Lloyd later in the series because I distinctly remember someone insisting it be pronounced "Yoyd").
Source: my library
I have to confess - I almost didn't keep going with the audio version. C.J. Critt does a great job of inhabiting the world of a ten-year-old, but she inserts these long pauses into the narrative as if waiting for a slow reader to follow along the page with her. This is downright annoying at first, especially when you can hear her inhaling, but fortunately I was stuck with it on a 40 minute drive and by the time I was a few tracks in, I was hooked. It's a short book and I listened to the whole thing in one day, what with a slightly longer drive home and listening while cooking dinner.
But what's so great about Anastasia and the way Lois Lowry tells her story? Simply that I believe Anastasia is a ten year old. She's on the edge of figuring out the world - what does she love and hate? How does she reconcile her interior world with reality? She has a life that was enough like mine for me to relate, but different enough to feel exciting. She's funny. She makes lists. Also, rereading as an adult, her parents seem awesome - fully fleshed-out characters that I wouldn't mind hanging out with.
Sure, there are a few dated things in the book - the college students smoking in class, her parents finding out they're having a boy after taking a special test, not because of an ultrasound, and a few other references, but Anastasia as a character doesn't date at all. It doesn't look like the rest of the series is available on audio through my library (or maybe at all), but I'm eager to reread the whole series and discover more bits I'd forgotten (I know there's a character named Lloyd later in the series because I distinctly remember someone insisting it be pronounced "Yoyd").
Source: my library
June 23, 2011
It's weird, I didn't really think of these books as that funny when I was a kid. Anastasia reminds me a lot of myself at that age, so I probably just thought it seemed normal.
But now! I was reading this at lunch and I had to stop because I kept laughing and my co-workers were staring at me.
For example:
"Anastasia had a small pink wart in the middle of her left thumb. She found her wart very pleasing. It had appeared quite by surprise, shortly after her tenth birthday, on a morning when nothing else interesting was happening, and it was the first wart she had ever had, or seen.
"It's the loveliest color I've seen in a wart," her mother, who had seen others, said with admiration.
"Warts, you know," her father had told her, "have a kind of magic to them. they come and go without any reason at all, rather like elves."
I love her parents (and how terrifying is it that her mother and I are now the same age?). They are hilarious and awesome.
Oh yeah, and then you might cry at the end part.
But now! I was reading this at lunch and I had to stop because I kept laughing and my co-workers were staring at me.
For example:
"Anastasia had a small pink wart in the middle of her left thumb. She found her wart very pleasing. It had appeared quite by surprise, shortly after her tenth birthday, on a morning when nothing else interesting was happening, and it was the first wart she had ever had, or seen.
"It's the loveliest color I've seen in a wart," her mother, who had seen others, said with admiration.
"Warts, you know," her father had told her, "have a kind of magic to them. they come and go without any reason at all, rather like elves."
I love her parents (and how terrifying is it that her mother and I are now the same age?). They are hilarious and awesome.
Oh yeah, and then you might cry at the end part.
July 21, 2018
Despite being thirty years old, I often read juvenile chapter books; I find them entertaining and engaging. Even ones I read as a kid have held up when I reread them in recent years.
However, I did not care for this book.
Why? The main problem is the protagonist; she is too unlikable and whiny. She goes from liking things to hating them to liking them again; can't she make up her mind? Add to that a usage of the s-word and a sexual description of the Catholic sign of the cross--seriously!--and this was a dud.
The only reason I gave it two stars was because I liked the ending; however, I won't be reading any of the sequels.
(Why do these "classic" kids' books often end up being such garbage? We need a sleuth like Sherlock Holmes or Jessica Fletcher to investigate!)
However, I did not care for this book.
Why? The main problem is the protagonist; she is too unlikable and whiny. She goes from liking things to hating them to liking them again; can't she make up her mind? Add to that a usage of the s-word and a sexual description of the Catholic sign of the cross--seriously!--and this was a dud.
The only reason I gave it two stars was because I liked the ending; however, I won't be reading any of the sequels.
(Why do these "classic" kids' books often end up being such garbage? We need a sleuth like Sherlock Holmes or Jessica Fletcher to investigate!)
February 13, 2011
My 7-year-old just read this, so I had to pick it up and and reread parts. It is even MORE awesome than I remembered. How I wish I were as cool a parent as Anastasia's parents.
Also, it inspired my daughter to write poetry. Terrible poetry, but still.
Also, it inspired my daughter to write poetry. Terrible poetry, but still.
October 5, 2021
I haven't re-read this book since I was a child. Some thoughts:
1) As far as final lines go, "With mushrooms!" is a pretty great one.
2) I totally forgot how this book made me want to answer the phone by saying "For whom does this bell toll?" Ambition resumed.
3) I am feeling somewhat miffed that the sequels are not available on my library's streaming audio services. Were they even ever recorded? This is a truly unfortunate situation.
1) As far as final lines go, "With mushrooms!" is a pretty great one.
2) I totally forgot how this book made me want to answer the phone by saying "For whom does this bell toll?" Ambition resumed.
3) I am feeling somewhat miffed that the sequels are not available on my library's streaming audio services. Were they even ever recorded? This is a truly unfortunate situation.
August 18, 2018
The rare re-read of a childhood favorite that TOTALLY lives up to my memories of reading it originally. I read this aloud to Sofie and she loved it too. Anastasia's family remains the coolest. And there is no way any middle grade book today would get away with that One Ball Reilly punchline. Or a poetry professor dad who smokes and swears in class and lets his 10-yr-old sip the foam off his beer.
March 23, 2012
Just reread this. Such a delightful book, and even though it's copyrighted 1979, it barely feels dated. The only things that do feel dated is that there are things in it that would not fly in childrens books today (like Anastasia's parents letting her have a sip of their wine or beer, or the wonderful name that she comes up with for her unborn brother, which I will not spoil because I forgot it and it made me laugh out loud when I got there).
May 13, 2012
I read this for my book club where we reread books we read when we were younger, but this was the first time I'd ever read it. I wish I'd read it when I was 10 because of great lines like this: "I need to start worrying about making myself some memories" or this: "These are the most important things that happened the year that I was ten: I began to have a mercurial temperament." Or all of her wart references. This is such a smart, insightful book for kids, but I thoroughly enjoyed it, too.
July 31, 2023
Anastasia...evergreen relatable queen of Big Feelings, early bullet journal innovator...an icon
https://www.frowl.org/worstbestseller...
https://www.frowl.org/worstbestseller...
June 30, 2022
The year was probably 94-95 and my elementary librarian read my class all of the Anastasia and Sam books. I know we loved them. I have incredibly fond memories of studying and loving this particular editions cover.
Shame you can't really keep that childhood magic. Anastasia is precocious and I suppose she's funny but she's pretty annoying. This book is dated, I would not choose to read it to a child today. Honestly it was prob a bit dated for the mid 1990s, or it should have been.
Perhaps a classic in some ways but I think there must be better options to share in some nostalgia with children.
Shame you can't really keep that childhood magic. Anastasia is precocious and I suppose she's funny but she's pretty annoying. This book is dated, I would not choose to read it to a child today. Honestly it was prob a bit dated for the mid 1990s, or it should have been.
Perhaps a classic in some ways but I think there must be better options to share in some nostalgia with children.
April 22, 2014
When I was around this age, I wanted to be Anastasia so much! She was cool. She wore glasses like me. She didn't understand boys, just like me. As the series continued, I loved how quirky and interesting she was. My favorite was Anastasia, Ask Your Analyst, in which she got a bust of Sigmund Freud and used him as an actual therapist. Completely genious. As someone who was often misunderstood, I could relate to Anastasia on a completely different level!
August 9, 2019
I know that I've read this at least once before, but I didn't remember it. And yet somehow I know that I got more out of it this time than I did thing. Weird. Anyway, good book for the right audience. Especially kids who can sympathize with the girl, and not see her, as I do through a mother's eyes, as awfully spoiled and self-centered. Inflicting a baby brother on her is probably a good idea. I should consider reading more in the series.
September 18, 2009
Um, a precocious girl who writes in a notebook all the time, likes lists and poetry, and uses words like jocund and indefatigable after looking them up in the dictionary, keeping a list of her favorite words in said notebook? No wonder I loved this as a child. Also, the parents cuss and are blase about it. I'm sure that delighted me as well.
January 14, 2020
Something reminded me of this book today, and I'm sick and having trouble reading regular stuff--so I picked it up on an impulse and read it. It is definitely one of those old favorites that holds up just as well reading as an adult. The whole time I found myself thinking, "Wow, that VOICE!" I love the Krupnik family and all the books about them, and it was a delight to revisit their home today.
March 11, 2017
When I reread this as an adult, I still find Anastasia as charming and vivid as ever. She remains one of my favourite children's characters, and I'm still so impressed by how Lowry writes dialogue. Aspiring writers could learn a lot from her.
October 3, 2020
I reread this as a book and found it to be pretty cute. Anastasia has her first crush, loses a loved one, and becomes a big sister.
June 18, 2017
So I read this book aloud to my daughter and I had to gloss over some areas. There is a part where she is talking about a guy she likes and she's telling her friend about what Cosmo magazine says about how you know you are in love, one of the points is wanting to fulfill his fantasy's, Anastasia is a ten year old. Despite being dated, letting her drink the foam from her fathers beer, the mentioning of her dad drinking beer is something you don't see in many books today aimed at that age group, being home alone at 10. But there are other issues that no matter when the book was wrote it still hit home. The growing pains of being 10, finding out about a baby on the way and loss of a grandparent.
Both me and my daughter really enjoyed this book and this character, we hope the library has the next in the series.
Both me and my daughter really enjoyed this book and this character, we hope the library has the next in the series.
October 20, 2022
I can't believe I haven't read these until now. I actually never read anything by Lois Lowry when I was a kid, and now I realize just how much I missed out back then.
September 15, 2021
Talk about nostalgia! I picked this up on a whim from the library, and I was not disappointed. Anastasia is still as charming and precocious as ever :) What a delightful respite from 'adult books' - I love children's books! :)
August 7, 2024
2.75 stars I guess? Funny, sometimes surprisingly and unacceptably inappropriate, especially for a children’s book, and totally lacking a “driving force” except Anastasia’s ridiculous personality. Not bad once—I don’t think I’ll be reading any of the EIGHT sequels
June 25, 2019
This was a a nostalgia read for me. Anastasia was one of my people. Ramona, Anne of Green Gables, any Judy Blume character...and Anastasia. Anastasia is 10 years old in this one, living with her poet/professor father and artist mother. She has glasses that make her look like an owl, a lovely pink wart on her thumb, and a her first massive crush. She makes lists, which endeared her to me even more. I love a good list. She also has a baby brother on the way, which she is not thrilled about, and a grandmother who can't remember her name.
I just loved her because she was so much like me. Smart, but not a genius. Kind of flies under the radar with looks. Nice parents who mean well. Normal problems. Friends she fights with sometimes. Unrequited crushes.
I want to reissue all of this series with brilliant, updated covers so that they will circulate hugely at every library. Because while the covers feel dated, the series itself does not. I would hand this to any 9-year old to 14-year old and tell them, "Ignore the cover. Just trust me. You will like this girl."
I am so glad I reread this one as an adult. I completely underappreciated the parents in this book the first go round. They are smart and passionate about their careers and in love and mostly unflappable. When their daughter comes home and says she needs a miniature wedding dress because she's decided she's going to be Catholic, her father nods and says, "That's both interesting and preposterous." They treat Anastasia with respect and don't talk down to her.
I unabashedly loved this, and I think it should be a part of every library collection.
I just loved her because she was so much like me. Smart, but not a genius. Kind of flies under the radar with looks. Nice parents who mean well. Normal problems. Friends she fights with sometimes. Unrequited crushes.
I want to reissue all of this series with brilliant, updated covers so that they will circulate hugely at every library. Because while the covers feel dated, the series itself does not. I would hand this to any 9-year old to 14-year old and tell them, "Ignore the cover. Just trust me. You will like this girl."
I am so glad I reread this one as an adult. I completely underappreciated the parents in this book the first go round. They are smart and passionate about their careers and in love and mostly unflappable. When their daughter comes home and says she needs a miniature wedding dress because she's decided she's going to be Catholic, her father nods and says, "That's both interesting and preposterous." They treat Anastasia with respect and don't talk down to her.
I unabashedly loved this, and I think it should be a part of every library collection.
April 28, 2012
My oldest daughter adored the Anastasia series when she was in late elementary school, but strangely enough, I've just read the first novel in its entirety. I love the character of Anastasia: she is wholly original, an independent thinker, but also a girl who realistically captures the emotionally "mercurial" state of being 10 years old. So many fictional girls of this age are precocious in the bratty, smart-aleck sense of the word, but Anastasia is pert in a more loveable and unique way.
Lowry is such an intelligent writer. She manages, with such grace, to touch on rather deep topics: love and memory, ageing and death, fear of change and other pangs of growing up. There is great charm in her writing, and I particularly liked Anastasia's parents (a poet and an artist) and the way that Anastasia's relationship with them is portrayed. A good read-aloud between mother and daughter, with a nice sprinkling of mother-only-will-appreciate-it moments.
Lowry is such an intelligent writer. She manages, with such grace, to touch on rather deep topics: love and memory, ageing and death, fear of change and other pangs of growing up. There is great charm in her writing, and I particularly liked Anastasia's parents (a poet and an artist) and the way that Anastasia's relationship with them is portrayed. A good read-aloud between mother and daughter, with a nice sprinkling of mother-only-will-appreciate-it moments.
September 23, 2012
Anastasia Krupnik is stupidly charming and these books are charmingly written. I loved them when I was a kid and went through a phase this summer where I reread the ones I had loved and a few I had missed growing up.
This first one, in particular, is really fantastic. The later ones are hit and miss, but never bad. I don't know if it is that Anastasia's family is so realistic or if her family is just similar in ways to mine was when I was a young girl, but there is something so homey and comforting about her world.
I feel like this era of middle reader books was so easy to connect to, and I'm not sure if that is true of the same today. Who is the Lois Lowry or Judy Blume for a 10 year old in 2012? (Really, I want to know!)
This first one, in particular, is really fantastic. The later ones are hit and miss, but never bad. I don't know if it is that Anastasia's family is so realistic or if her family is just similar in ways to mine was when I was a young girl, but there is something so homey and comforting about her world.
I feel like this era of middle reader books was so easy to connect to, and I'm not sure if that is true of the same today. Who is the Lois Lowry or Judy Blume for a 10 year old in 2012? (Really, I want to know!)
August 25, 2014
Anastasia is 10. She has a mom who is a painter and a dad who is a poet. She also has a wart on her thumb. She has a green notebook where she keeps her most important thoughts, her loves and hates, and cool new words. This is a story about what happens to Anastasia the year she is 10.
I loved this book, Anastasia was hilarious! I kind of wish I'd read this as a kid, because I loved the themes and thoughts of this precocious ten-year-old. I enjoyed it as an adult, though, because the writing flows so well and the emotions are so real. I also loved how Anastasia's feelings and dynamics changed throughout the story, especially in regards to her parents and her grandmother. Such a great story, I will likely pick up the second book in the series to see where it goes.
I loved this book, Anastasia was hilarious! I kind of wish I'd read this as a kid, because I loved the themes and thoughts of this precocious ten-year-old. I enjoyed it as an adult, though, because the writing flows so well and the emotions are so real. I also loved how Anastasia's feelings and dynamics changed throughout the story, especially in regards to her parents and her grandmother. Such a great story, I will likely pick up the second book in the series to see where it goes.
January 29, 2015
Anastasia books were some of my favorite as a child so I decided to reread this to see how it held up over time. I loved it again! She's funny, smart, and I love her family. I can't wait to pass these on to my daughter.
One complaint: the cover. TWICE the book describes Anastasia as having blonde/yellow hair so why would they put a brunette on the cover? I know this isn't a huge deal, but come on! If the book makes a point to describe something then the cover should reflect that. It looks like the earlier covers from the 1970's both had a blondes--but after that they messed it all up. Her brother is a blonde too! Pay attention publishers.
One complaint: the cover. TWICE the book describes Anastasia as having blonde/yellow hair so why would they put a brunette on the cover? I know this isn't a huge deal, but come on! If the book makes a point to describe something then the cover should reflect that. It looks like the earlier covers from the 1970's both had a blondes--but after that they messed it all up. Her brother is a blonde too! Pay attention publishers.
January 24, 2009
This book has a copyright date of 1979, and it 's the first in a series, but I had never heard of it until I picked it up at my library today. How did I miss these books when I was an avid reader kid? Strange!
In this book, Anastasia is 10 years old. She is smart and feisty and clever, spunky and a bit sassy, but not a pain in the neck like that Junie B. girl. I like Anastasia, I wish she had been my friend when I was ten.
I have a bunch of the other books in the series, just waiting for me to read them. Can't wait!
In this book, Anastasia is 10 years old. She is smart and feisty and clever, spunky and a bit sassy, but not a pain in the neck like that Junie B. girl. I like Anastasia, I wish she had been my friend when I was ten.
I have a bunch of the other books in the series, just waiting for me to read them. Can't wait!
June 26, 2011
I LOVED this book as a kid - to the point that I even named my goldfish Frank so that I could be more like Anastasia - and I think it held up to an adult re-read.
I wonder if this book contributed to my love of making lists.
I wonder if this book contributed to my love of making lists.
June 18, 2018
I barely remembered any of this one. Though Anastasia is just 10 in it, it was a slightly awkward read-aloud for my six-year-old here and there (sex jokes she probably didn't get), but still had some lovely parts. The one I really remember is the sequel, where they move to the house with the tower.
March 11, 2017
This is the sweetest of the Anastasia books, but it's still funny. I'm rereading this series and I've realized they're total comfort reading for me.
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