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Hall Family Chronicles #3
The Astonishing Stereoscope
When Eddy Hall receives five cards for his stereoscope, he and his sister, Eleanor, can't wait to see what exotic places they reveal maybe Stonehenge, or a centuries-old European cathedral. But instead, when they look through the stereoscope, Eddy and Eleanor see some very strange things. An odd-looking rope hangs from the sky down into every picture. A marmalade coloured cat that looks suspiciously like Herm, the family cat, also appears. And one picture looks like the front hall of their very own house! The images seem to be almost real, not just three-dimensional illusions. All it will take is one little tug on that rope to find out for sure ....
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1971
About the author
Jane Langton
74 books128 followersLangton was born in Boston, Massachusetts. She studied astronomy at Wellesley College and the University of Michigan, receiving a bachelor's degree in 1944. She received an M.A. in art history from the University of Michigan in 1945, and another M.A. from Radcliffe College in 1948. She studied at the Boston Museum School from 1958 to 1959.
In 1961 Langton wrote and illustrated her first book for children, The Majesty of Grace, a story about a young girl during the Depression who is certain she will some day be Queen of England. Langton has since written a children's series, The Hall Family Chronicles, and the Homer Kelly murder mystery novels. She has also written several stand-alone novels and picture books.
Langton's novel The Fledgling is a Newbery Honor book. Her novel Emily Dickinson is Dead was nominated for an Edgar Award and received a Nero Award. The Face on the Wall was an editors' choice selection by The Drood Review of Mystery for 1998.
Langton lives in Lincoln, Massachusetts, near the town of Concord, the setting of many of her novels. Her husband, Bill, died in 1997. Langton has three adult sons: Chris, David and Andy.
Series:
* Hall Family
* Homer Kelly Mystery
In 1961 Langton wrote and illustrated her first book for children, The Majesty of Grace, a story about a young girl during the Depression who is certain she will some day be Queen of England. Langton has since written a children's series, The Hall Family Chronicles, and the Homer Kelly murder mystery novels. She has also written several stand-alone novels and picture books.
Langton's novel The Fledgling is a Newbery Honor book. Her novel Emily Dickinson is Dead was nominated for an Edgar Award and received a Nero Award. The Face on the Wall was an editors' choice selection by The Drood Review of Mystery for 1998.
Langton lives in Lincoln, Massachusetts, near the town of Concord, the setting of many of her novels. Her husband, Bill, died in 1997. Langton has three adult sons: Chris, David and Andy.
Series:
* Hall Family
* Homer Kelly Mystery
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
April 28, 2015
The writing is great as always. I love the magic and the storylines in these books, but I've been a bit put-off by all the Transcendental philosophy throughout the series. Now this book takes on religious thought and theology, teaching some weird Transcendentalist views, and dealing very strangely with Christianity and Druidism, and never really saying anything concrete.
I would be very careful about giving this book to children, and I would talk with them extensively about the false theology presented here. Or better yet, don't muddle their poor little heads with all this Transcendental philosophic nonsense.
I would be very careful about giving this book to children, and I would talk with them extensively about the false theology presented here. Or better yet, don't muddle their poor little heads with all this Transcendental philosophic nonsense.
February 19, 2024
It was okay, but so far the sequels aren't rising to what-I-felt-were the dizzying heights of the first book. The first book had that ineffable quality of true magic. It isn't easily captured. You can't, yourself, sit down and set out to write it. It just happens, for some special books. It's often there in a first book, but lost in later books as the author sets out to recapture it. (In face, it's almost never in a second book: the only exception I can think of is Carroll's two Alice books, which are both equally wonderful in their own ways).
In the first book, family was missing—in this third book, it's a cat, and no one's worried about it. There's a sense of actual danger and menace in the original story, but here, there's a trumped-up sub-plot about money and evil real-estate developers, essentially, that has no place in the story other than to try to create some kind of urgency (it doesn't) ... otherwise this is just a travelogue, where nothing happens of any consquence. The first was a treasure hunt ... this is just treading water.
The tale is pleasant to read, but if this were my first acquaintance with the family, I don't think I'd have persisted. I'll read #4 (I own it), but if there isn't an uptick in excitement, I don't think I'll continue.
P.S. as fun as it is to read, say, Harry Potter, the Lightning Thief, Lockwood & Co, etc., (and don't get me wrong, I adore them), they don't have that "magical" quality for me. Magic is present in books like Howl's Moving Castle, Winnie the Pooh, Moominsummer Madness, or The Gammage Cup. I wish I knew what it was (it's a sort of strangeness—Ursula LeGuin gets it, she wrote an essay about it) that' so hard to achieve. The first book had it, for me, and the later ones simply don't.
(Note: I'm a writer, so I suffer when I offer fewer than five stars. But these aren't ratings of quality, they're a subjective account of how much I liked the book: 5* = an unalloyed pleasure from start to finish, 4* = enjoyed it, 3* = readable but not thrilling, 2* = disappointing, and 1* = hated it.)
In the first book, family was missing—in this third book, it's a cat, and no one's worried about it. There's a sense of actual danger and menace in the original story, but here, there's a trumped-up sub-plot about money and evil real-estate developers, essentially, that has no place in the story other than to try to create some kind of urgency (it doesn't) ... otherwise this is just a travelogue, where nothing happens of any consquence. The first was a treasure hunt ... this is just treading water.
The tale is pleasant to read, but if this were my first acquaintance with the family, I don't think I'd have persisted. I'll read #4 (I own it), but if there isn't an uptick in excitement, I don't think I'll continue.
P.S. as fun as it is to read, say, Harry Potter, the Lightning Thief, Lockwood & Co, etc., (and don't get me wrong, I adore them), they don't have that "magical" quality for me. Magic is present in books like Howl's Moving Castle, Winnie the Pooh, Moominsummer Madness, or The Gammage Cup. I wish I knew what it was (it's a sort of strangeness—Ursula LeGuin gets it, she wrote an essay about it) that' so hard to achieve. The first book had it, for me, and the later ones simply don't.
(Note: I'm a writer, so I suffer when I offer fewer than five stars. But these aren't ratings of quality, they're a subjective account of how much I liked the book: 5* = an unalloyed pleasure from start to finish, 4* = enjoyed it, 3* = readable but not thrilling, 2* = disappointing, and 1* = hated it.)
September 23, 2018
Good book!! Good story!!
December 30, 2020
Sometimes the books you read and loved as a kid hold up, and sometimes... they don't. I love the Hall Family Chronicles, but this is definitely the weakest of the bunch. There's a lot of really fantastic grappling with religion and history and "what it all means" in the first 2/3, but at the end it just sort of... trails off without tying anything together. The central conflict is "If we're good enough, or if we believe the right things, will John Green get well?" Langton seems to have run into some kind of wall here because a) the answer is obviously no, but b) ending a kid's book with the guy's death would send the wrong message. In the end Eleanor seems to have some kind of epiphany and there's a rush to his hospital room and then he wakes up, but the nature of her epiphany is entirely unclear. It all ends up being just kind of vague and hand-wavey.
Also, I just have to note that the sexism which has been sort of implicit in these books simply owing to the time they were written in - well, it gets very explicit in this one. Eddie doesn't want to wash windows because it's "women's work," fussy and detail-oriented. This statement is just thrown out there and never challenged or interrogated.
I'm kind of disappointed because this was one of my favorites as a kid - so much so that I desperately wanted a stereoscope of my own! Ah well. Looking forward to book four, The Fledgling - my absolute favorite, and which hopefully holds up, having been a Newbery Honor book!
Also, I just have to note that the sexism which has been sort of implicit in these books simply owing to the time they were written in - well, it gets very explicit in this one. Eddie doesn't want to wash windows because it's "women's work," fussy and detail-oriented. This statement is just thrown out there and never challenged or interrogated.
I'm kind of disappointed because this was one of my favorites as a kid - so much so that I desperately wanted a stereoscope of my own! Ah well. Looking forward to book four, The Fledgling - my absolute favorite, and which hopefully holds up, having been a Newbery Honor book!
January 5, 2022
I had a vague memory of loving this book as a kid, so I scoured the internet and found the series secondhand on Amazon. While the story is bizarre and somewhat dated, I loved revisiting the characters of the Hall family and a simpler time of pre cell phones and computers. I’m curious to have my daughter read the series when she’s ready and give me her review.
May 17, 2017
Reminded me of works of Jostein Gaarder, did he copy her?
Closed in error, lost everything I had written, ceebs to rewrite.
Closed in error, lost everything I had written, ceebs to rewrite.
December 26, 2023
Reading Jane Langton’s Hall Family Chronicle books has felt like a great Christmas gift to myself. The third book, The Astonishing Stereoscope, was another wonderful fantasy/adventure and also reminded me a great deal of Judy Blume’s Are You There, God? It’s Me Margaret. The book begins with Eleanor being told by a classmate that she will end up going to the Bad Place since she doesn’t go to Sunday School or church. Eleanor and Eddy both feel responsible when one of Uncle Freddy’s students has an accident that puts him in a coma and clinging to life. Eddy found and repaired an old stereoscope and received 5 cards for it from Prince Krishna. These 5 cards take him, Eleanor and their cat, Herm on many adventures that have strong religious themes. They witness The Last Supper, almost witness a human sacrifice, see the mysteries of evolution and the universe. In between their adventures with the stereoscope, they attend different churches in Concord with disastrous results. I loved Uncle Freddys answers to Eleanor’s questions about who is God, which is the right church to attend, and are there unforgiveable sins. He tells her:
“God is not he, not a man in the sky, but a call within you. Can’t you hear it? And a call from without, a sense of importance and meaning in certain moments. Don’t you feel them? From nature, from people, from books, from music and things like that, from wrongs needing to be set right. God is all that calls to you with that kind of voice. It is truth and righteousness and justice and beauty and love and joy.”
“God is not he, not a man in the sky, but a call within you. Can’t you hear it? And a call from without, a sense of importance and meaning in certain moments. Don’t you feel them? From nature, from people, from books, from music and things like that, from wrongs needing to be set right. God is all that calls to you with that kind of voice. It is truth and righteousness and justice and beauty and love and joy.”
November 5, 2022
This was not my favorite of the series. I wasn't thrilled with the story line especially the whole viewing of the Last Supper and going into outer space.
September 25, 2023
A little too much religion ruined a good story.
March 25, 2013
“Seeking the Sources of Magic and Faith”
Continuing the Hall family fantasy chronicles this book focuses on the surrealistic adventures of the red-headed siblings, Eleanor and Eddy--with a little help from younger cousin, Georgie, and their crazy cat, Herm. Readers return to the dilapidated house at #40 Walden Street in historical Concord, MA, where Uncle Freddy, the absent-minded professor, runs a School for Transcendental Studies.
This series of adventures is launched by the arrival of special gifts from an Indian magician-friend of the family: the ubiquitous Prince Krishna. A charming kaleidoscope for Georgie and an Astonishing
stereoscope for the older kids. This old-fashioned stereopticon comes complete with five sepia-toned cards for amazing viewing, which whisk the surprised travelers through time and space.
Of course the deadly duo of Mr. Preek and Miss Prawn lurks around the corners, waiting to stalk and harass the family. When a college student-resident falls off the roof and lies unconscious for months in a hospital—with mounting bills--the entire family is plunged into despair and forced to seek desperate measures. Eleanor and Eddy privately blame themselves for John’s accident and vow to change their lifestyle to manipulate Fate.
Despite the cute and enjoyable aspects of this story Langton
presents many serious themes: comparative religions, man’s role on earth and in the universe, plus personal guilt and one’s attitude toward God. Just who is the mysterious, unseen photographer who transports them back home in a Flash, after each adventure. Like the quaint stereopticon with its two sets of almost identical cards, are there two ways to view the world? Are you brave enough to pull the tantalizing rope which hangs from the balloon’s basket? A cute tale for kids 10 -15.
(March 25, 2010. I welcome dialogue with teachers.)
Continuing the Hall family fantasy chronicles this book focuses on the surrealistic adventures of the red-headed siblings, Eleanor and Eddy--with a little help from younger cousin, Georgie, and their crazy cat, Herm. Readers return to the dilapidated house at #40 Walden Street in historical Concord, MA, where Uncle Freddy, the absent-minded professor, runs a School for Transcendental Studies.
This series of adventures is launched by the arrival of special gifts from an Indian magician-friend of the family: the ubiquitous Prince Krishna. A charming kaleidoscope for Georgie and an Astonishing
stereoscope for the older kids. This old-fashioned stereopticon comes complete with five sepia-toned cards for amazing viewing, which whisk the surprised travelers through time and space.
Of course the deadly duo of Mr. Preek and Miss Prawn lurks around the corners, waiting to stalk and harass the family. When a college student-resident falls off the roof and lies unconscious for months in a hospital—with mounting bills--the entire family is plunged into despair and forced to seek desperate measures. Eleanor and Eddy privately blame themselves for John’s accident and vow to change their lifestyle to manipulate Fate.
Despite the cute and enjoyable aspects of this story Langton
presents many serious themes: comparative religions, man’s role on earth and in the universe, plus personal guilt and one’s attitude toward God. Just who is the mysterious, unseen photographer who transports them back home in a Flash, after each adventure. Like the quaint stereopticon with its two sets of almost identical cards, are there two ways to view the world? Are you brave enough to pull the tantalizing rope which hangs from the balloon’s basket? A cute tale for kids 10 -15.
(March 25, 2010. I welcome dialogue with teachers.)
July 30, 2012
It was better-written than the second book. However, I didn't particularly enjoy the philosophical content of this one. This one basically addressed the question of "Which is the right religion?" - and [SPOILER!] gave the typical, wishy-washy answer of, "They're all kind-of wrong - and they're all kind-of right!" But I don't realy understand, then, why there still seemed to be some kind of inherent slamming (specificially) on Catholics. Or why the author suddenly decided that the Hall family doesn't attend church when in the first book they DID attend church! (Well, I take that back - I know why. Because they HAD to not attend church for the story to work. But it's still a cheap plot move.) So, yeah, it was an entertaining read, pretty well-written... but didn't like the philosophy, and thought that one plot element was kind of lame.
December 12, 2013
I've noted many reviewers have harped against Langton's handling of philosophies and religions in the story. Well, take it from the point of view of a 10-year-old: that meant absolutely nothing to me! If anything, those elements simply struck me as Victorian in nature, due to the 19th century fascination with all things from the East.
I loved the story of two children getting this wild and magical gift from their mysterious uncle that allowed them to jump from one world to another. It was a great adventure. I would recommend this to any young reader. Consider that I haven't picked up or seen this book since 1974, yet I still remember it in detail forty years later. That should tell you something about this story!
I loved the story of two children getting this wild and magical gift from their mysterious uncle that allowed them to jump from one world to another. It was a great adventure. I would recommend this to any young reader. Consider that I haven't picked up or seen this book since 1974, yet I still remember it in detail forty years later. That should tell you something about this story!
March 22, 2009
Read this since my sister sent a bunch of books for the kids (this is one I don't think they will read... part of the stash busting, book-clearing moves...)
It was okay. Placed in my hometown turf, the story addresses all sorts of things... including guilt, history, atheism, and the Lexington/Concord area. Still, it felt very contrived, and pretty hard to swallow. I do like the mechanism for getting into the stereoscope. Perhaps it is a second or third in a series, which is why I felt it rather forced (the characters having perhaps been developed more in previous books).
In any event, it is read, it is leaving this house.
It was okay. Placed in my hometown turf, the story addresses all sorts of things... including guilt, history, atheism, and the Lexington/Concord area. Still, it felt very contrived, and pretty hard to swallow. I do like the mechanism for getting into the stereoscope. Perhaps it is a second or third in a series, which is why I felt it rather forced (the characters having perhaps been developed more in previous books).
In any event, it is read, it is leaving this house.
December 17, 2012
I'm not sure how I missed this one, since The Diamond in the Window and The Swing in the Summerhouse were two of my favorite childhood books. It sort of follows the pattern of the first ones--it was good but not quite as good...and I would have liked to see Miss Preak get her comeuppance.
June 8, 2009
I definitely remember this wonderful title and I know I read it but can't remember a thing about the story although I expect it was good as Langton is generally wonderful!
February 23, 2014
Rats. Nothing is as good as the Diamond in the Attic that I found after a 30+ year lapse.
Take with something munchy -- maybe crackers and cheese.
Take with something munchy -- maybe crackers and cheese.
July 10, 2014
One of my favorite books as a child from the wonderful Hall Family Chronicles series by Langton.
July 25, 2020
More philosophy than magic. I remember this being better than it was. :(
April 1, 2013
Learning lessons through set-up events. This series reminders me of the P. Farmer series.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews