Meet Molly: An American Girl

American Girl: Molly #1

by Valerie Tripp, Nick Backes (Illustrator)

It's 1944 and the world is at war. For Molly McIntire, life seems full of change. Her father is far away caring for wounded soldiers. Her mother is busy working for the Red Cross. Mrs. Gilford, the strict housekeeper, makes her eat terrible things like turnips from the Victory garden. And everyone in America is so serious and practical that glamorous Halloween costumes are hard to get. Molly's special hula skirt is a huge success - until Ricky, her pesky big brother, plays a mean trick. Molly and her friends are determined to get back at him. One mean trick leads to another until the fighting goes too far.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Childrens, Fiction, Historical, Middle Grade, Chapter Books, Juvenile

59 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1986

About the author

Valerie Tripp is a children's book author, best known for her work with the American Girl series.

She grew up in Mount Kisco, New York with three sisters and one brother. A member of the first co-educated class at Yale University, Tripp also has a M.Ed. from Harvard. Since 1985 she has lived in Silver Spring, Maryland. Her husband teaches history at Montgomery College.

Right out of college, Tripp started writing songs, stories, and nonfiction for The Superkids Reading Program, working with Pleasant Rowland, the founder of American Girl. For that series, Tripp wrote all the books about Felicity, Josefina, Kit, Molly, and Maryellen and many of the books about Samantha. She also wrote the "Best Friends" character stories to date, plays, mysteries, and short stories about all her characters.. Film dramatizations of the lives of Samantha, Felicity, Molly, and Kit have been based on her stories. Currently, Tripp is writing a STEM series for National Geographic and adapting Greek Myths for Starry Forest Publishing. A frequent speaker at schools and libraries, Tripp has also spoken at the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian, The New York Historical Society, and Williamsburg.

Reviews

[Miranda Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

"None of this would have happened if Dad were home,"

Molly McIntire has a lot on her plate - literally - at the start of this book. Mrs. Gilford (the McIntire's housekeeper) has a Victory Garden and the only thing it's managed to grow so far has been the gross vegetables, like turnips (yuck).

"Wasting food is not only childish and selfish, it is unpatriotic...You will not leave this table until those turnips are gone. Completely."
Now it was almost nine o'clock.

It seems like every time Molly doesn't want to do something, it's considered unpatriotic. She wants to wear a beautiful Cinderella dress for Halloween but using that material for her costume would be unpatriotic.

And then, on top of having to be 'patriotic' all the time, Molly's mother works all day as a volunteer nurse and her father is even further away.

"I know this war is hard on your children. And I know you miss your father. I miss him, too."

Everything is so different and all Molly wants is for things to stay the same. Actually, the only thing that IS the same is her pesky older brother, Ricky. But soon a simple prank war goes much too far.

"Ruined! Wrecked! Completely wrecked!" sobbed Molly.

Sooooo... I've read all of Samantha, Addy, and Kirsten and each time I was absolutely wowed by the first book in their respective series...but the first one of Molly's just felt...okay to me.

I think part of it is because she's the least 'historical-feeling' girl of the ones I've read. Since she's living in the 1940s, a lot of what she experiences are things that I recognize - trick-or-treating, the house structure, family dynamics - so reading her story felt much more modern.

But the other part is I just...didn't like her very much. Molly often felt like a mean girl with the way she treated her best friends, treated her classmate, and her brother.

I do want to acknowledge that this behavior isn't out of the realm for a nine-year-old - but at the same time, I didn't really enjoy reading about it.

For example, Molly spends much of the first part of the book trying to come up with ideas on how to convince her two friends (Linda and Susan) to be ugly stepsisters so she could shine as Cinderella.

Molly says snide comments to her friends about Allison Hargate who committed the cardinal sin of (*checks notes*) of wearing her mother's bathrobe for a costume and having her mother join her for trick-or-treating. The travesty.

And then in the prank war, Molly goes absolutely nuclear and manages to catch her older sister (Jill) and Ricky's crush (Dolores) in the crossfire.

For me, I felt like the prank war between Molly and Ricky didn't feel very fun to watch. They were both trying to find the best way to twist the knife (metaphorically). I mean, Ricky definitely did escalate the prank war but she fought fire with a flame thrower.

I will acknowledge that there were moments where I liked the story and connected with Molly but ultimately, I just didn't gel with the start of the series.

More reviews in the Molly-verse

Main Series:
Meet Molly - ★★★☆☆
Molly Learns a Lesson - ★★★☆☆
Molly's Surprise - ★★★★☆
Happy Birthday, Molly - ★★☆☆☆
Molly Saves the Day - ★★★★☆
Changes for Molly - ★★★★☆
Molly's Boxed Set - ★★★☆☆

Best Friend Book
Brave Emily - ★★★★★

Short Stories:
Molly's A+ Partner - ★★★★☆
Molly Takes Flight - ★★★★☆
Molly and the Movie Star - ★★★★☆
Molly's Puppy Tale - ★★★★★
Molly Marches On - ★★★★☆
Molly's Short Story Collection - ★★★★☆

Additional History Books
Molly's Cookbook - ★★★★☆
Molly's Craft Book - ★★★★☆

Beginner Reader & Picture Books
Molly's Christmas Surprise (Step Into Reading) - ★★★☆☆
Happy Birthday! (Little Golden Book) - ★★★★☆
Happy Holidays! (Little Golden Book) - ★★★★★
Time for School! (Little Golden Book) - ★★★★☆

[Kailey (Luminous Libro) · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's so fun to reread these favorite books from my childhood. I love to read about Molly and her friends preparing their Halloween costumes! However, I always hated the storyline of pranks and tricks that Molly and her brother, Ricky, play on each other. Even as a child, I could never understand why people would play pranks at someone else's expense. It's cruel and mean, and I'm always glad when their mother puts a stop to it and punishes them fairly.

The writing is excellent for this age range, and the story is simple but complete. There is definite character development and an interesting narrative arc. I love the little bits of history intertwined with the story, and the pages at the end that tell the reader more about the era.

[Panda Incognito · Rating 4 out of 5]

2020 review:

Since I'm in lockdown for COVID-19 right now, I'm limited to reading the books that I own. Fortunately, I have lots of unread books lying around, and plenty of old favorites to reread. The scarcity and uncertainty that we are currently facing make me think of Molly and her time period, and I'm enjoying rereading the series.

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2015 review:

I was a big American Girl fan when I was a little kid. I never owned any of the dolls, but enjoyed every series of chapter books and give them partial credit for my love of historical fiction. Not only were they well-written, engaging, and historically educational, but the books present balanced, healthy views of a myriad of topics. One of them is gender: I love how each girl had a different personality, circumstance, and set of interests.

The American Girls consist of no "ideal female" cookie-cutter pattern of any kind. This Molly book opens with her dreaming of a pink Cinderella dress for Halloween, but she enjoys outdoor activities and wears plaid shirts and jeans for much of the series. One does not have to be a girly-girl or a tomboy, a girl subconsciously picks up: you can just be you. The heroines have appropriate senses of self, healthy friendships with other females, and relationships of mutual respect and affection with father figures. American Girl is not responsible for my outlook on human relationships, but these books model positive interactions instead of portraying women as victims or men as oppressors. Nor do they give into Family Angst and Drama like many other chapter books. I can honestly say that I got part of my healthy mindset about what it means to be a woman from these series about little girls.

Molly was always my favorite. During my embarrassingly stereotypical horse phase, excitement about Felicity overshadowed for a while, but I always knew Molly was the best. I had round glasses just like hers when I was little, and I'm sure that in this first book, the phrase about Molly's warm turnips fogging up her glasses won me over. I related strongly to Molly's personality and outlook on life, and the World War II story captured my imagination. A few years later, I would read "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe," and I already had a mental context for that time in history. Those books combined developed my long-lasting love for that time period and interest in the war's history.

Last year, I learned that Molly was retired and bought the doll for myself while I still could. Even though she's only a decoration, an idea I would have scorned as a kid, it is special to me to have her in my room and change her clothes occasionally, often thinking how much this character influenced me. I hope I have daughters someday so that I can share this doll and books with them.

[Merete Nelson · Rating 3 out of 5]

i don’t want to hear anything about this,, i just saw it on my shelf and wanted to see if one of my favorite books from when i was like 8 still holds up now when i’m 19

[Sarah Ryder · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting experience rereading as Molly was also another of my favorite American Girls, though I gotta say she was kind of a brat, lol. I’m assuming she has character growth and becomes less of one (because I have to believe younger me had better taste then to like a complete brat), but for this book she’s only a little better then her brother. 😂

Still enjoyed it, it just wasn’t fully what I expected it to be!


‼️Content‼️

Language: gosh; golly; gee

Drug/Alcohol: mentions that a dad smoked a pipe

[Jasmine K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just as good as I remembered!!!! Molly goes through so much and she’s only 9!!!

Before the haters come at me for counting this toward my reading challenge, try reading a 50 page book out loud!!!!!! It counts!!!

[Olde American Spirit · Rating 4 out of 5]

Started these today in honor of Veterans Day. Have a feeling I'm going to adore this series of six that gives us a slice of life during the WWII era [from the perspective of a nine-year-old on the homefront] .

[Hannah Showalter · Rating 5 out of 5]

molly was definitely one of my favorite girls growing up but i only remember bits and pieces of her story! so fun to get back into it. love that this was one was a halloween story too.

[Morgan's Endless Bookshelf · Rating 5 out of 5]

I mean, I can’t really blame her about the turnips.

[Lucie Kovarik · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trapped at a family friends house and found a bookshelf, classic sibling shenanigans I pulled on my siblings too I miss reading all these American girl books

[Marisa Maloney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this series with Amelia. I haven’t read it in a couple decades. These original books are really great. We had fun dressing my Molly doll as we read.

Great historical, chapter books for younger readers.

[Aimee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I used to be so obsessed with these books in elementary school! I always thought the “Peek Into the Past” bit at the end was the best part. I give the American Girl series credit for establishing my love and fascination with history.

[Molly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having fun reading these out loud to my ten year old (boy) this year.

[Addie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Is this book 64 pages? Is it for children? Yes and yes. I need to reach my 2024 reading goal before the year ends. This is also super nostalgic, and I found a couple books at the thrift so I’m reading them 🥲 molly is one of my favorites. I want to find kit, Chrissa, and addys books next

[Renata · Rating 4 out of 5]

We didn't even talk about this one on the podcast and I re-read it just cuz. OH MOLLY your life is very chill compared to Addy's but I still love you.

http://www.frowl.org/worstbestsellers...

[Natasha Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved these books as a girl, so nostalgic! It was great to read through this one with my daughter for reading practice, we both enjoyed it.

As a parent, I wasn’t thrilled with the mean jokes the kids played on each other in the story, but I do think Molly’s mother handled it well. We don’t personally celebrate Halloween, but we could overlook that and enjoy the story. My daughter especially enjoyed the history section in the back, and is looking forward to starting the next book.

Considering the content I mentioned objecting to, I would probably rate this lower, but the nostalgia factor made it impossible for me to rate lower than 4 stars. Lol Molly has always been one of my favorites!

[Chris Milburn · Rating 4 out of 5]

We have all of the Molly books, so I decided it would be fun to read this out loud to my almost 6-year old, and she’s loving it. I thought the time period would be fitting because of the quarantine we’re going through. I remember reading a few of Molly’s books back in elementary school-I know for sure that I read the Christmas one, and maybe this one? It’s a great intro to WW2 that’s not too heavy for kids. If we finish this series, we might read Kit (the Great Depression) or Nanea ( WW2 again, but set at Pearl Harbor).

[Amanda Blake · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stunning mix of a great storyline, great values and great history. So excited to read the rest. No notes, Valerie Tripp.

[The_Sunflower_Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars ! I enjoyed this book more than I usually would had because of the Halloween aspects of it ! I love anything and everything Halloweeny !

[Emma Jean Rooney]

Delighted to report this one absolutely holds up as well

[Teresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Literary value is really a 2 but the nostalgia is so strong, and the history bit at the end raised it up for me. Reading it with my daughter (who doesn't know I have kept my Molly doll from my childhood to give to her when she's a bit older) was very sweet.

[Olivia · Rating 4 out of 5]

So sweet to read this book again after so many years! The nostalgia! Molly was my first American Girl doll. I’m excited to read through all these books again!

[Valerie · Rating 4 out of 5]

So I starting this book once upon a time because I thought the girl had my name, I was maybe 7 at the time so you'll have to forgive me. Finally finished this many years later and it wasn't as boring as I thought it was. It's very nice and simple. Molly is a normal girl growing up in the middle of WWII, her father is away and there is a mentioning of food rations. She doesn't like her brother and her older sister is acting like she's a grown up now (basic sibling stuff) while she can't figure out what she and her friends should be for Halloween.

There really isn't much else to say since it was so short but I liked it. It's about family and friends and getting along. I might read the rest of Molly's story. Good for young girls though I think people know that already.

[Logan · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was really good! I liked the part when they went trick or treating!:)

[Eekind · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid AG entry that gives me much more insight into all of the Molly stans

Overall I thought this was a really evocative AG book. I loved the section with Molly and the Turnips. Although my parents never added cinnamon and sugar to the veggies I didn’t like, I appreciate Mrs McIntires patience with Molly and trying to create a structured environment for her four children but not trying to cause them undo hardship beyond the growing pains of a child

I do also have a lot more sympathy for Molly and Ricky. I don’t know if the book 100% get us to “These kids are acting out because of they feel their family unit straining with their Dr Dad being overseas in the UK” but it’s decently gestured too. And Mrs McIntires speech kind of rests on seeing their dispute as an allegory for wars in general so I’ll make the effort to bridge the story arc

[Katrina Kuhn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m rebuilding my childhood library, bit by bit. So when I saw “Meet Molly” in a Little Free Library last week, I snatched it up. While deciding on my next grown-up read, I read this for a quick 15-minute palate cleanser.

If you’re wondering: Does the American Girl series still hold up, from the perspective of an adult? Abso-freakin-lutely — there is a reason these books still capture the hearts of young children. And I fully credit this series (in addition to Dear America) for my love of historical fiction.

Story aside, I always love the “photo album” of family pictures in the beginning, and the look back to life during the character’s time at the conclusion. The illustrations are so detailed, and colorful, and I also love the little iconography (those little grumpy turnips!).

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

2020 became a year of comfort rereads for me, which turned into a phase of revisiting the books that have shaped me—from childhood to now. Few books shaped my childhood more than the American Girls series. I decided to begin with Molly and there’s something so relatable about her World War II world compared to our 2020 world. Just like now, it was a time of uncertainty and a time of sacrifice for the greater good. Meet Molly is a fun book, but not as rich or as deep as my favorite in her series, Molly’s Surprise. Still, I love that her personality is a mix of Jo March and Anne Shirley. There’s something so endearing about her and her stories only get better as they progress.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the 6 book series with my girls. I don't feel it gave as realistic of a historic approach as the other American girls books but WWII can be a very heavy topic for such a young age group. I appreciate that they had a child come from England to give just a small taste of what life was like for English children which was vastly different than American children. My girls loved it! Great read aloud for elementary aged kids.

[Nicole Meadows · Rating 5 out of 5]

My grandma is a librarian for a first Baptist church in a small town in Texas. In my 31 years, I would always come visit her and my grandpa. I’d help in the library and check out movies and books. I just came back for 3 days to say goodbye to my home away from home. My grandma is leaving this one constant in my life and I’m glad but also sad. So many memories in this small town and this was a book I had to check out of her library for one last time. I even saw on the old library card that I checked out this book for the first and one of many times in 1990s. I’m glad this was one of the last reads here and will forever hold a special place in my heart.

[Violette Bray · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED rereading this book as an adult, it brought back sooo many good memories. I especially enjoyed the making of homemade grass hula skirts and the war-time trick or treating snacks for Halloween (popcorn balls, fruit, and nuts). And I was like 😳😳 when Mrs. McIntire used the “this is how wars are started” line on Molly when she was fighting with her brother 😂😭