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Sweet Valley Kids #34
The Best Thanksgiving Ever
Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield's parents want them to help serve Thanksgiving dinner at a shelter for homeless families. The girls are worried about going to the shelter, though, because their classmate Suzie Nichols keeps telling them that she thinks it's a horrible, scary place. But how does Suzie know so much about the shelter? Is there something she's not telling them?
- GenresChildrensThanksgiving
72 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 1992
2 people are currently reading
102 people want to read
About the author
Francine Pascal
1,148 books1,853 followersFrancine Paula Pascal was an American author best known for her Sweet Valley series of young adult novels. Sweet Valley High, the backbone of the collection, was made into a television series, which led to several spin-offs, including The Unicorn Club and Sweet Valley University. Although most of these books were published in the 1980s and 1990s, they remained so popular that several titles were re-released decades later.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
November 11, 2022
The twins learn to help the less fortunate, including a classmate who faces homelessness after her father loses his job, and it's surprisingly pretty well done.
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November 12, 2024The Best Thanksgiving Ever (Sweet Valley Kids)
It starts off with everyone at lunch talking about what they have for lunch. Amy has a baked bean sandwich and the twins have tuna fish. This leads to telling how the twins look alike but have different interest. Amy seems to like baked bean sandwiches so much she’d like one everyday. Then they start talking about all their Thanksgiving food traditions. Winston has rice instead of potatoes. Todd has pumpkin pie and glazed carrots and mini-marshmallows. There’s a girl named Suzie Nichols that says she has wild rice. Jessica reminds Suzie that her family said they could each choose a dish. Then she asks what she’ll ask for. Suzie says her mom isn’t making anything special this year. Liz says that’s too bad. They’ll be missing a tradition to-their grandparents won’t be coming-. Their away on a trip. Jessica isn’t bothered and says more for her.
That nght, Mr. and Mrs. Wakefield say they want to do something different. Alice and Ned have decided to serve food at a homeless shelter. They leave the invitation open if the kids want to join them. After hearing about how its like sharing Liz is in. Steven says he’s in too as long as he can eat. Jessica says count her out. Shelters have creeps. Her dad explains they aren’t creeps. They’re poor and have fallen on hard times. Not everyone has been blessed like them. He tells her to think on it. She says she will but she probably won’t change her mind. (Oh he also tells her when she says she wants them to keep their tradition of getting together they’ll go to the shelter in the afternoon. They can still eat together that night.
Monday is the school’s annual holiday clothing drive. Jessica complains that she has to give up her favorite shirt. Liz just hopes her sweater goes to someone who needs it. Mrs. Riteman comes to take them to dance class. They look for Suzie and find her looking at a jacket in the used clothes pile. Embarassed she says she wasn’t trying to take it. In dance class, Lila and Liz get into it about the people at the homeless center. Lila looks down on them (clearly) but Liz tells her just because their homeless doesn’t mean she should judge who they are. During class, Jessica sees Suzie talking to Mrs. Garber and asks Ellen what she thinks they’re talking about. Ellen says probably the dance recital. She bet Suzie got a solo part. Mrs. Garber hugs Suzie but she doesn’t look like someone who got a solo.
After class, Liz sees Suzie sitting by herself and asks if she needs a ride home. She forcefully says NO. Her mom will be picking her up. Then she walks aways quickly when she sees her mom walk up. Liz thinks about how Suzie has missed several days of school and doesn’t come to the park anymore. Then why is her mother walking instead of driving. When she gets home, she asks her mom can Suzie come over the next day and mentions Suzie has seemed down. Alice is surprised and says sure. Liz tries to call her but the number is unavailable. Alice calls the directory line but they say there’s no new number listed. So she says that they probably just have an unlisted number and Liz will have to ask her at school.
Lila, Ellen, and Jessica play “If I Lived In A Castle” They each describe what there castles would be like. They ask Suzie what kind of castle she’d have and she says nothing fancy. She’d have a regular house with her own room (to Jessica’s disappointment because it’s not elaborate enough). Liz then brings up trying to call her. They finally get her to say she has a private number but she can’t give it out (which Lila thinks is dumb). Jessica tells her they wanted to ask her over and she says she’ll ask her mom. She asks if they’re really going to the shelter on Thanksgiving. Jessica says the rest of them are. She’s not really feeling it. Suzie says she shouldn’t. Shelters are horrible places. When Jessica asks how she knows she says she and her mom dropped off some blankets.
Jessica suggests she talk Liz out of it when she comes over and she agrees quickly. The next day, Mrs. Wakefield takes the twins shopping for school clothes. She shows them the shelter downtown to let them see it’s not as bad as they thought. Its even next to an ice cream place. They see Suzy and her brother standing out front. Suzie is clearly uncomfortable. Liz asks if she’s asked her mother if she can play. Tim says she’s inside the shelter. Alice takes this to mean she’s volunteering. Suzie says she is and then rushes her brother away (inside). Liz is still (dumbly) hoping she’ll ask her mom if she can come over. The next day, Suzie comes over and they decide to play with the twin’s dollhouse. Suzie says she wishes she lives in a dollhouse. Liz asks her if the shelter is horrible. She says yes.
The people sleep in cots. There aren’t any walls (or privacy). It’s noisy and crowded. So Liz should reconsider coming there for Thanksgiving. Jessica is sure she will and is relived with Suzie wants to go back to playing. She doesn’t want to think about the shelter anymore.
Mrs. Wakefield says she’ll take Suzie home and rejects her attempt to walk home. They drop her off at her apartment and she goes inside. Then Liz sees her come back outside. Liz says maybe she forgot to get something from the store for her mother but Alice says she doesn’t think she’d want her out this late. They ask Suzie what’s wrong and where she’s going and she bursts into tears. She confesses that she doesn’t live at the apartment anymore. It was too expensive. Her father lost his job and hasn’t been able to get another one. He works in construction and there just haven’t been a lot of construction jobs going around. Her mother had a job but stopped working to take care of her and Tim. When there father lost his job and she tried to get hers back she couldn’t. So, they might have to move to another state. They drop Suzie off at the shelter.
On the way back, Alice asks Jessica how she feels now about going to the shelter. She says maybe it will make her feel better if they come. Liz has the idea that maybe Suzie’s family can leave with them. Alice says this might work short term but the house can’t hold two families. On Thanksgiving, the twins decide not to wear their fancy, blue, velvet dresses. They’ll wear something plainer so Suzie won’t feel bad. When they get there Suzie says she told them it was horrible but the twins says it’s not so bad. Then they help set the table. Suzie’s father is missing and no one can find him. Mr. Nichols shows up and says he got a new job at a housing development center and will be working on the project a year. After this they can move back into an apartment.
My Thoughts:
I just wish all homeless people living in shelters got this kind of ending. I was glad Suzie’s dad got a job but it kinda would have been nice if since he had this big job on a housing development complex to try to get jobs on the complex for some of the other people in the shelter. That really would have showed the spirit of Thanksgiving. If you are really thankful and grateful for what’s given to you then if you get the chance to return that to someone else then you should. Even if none of the other men or women there did construction maybe there was some other jobs that needed to be filled once everything was under way. Maybe he could have even inquired about the new development to see if he could get permanent homes there for some of them. If he would have just been able to help one person that could have done so much.
Rating: 5
It starts off with everyone at lunch talking about what they have for lunch. Amy has a baked bean sandwich and the twins have tuna fish. This leads to telling how the twins look alike but have different interest. Amy seems to like baked bean sandwiches so much she’d like one everyday. Then they start talking about all their Thanksgiving food traditions. Winston has rice instead of potatoes. Todd has pumpkin pie and glazed carrots and mini-marshmallows. There’s a girl named Suzie Nichols that says she has wild rice. Jessica reminds Suzie that her family said they could each choose a dish. Then she asks what she’ll ask for. Suzie says her mom isn’t making anything special this year. Liz says that’s too bad. They’ll be missing a tradition to-their grandparents won’t be coming-. Their away on a trip. Jessica isn’t bothered and says more for her.
That nght, Mr. and Mrs. Wakefield say they want to do something different. Alice and Ned have decided to serve food at a homeless shelter. They leave the invitation open if the kids want to join them. After hearing about how its like sharing Liz is in. Steven says he’s in too as long as he can eat. Jessica says count her out. Shelters have creeps. Her dad explains they aren’t creeps. They’re poor and have fallen on hard times. Not everyone has been blessed like them. He tells her to think on it. She says she will but she probably won’t change her mind. (Oh he also tells her when she says she wants them to keep their tradition of getting together they’ll go to the shelter in the afternoon. They can still eat together that night.
Monday is the school’s annual holiday clothing drive. Jessica complains that she has to give up her favorite shirt. Liz just hopes her sweater goes to someone who needs it. Mrs. Riteman comes to take them to dance class. They look for Suzie and find her looking at a jacket in the used clothes pile. Embarassed she says she wasn’t trying to take it. In dance class, Lila and Liz get into it about the people at the homeless center. Lila looks down on them (clearly) but Liz tells her just because their homeless doesn’t mean she should judge who they are. During class, Jessica sees Suzie talking to Mrs. Garber and asks Ellen what she thinks they’re talking about. Ellen says probably the dance recital. She bet Suzie got a solo part. Mrs. Garber hugs Suzie but she doesn’t look like someone who got a solo.
After class, Liz sees Suzie sitting by herself and asks if she needs a ride home. She forcefully says NO. Her mom will be picking her up. Then she walks aways quickly when she sees her mom walk up. Liz thinks about how Suzie has missed several days of school and doesn’t come to the park anymore. Then why is her mother walking instead of driving. When she gets home, she asks her mom can Suzie come over the next day and mentions Suzie has seemed down. Alice is surprised and says sure. Liz tries to call her but the number is unavailable. Alice calls the directory line but they say there’s no new number listed. So she says that they probably just have an unlisted number and Liz will have to ask her at school.
Lila, Ellen, and Jessica play “If I Lived In A Castle” They each describe what there castles would be like. They ask Suzie what kind of castle she’d have and she says nothing fancy. She’d have a regular house with her own room (to Jessica’s disappointment because it’s not elaborate enough). Liz then brings up trying to call her. They finally get her to say she has a private number but she can’t give it out (which Lila thinks is dumb). Jessica tells her they wanted to ask her over and she says she’ll ask her mom. She asks if they’re really going to the shelter on Thanksgiving. Jessica says the rest of them are. She’s not really feeling it. Suzie says she shouldn’t. Shelters are horrible places. When Jessica asks how she knows she says she and her mom dropped off some blankets.
Jessica suggests she talk Liz out of it when she comes over and she agrees quickly. The next day, Mrs. Wakefield takes the twins shopping for school clothes. She shows them the shelter downtown to let them see it’s not as bad as they thought. Its even next to an ice cream place. They see Suzy and her brother standing out front. Suzie is clearly uncomfortable. Liz asks if she’s asked her mother if she can play. Tim says she’s inside the shelter. Alice takes this to mean she’s volunteering. Suzie says she is and then rushes her brother away (inside). Liz is still (dumbly) hoping she’ll ask her mom if she can come over. The next day, Suzie comes over and they decide to play with the twin’s dollhouse. Suzie says she wishes she lives in a dollhouse. Liz asks her if the shelter is horrible. She says yes.
The people sleep in cots. There aren’t any walls (or privacy). It’s noisy and crowded. So Liz should reconsider coming there for Thanksgiving. Jessica is sure she will and is relived with Suzie wants to go back to playing. She doesn’t want to think about the shelter anymore.
Mrs. Wakefield says she’ll take Suzie home and rejects her attempt to walk home. They drop her off at her apartment and she goes inside. Then Liz sees her come back outside. Liz says maybe she forgot to get something from the store for her mother but Alice says she doesn’t think she’d want her out this late. They ask Suzie what’s wrong and where she’s going and she bursts into tears. She confesses that she doesn’t live at the apartment anymore. It was too expensive. Her father lost his job and hasn’t been able to get another one. He works in construction and there just haven’t been a lot of construction jobs going around. Her mother had a job but stopped working to take care of her and Tim. When there father lost his job and she tried to get hers back she couldn’t. So, they might have to move to another state. They drop Suzie off at the shelter.
On the way back, Alice asks Jessica how she feels now about going to the shelter. She says maybe it will make her feel better if they come. Liz has the idea that maybe Suzie’s family can leave with them. Alice says this might work short term but the house can’t hold two families. On Thanksgiving, the twins decide not to wear their fancy, blue, velvet dresses. They’ll wear something plainer so Suzie won’t feel bad. When they get there Suzie says she told them it was horrible but the twins says it’s not so bad. Then they help set the table. Suzie’s father is missing and no one can find him. Mr. Nichols shows up and says he got a new job at a housing development center and will be working on the project a year. After this they can move back into an apartment.
My Thoughts:
I just wish all homeless people living in shelters got this kind of ending. I was glad Suzie’s dad got a job but it kinda would have been nice if since he had this big job on a housing development complex to try to get jobs on the complex for some of the other people in the shelter. That really would have showed the spirit of Thanksgiving. If you are really thankful and grateful for what’s given to you then if you get the chance to return that to someone else then you should. Even if none of the other men or women there did construction maybe there was some other jobs that needed to be filled once everything was under way. Maybe he could have even inquired about the new development to see if he could get permanent homes there for some of them. If he would have just been able to help one person that could have done so much.
Rating: 5
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 24, 2024
Sorry for Thanksgiving the twins parents want them to volunteer at the homeless shelter and Jessica does not like the idea. At the same time one of their friends a classmate of Jessica and Elizabeth lives in this homeless shelter and she doesn't want anybody to know about it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 25, 2024
Eww, who would bring a baked bean sandwich to school for lunch?
Also, I’m pretty sure we never hear about this classmate Suzie again.
Also, I’m pretty sure we never hear about this classmate Suzie again.
December 5, 2021
It’s Thanksgiving! Again 😬😂 And there’s a girl in the twins class who has been there all along but we’ve never heard of her - Suzie Nichols. She’s the best dancer in the twins Modern Dance class, lives in an apartment nearby and hasn’t hung out with the twins in ‘weeks’. Hmm. Anyway, the Wakefield’s have decided to help out at a homeless shelter on Thanksgiving during the day, only if the kids want to. Jessica isn’t so sure because homeless people are ‘creepy people and bums’. I think you see where this is going. The twins are worried about Suzie because she’s falling asleep in class, and acting odd. She tells Jess that her Mum volunteers at the homeless shelter and it’s a horrible place and the Wakefield’s shouldn’t go there. Liz tries to call her to invite her over to play but her number is ‘unlisted’. The twins and their friends are playing ‘castle’ and talking about their fantasy mansions (Lila’s idea 💁🏼♀️) and Suzie just wants to live in a normal house. When Alice and the twins drop Suzie off at her apartment after their play date, they see her sneak out of the apartment building, and start walking. Yep, this never-before-mentioned character is homeless 😞 Her Dad lost his job a year ago and her mother can’t get hers back after quitting to look after Suzies brother. This changes Jess’s mind about helping out on Thanksgiving, and they all have lunch together. The Wakefield’s do literally nothing to help, and eat the food 🤔 Suzies Dad is late, because he got a job, and - surprise! They won’t be homeless much longer! It’s a thanksgiving miracle! I’ll be interested to see if Suzie is mentioned ever again.
My rating - 4/10 - I appreciate the message, but this one felt ripped right out of an episode of Saved by the Bell.
My rating - 4/10 - I appreciate the message, but this one felt ripped right out of an episode of Saved by the Bell.
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October 6, 2022This one very definitely has a strong moral running throughout the book, but it's a good one for kids to learn: that homeless people are people too. I'm surprised that it wasn't more explicit about how the message fits into the Thanksgiving theme, but overall I think it's one of the better message SVK books.
July 26, 2012
The first book I read that introduced me to the idea of homeless shelters & kids living there.
June 22, 2013
I remember the cover just not the story.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews