In Grandma's Attic

Grandma's Attic #1

by Arleta Richardson, Patrice Barton (Illustrator)

Here are marvelous tales--faithfully recalled for the delight of young and old alike, a touchstone to another day when life was simpler, perhaps, richer; when the treasures of family life and love were passed from generation to generation.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Childrens, Christian, Middle Grade, Christian Fiction, Historical

146 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1974

About the author

Arleta Richardson was an author, librarian, and a teacher. The Grandma's Attic series was her most well known series. She was born in Flint, MI, and served in World War II. She belonged to the Free Methodist Church.

Reviews

[Olivia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't even recall how many times I read this as a kid. To bring back the memories I decided to read this again so I could write a more recent review. It is very enjoyable and just the sort of book any child (maybe even boys :)) would like. As an adult, I could have used more details about the granddaughter and why she was always with her grandma, but it's not really important.

The stories have a little lesson to each one. Nothing in your face. It's applicable through the lessons 'Grandma' learned. Definitely recommend!

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

oh so pleasant. This little book is sweet, morally upright, exciting in places and even capable of producing giggles. My 4.5 and 6.5 year olds love it as much as Betsy Tacy or Charlotte's web. When we finished it, they were desperate for me to but the next one! Charming and wholesome I enjoy sharing this with my children.

[Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyable collection of stories, great for reading aloud. Reminiscent of Little House. Short, nicely written, and funny, I laughed for pure enjoyment at least once per story. Uplifting, moralistic tales in the good sense of that word.

[Morgan Giesbrecht · Rating 5 out of 5]

There’s just something about returning to the books of your childhood. This series was a staple of mine growing up & it continues to bring so much joy and laughter!

[Rebekah Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book brought back my childhood. I don't know how old I was the first time my mom read this book aloud to us, and I don't know how many times I've read it since. But it's just as good and enjoyable now as it was all those times before.
Mabel and Sarah Jane were quite the pair! Though I never did think it was quite fair that Mabel got into so much trouble from Sarah Jane's suggestions and ideas. Of course not everything was Sarah Jane's ideas. Mabel had plenty of her own. But in each story a lesson is learned and shared with a younger generation.
This is a Christian book.
Highly recommended.

[Luisa Knight · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of delightful stories that you can learn by!

Grandma Mabel has the best stories, some funny and some … even funnier! And everything around her home reminds her of one of them, so the stories just gush out. One story from a sewing basket, one from a button, another from a piece of fabric.

Each chapter is short and it’s own tale (perhaps a good book to read aloud at lunch with the kids?). You’ll learn lessons on pride, vanity, obedience, telling the truth, not making hasty assumptions and more.

Don’t miss this series. An oldie but a goodie!

Cleanliness: nothing to note as any bad behavior is learned from.

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[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Mom read these books to me and my siblings one year. They are the best!

[Katja Labonté · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars. It's been probably a decade since I read this??? This series formed my childhood and consisted some of my favourite books. I still really enjoy the stories; what a great glimpse of former life, family life, and faith-filled life! The humour is great, the stories are so realistic, and I thoroughly appreciated this trip down memory lane + recommend this series as heartily as I did as a child.

[Madisyn Carlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

These are sweet, wholesome stories that are perfect for any age. I remember reading them way back when, and I still enjoy them today.

[Janssen]

This was a cute listen with Tally on Scribd

[Penny Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heartwarming and fun!

[Sarah Grace · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was a little girl, I’d go to my grandmother’s house for piano lessons. Afterward, I’d sit at her table with a cup of ginger snaps and a glass of Concord grape juice mixed with ginger ale and she’d read aloud Grandma’s Attic.

Reliving those dear memories as I read them now to my kids is just the biggest blessing.

[Emily Boyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A darling book. I loved it.

[Michael Fitzgerald · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sorry, but has no one here read Anne of Green Gables? Apparently the author (or her grandmother) has, because that story about the liniment cake is taken straight from it. I can't believe that someone in the publishing chain didn't flag it - even if it's true and the near-identical similarity is entirely coincidental, just the mere appearance of borrowing lessens the "real" aspect of this book. It sows the seeds of doubt.... Removing that one chapter would not change this book at all since it's simply one of the many individual stories. And I mean, it's not like Anne is some obscure book that no one has ever read. That a number of different books tell similar stories of how maple syrup is collected is one thing - that's a common occurrence that many kids would have experienced. But accidentally putting liniment into a cake instead of vanilla? I'm not buying it.

These stories here are just average. Nice and all, but nothing more - they are very short and maybe that's OK, but I'd find them more interesting if I were to encounter them as episodes in a book that told a bigger story: Thimble Summer, Caddie Woodlawn, et al. Maybe they are useful as quick bedtime readings.

[Heather · Rating 1 out of 5]

The way these are written feel very disjointed. It's supposed to be a young girl who spends a lot of time at her grandmother's house and enjoys looking through the old things, like the button basket and the quilts her grandmother made. Each trinket the girl finds has a story attached to it from her grandmother's childhood. Every chapter has a short little blurb about the young girl looking at some piece of fabric or whatnot and then her grandmother get's a far away look in her eyes and launches into the story. This happening over and over was pretty tedious and felt so unnatural. I would have liked it better if it was laid out as a collection of short stories instead or just the whole thing was told from the grandmother's point of view as a child. The young narrator gets no development and I don't even remember her name! A lot of the stories are also strongly Christian faith based so it won't be a great recommendation for everyone but it might be enjoyed by kids who like the Laura Ingalls Wilder books.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is similar to the Little House on the Prairie series. A grandma tells stories from when she was little. Usually the stories involve her getting into trouble and learning a lesson from it. It is a charming little book. The best part is that the chapters are short enough that very young children can enjoy listening to this book, but the stories are interesting enough that older kids will like it, too.

I believe it is published by a Christian publishing company, and there is a slight, but obvious, religious slant, along the general lines of "God answers yours prayers."

[Stacy Myers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a good, solid read aloud!! I read this to my 8, 9, and 11 year olds and always peeped to hear my 14 year old listening as well. 😍
Stories of childhood told by a grandmother to her granddaughter, triggered by things like quilt squares and buttons. Each story is wholesome and cute.
The first in the series.

[Leilani Curtis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved these books as a kid, and love sharing them now with my daughters!

Sep 2025 - listened on audio again to introduce my 8 yr old. Her big sisters remember these from year ago and were delighted to revisit.

[Laura Lou · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a favorite of mine as a child. I read it so many times it eventually fell apart. How excited I was when I found a copy of it at a thrift store several years ago! In fact, I found a couple more that are part of the series. Such wonderful books, and life seemed so much simpler then; not in regards to hard work, of course, but just in family relationships and friendships in the community. Christian faith was definitely an important part of daily life for many families. I know there were still problems in the world; I'm not that naive. But it was nicer that you didn't have access to every single tragedy 24 hours a day, 7 days a week! Anyway, I still enjoy this book and the others in the series.

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful and sweet.

[Honorah Deatrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

A childhood favorite - great short stories for read aloud with children.

[Nikki in Niagara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful, wholesome tales of farm life in Michigan in approximately the 1870s. Arleta Richardson was actually brought up by her grandmother, but in the books she comes for extended visits and finds many objects in Grandma's attic and just around the house that provoke Grandma into telling Arleta the story surrounding the object from her own childhood. Or Arleta and Grandma are doing something together and by asking a question or simple conversation will bring about another tale of Grandma's childhood. The stories in this book centre around when Grandma was between about four and nine years of age. They tell of a wonderful, harder yet simpler life, when items such as a water pump made life so much easier. These are tales of a little girl or her older brothers getting into mischief, being downright naughty or simply becoming caught up in embarrassing moments. Some of the stories have what could be called a lesson to teach (or a moral) but they are gentle and not the emphasis of every story. The books in this series are classified as Christian fiction, and while the family believes in God, mentions their beliefs, and acts accordingly this book is no more Christian than any other mainstream story that features a Christian family, such as the Ingalls family. Rather than telling one cohesive story the book is more of a collection of vignettes with each chapter telling a new reminiscence from Grandma's childhood. There are small details that recur from time to time in later chapters that hold the book together well. Lots of fun and humour which I thoroughly enjoyed.

[Jennifer McMaster · Rating 2 out of 5]

Had to rate these pretty low since I find myself correcting much of the moralistic teaching (i.e. drinking is a sin) when I read to my children. I think I've just gotten my fill of these types of books, similar to Martha Finley's Elsie Dinsmore, that reflect more of the influences of the temperance movement and legalistic thinking than what is actually taught in Scripture.

[Terralyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was under a selection of books that were comparable to the Little House books. Apart from the era that the stories are told in, this is nothing like little house. It's a series of unimaginative and dry monologues, as told by the grandmother. I don't see how this book could ever hold a child's attention, let alone anyone else. A real disappointment.

[What April's Reading · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a third or even fourth read for us. This book definitely holds a Laura Ingalls/Anne Shirley feel and we love it. The stories are short and fun, and will keep the attention of younger children. We've only read this first one, as it's reading suggested for our My Father's World curriculum, but we will be looking for the others in the series.

[S Reeb · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always struggle rating children’s books because obviously they’re going to simpler than what I’m reading now but their story is still so good. That’s how I feel with this book. I have read it before but it still made me laugh and smile and that’s what I needed. This is such a good story even if it is way below my current reading level.


Happy Reading 📖

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved these books as a child. This one showed up on my son's homeschooling book list, so now I get to enjoy it all over again. Great old timey stories. Short chapters, so my 3 year old will sit through them too.

[Wynona · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me laugh and smile.

[Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was such a cute book. Thanks to Kaley, et al. (I can't remember whom) for the recommendation. 😊

[Lauren Acosta · Rating 4 out of 5]

loved these books as a kid