Strawberry Hill

by Mary Ann Hoberman, Wendy Anderson Halperin (Illustrator)

When ten-year-old girl Allie learns that her family will be moving from their two-family home to their very own house in the country, she's hesitant until she finds out they will be living on a street with the magical name of Strawberry Hill. That changes everything! From her struggle to find a new best friend, to her quest for acceptance at her new school, Allie takes readers on her journey to make Strawberry Hill feel like home.

Strawberry Hill is a timeless story that will captivate readers, just as Mary Ann's picture books and poems have for the past fifty years.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Childrens, Middle Grade, Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Classics, Audiobook

240 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2009

About the author

Mary Ann Hoberman was an American author of over 30 children's books.

Reviews

[Kristin Eoff · Rating 3 out of 5]

I listened to the CD version of this book on my daily commute and found it enjoyable yet somewhat slow. I thought some of the loose ends could have been tied up better at the end, and I was turned off by descriptions of several of the characters as being "fat," but the narrator, Cassandra Morris, did a great job doing all the different voices, and I liked how the main character, Allie, gains some maturity over the course of the book.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Strawberry Hill is a sweet story of friendship and family that takes place during the Depression. Allie is a ten-year-old Jewish girl who moves with her family to a house at the very beginning of the book. She is unsure that the move is a good idea, but when her father tells her they will be living on Strawberry Hill, and that she will have her very own room, she gets excited. Things are not what she expected when they arrive, however. She discovers that just because the street is named Strawberry Hill, that doesn't necessarily mean there are any strawberries anywhere. And she is confused by her feelings towards her new friends, the two neighbor girls who do not speak to each other, although each wants to be her friend. Allie must learn that appearances are not the most important part of a person, and that it is what is inside that makes you a good friend.
I enjoyed this story, although sometimes Allie's actions towards her friends, especially Mimi, were frustrating at times. I am sure that a tween would identify more with her choices, and understand her better than I do. Although the story takes place during the Depression, there is not much information about it, mostly because it is not something that affects Allie's life directly, most of the time. She struggles with acceptance and Antisemitism more than with her family's economic situation. This book would be enjoyed by tween girls, especially those who like historical fiction, or it would be a good introduction to the genre.

[Xydel · Rating 2 out of 5]

From an 11-year-old: I like how, even though this book is set during the Great Depression, it's relatable. Allie has friend drama just like any other average person in modern times. I rated this book a 2.5 because I think it is meant for a younger age group. The only bad influence in Strawberry Hill is a little bit of anti-semitism in the beginning of the book. I recommend this book for 5-8 year olds.

[Shiloah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a lovely read aloud. We all enjoyed it and had many discussions about the various aspects of friendships, the great depression, and antisemitism.

[Liv Z · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was great! It was hard to put down! It definitely deserves a four star rating!

[Leah · Rating 5 out of 5]

strawberry hill is a very good book. it is one of my most favourite book ever!

[Jackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finally finished our summer read aloud.

[Autumn Riehemann · Rating 4 out of 5]

read as a child, this is my first chapter book when I was like 5 or 6 🦆

[Lucia Galluzzo · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was the best.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

The cover and title of this were so charming, and I adore the illustrator and like the author, that I couldn't resist picking this up for a nice story for my daughter and I to read together. I hate to say it but I read the whole thing today and told her it wasn't that great. It wasn't terrible, of course, just not great. I appreciated the very realistic friendship difficulties, and I loved Allie's mother's head on handling of anti-Semitism, but Allie herself was a pretty flawed and sometimes hard to like main character, particularly with regard to how she treated Mimi. As historical fiction it didn't really cut it for me. It's the Depression and various fathers have lost jobs, but overall everyone seems to be doing pretty well and cheerful, even though a requisite hobo showed up. I thought that a Jewish family in Connecticut during the Depression eating spaghetti and meatballs for dinner was anachronistic.
I never felt won over by really anything. And I guess I would have liked for Allie to finally acknowledge that she didn't need to label someone her best friend and maybe she should spend more time developing real friendships with a variety of people.

[Susan Dunn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked this ARC up at midwinter. It's a sweet read - definitely old fashioned. Will be great for those parents who don't want their kids to read anything with violence or other controversial subjects. This book takes place during the depression, when Allie and her family have to move to a new home on Strawberry Hill after her father finds work there. At first Allie is unhappy about leaving behind her best friend, but over the next year, she makes many new friends, and eventually comes to love Strawberry Hill. The books gives a wonderful picture of life during this time period - many of the fathers of Allie's school friends are out of work, and a popsicle costs a nickle from the Good Humor truck. I loved that whenever the neighbors want to play, they come over to Allie's house and "call" for her (by literally standing on the porch and yelling her name until she comes outside)!

[Treasa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a big fan of some of Hoberman's picture books, so I had high hopes for her first chapter book. My expectations were not quite met, but it was still an enjoyable read. This is a sweet book about a little girl, Allie, during the Depression who moves with her family to a house on Strawberry Hill. She is sad to leave behind her best friend and fears that she will never make new friends. However, Allie does make new friends and learns that some friends are perhaps more worth keeping than others.

The book does a wonderful job of letting the reader see what living during the Depression was like without making it too harsh for a young reader. And the characters in the book are well-developed and realistic. I found myself identifying with Allie many times.

Overall, it's a good book, especially for a girl who enjoys books like The Secret Garden or the Shoes series.

[Melanie Hetrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Allie's family moves away from the neighborhood she has known for a long time. This means moving away from her best friend Ruth. But she's moving to Strawberry Hill! Allie finds herself excited about living on a hill surrounded by strawberries. So she is very disappointed to find that there are no actual strawberries. But there a some very nice girls in the neighborhood. Martha, who lives next door and goes to the parochial school, quickly befriends Allie but makes it clear that Cynthia, who is on vacation, is her BEST friend. Then Allie meets Mimi who lives across the street. Mimi is still in the 3rd grade because she was held back. She also doesn't have many friends.

Allie quickly learns that Martha is a fair-weather friend. When Cynthia show her anti-Semitic side, Martha doesn't stand up for Allie.

A good read-aloud for parents looking for good chapter books before bedtime.

[Evelyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book came highly recommended, but was overall pretty disappointing. It was sought out to teach about friendships, which it definitely did, but most of the lessons were because of the multitude of bad friendship interactions throughout the book (friendship being the central theme). It definitely inspired a lot of discussions amongst our family. In the end, there were some good friendship lessons and other good lessons regarding history, treatment of different people, etc, but many/most of those lessons came out of negative instances, some not wholey/completely resolved in the book thus requiring family discussion. And that doesn't even touch on the meanness, name-calling, taking of the Lord's name in vain, etc. Overall it was a wash... what could have been an inspiring, uplifting and teaching book was... meh. I rather wish we hadn't read it, but spent our time on a more worthy book.

[Mamiko · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the story enough - I thought it was interesting that the setting was around Great Depression and that the protagonist (Jewish) experienced antisemitism. The description of the children felt quite real - they are very self-centered and are very concerned about friendships. I liked how the protagonist learned to accept her friend/neighbor for who she is, and that her younger brother helped her see her friend/neighbor for who she is.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my grandparents' era. A young girl moves to Strawberry Hill and has to figure out "friends" all over again. I found this to be truthful to young girls today, still anxious over having a "best friend" and wary of what others might say if they see them playing with a certain someone. A wholesome read.

[Sheri S. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book to my girls and it prompted some good discussions about friendship as well as the meaning of anti-Semitism. The book also gives some indications of what it was like for people during the Great Depression. I appreciated how the main character, Allie, changed with regards to her thoughts and relationships with her neighbors.

[Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good book about girls navigating and evaluating friendships through fairness, stereotypes, weaponizing "best friend" status, gossip, bullying and discovering what good friends do and don't do. Make good choices with your friends! Just sometimes it takes a little while to find the right ones. It's a 3 star because I have no need to ever read it again, but I'd definitely recommend it to elementary school age children.

[alivia · Rating 4 out of 5]

i only got this book because it had something to do with strawberries, and i love anything strawberry themed. after reading this, i was pleasantly surprised to actually really like it. there are so many life lessons within this book that are great for children to learn about. it seemed a little bit all over the place, but i love how everything tied together in the end. this was such a cute book, i don’t know how i’ve never heard of it before.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

This little book set during the Depression might be too uncomplicated and lacking in drama for older grade schoolers, but I think younger readers would enjoy it. I'm years past all my school days, and I thought it was a fun read. I remember the days of struggle over shifting best friends and snippy mean girls, so I could relate to Allie's confusion.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was nostalgic to read this book that I listened to years ago with my young children during a road trip. I enjoyed it more listening to it with my kids, but it is still a fun book that gives kids a glimpse into the depression, childhood play and friendship before electronics, the Jewish culture, and not being too quick to judge others.

[Sadie]

Strawberry Hill is a great book about friendship. After Allie moves away from her home, she meets new friends Martha and Mimi. When she arives at her new home, she is disipointed to see that there are no strawberrys on her lane. Will Allie find her true best friend?

[Shelley Shirley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned a lot of awesome History things that relate to the pandemic that started in 2020, Like the great depression and sickness along with quarantine. It's for Kids but I think everyone should read it!

[Emmaline Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute little story. I’m not a huge fan of the whole “only having one best friend” narrative that’s seen throughout. I don’t like the idea of children reading and absorbing that idea, even if it was justifiable (in this case) to not be close friends with certain people.

[Eddy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the perfect option for someone looking to curl up with a good book. Filled with drama, love and friendship, this book has everything a realistic-fiction lover could ever want.

[Florence · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was one of my favorite books that I read as a child. I remember it being very poignant. I can't say it'd be thrilling now, but I definitely recommend for younger readers.

[Dulcie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightful! A very readable story about a girl growing up and learning about life and friendship during the Depression.

[Nahuatl P Vargas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute.

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

childhood book from my cousin

[Emily S · Rating 5 out of 5]

G loved this book. Sparked conversations about friendship dos and dont’s, antisemitism, and Great Depression.