Addy Saves the Day: A Summer Story

American Girl: Addy #5

by Connie Rose Porter, Bradford Brown (Illustrator)

A brave young black girl who fled North with her mother during the Civil War has a feud with her rival, Harriet, until tragedy forces them to resolve their differences and become friends.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Childrens, Fiction, Historical, Middle Grade, Civil War, Juvenile

67 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1994

About the author

Connie Rose Porter is an American author best known for her books for children and young adults. She was the third youngest of nine children of a family living in a housing project.
She has since taught English and creative writing at Milton Academy, Emerson College, and Southern Illinois University Carbondale. She was a fellow at the Bread Loaf Writers' Conference and was a regional winner in Granta's Best Young American Novelist contest.

Reviews

[Olivia · Rating 5 out of 5]

The reunions are the best parts of these books. 🥺🥰 The way a film adaptation would wreck me . . .

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rereading as an adult, here's what stands out:

Addy's family does not fight, at least not within these stories. In all of her books, the conflict is external and the family group is safety and comfort. Which, given everything they're up against: uh, yeah, that's plenty. If anything, Addy seems to be a classic example of the kid for whom "I'm disappointed in you," is all the dressing down she needs. (Me too, Addy.) The conversation she has with her parents about the poison of hatred is inspiring - and must be unbelievably hard for Ben and Ruth to live.

One other note on Addy's father: I'm mad on his behalf that an employer who's willing to rehire him "if there's work" is the closest he can get to actual time off work to put his family back together. The Walkers are happy about this, and as a kid I definitely just followed along, but I hate that this is their best case scenario. All of Addy's stories have so much bittersweetness: whatever she achieves, whatever good things come her way, in many ways, her world is a hard, unkind place.

But back to the book at hand. In some ways, this one acts as a sequel to Addy Learns a Lesson in that it picks up Addy's fraught relationship with Harriet.

Addy's default setting seems to be to treat people politely, and she generally seems to get along with everyone, so when she struggles to be nice to Harriet, you know some stuff has gone down. (And we do know, from the previous book.)

This time around, Harriet gets to be sympathetic in the end - more than Valerie Tripp ever gives Annabelle Cole, who serves a similar role in the Felicity books. It's a quick moment. From there on, the girls are friendly and Harriet doesn't have much more to say, but it is lovely to see that Addy is able to summon enough patience and compassion to treat Harriet kindly when she's down.

So the girls are able to work together and run their booth at the fair after all - and continue to work together when another girl tries to steal their cashbox. Uncharitably, I find myself wondering: we know Addy and Sarah were putting on a puppet show when the money went missing - so what was Harriet doing? Didn't that box get snatched from right under her nose? But Addy's done fighting with Harriet by this point in the story, so we'll move on.

One last note, unrelated to the text: The illustrations show Addy wearing a lovely pair of two-tone boots with her dress for the fair. Meta-textually, she has those shoes because they're part of her summer outfit in the American Girl catalog: each of the first five dolls had different shoes to go with her summer outfit, so here are Addy's. But DON'T they seem like an extravagance Addy's family wouldn't have splurged on? These are the folks growing vegetables to finance the journey back to find Esther. Hold that thought for the next book.

[Olde American Spirit · Rating 4 out of 5]

“But you got to know, Addy, anger and bitterness can be like weeds. If you let them grow, pretty soon they take over and there ain’t room for nothing else.”

“There ain’t no greater pain than losing a child.”

What a sweet story. I appreciate how Addy’s parents refused to be bitter about their hardships and taught Addy the same.

A meaningful story about perseverance, hope, forgiveness, and the power of prayer.

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

I really loved how important church was in this one, too, and Addy's conversation with her parents at the beginning regarding bitterness and hate was really great to see.

[Ciara · Rating 3 out of 5]

harriet makes a dastardly re-appearance in this one. when i went to the library & checked these out, book #4, happy birthday, addy was out with another patron, so i don't know what happens there. i'm hoping the walkers have moved to larger digs so mama & daddy can have some privacy, but addy's siblings, sam & esther, still have not been reunited with the family.

the civil war is over at this point, & lots of churches & other groups are organizing to help families find one another. this includes families that were divided either during the war or via slavery. addy is part of a children's group that is participating in a fair to raise money for the freedmen's association. they are going to have a fundraising booth but don't know what to sell. harriet naturally suggests a magic show, starring herself as the magician. apparently someone gave her some kind of magic set & now she thinks she's a superstar. but addy suggests a puppet show featuring spool puppets her father taught her how to make. the kids can make extra puppets & addy's father can carve slide whistles to sell on the side. everyone (except harriet) likes this idea & it's approved.

harriet also keeps bragging about how she has an uncle who was fighting with a union regiment of black soldiers & he should be coming home soon now that the war is over. every time addy even LOOKS like she might be feeling concerned or sad over not knowing where her siblings are (or even if they are still alive, especially as sam is a teenager who harbored a dream of running away from slavery in order to fight in the war), harriet pipes up about how her uncle is a war hero & she can write him letters & he'll be home soon. it just makes me think, you know...are you kidding me with this? do they have to write harriet as so incredibly evil all the time? i get that she's pumped about seeing her uncle again, & she has a lot of privileges that addy doesn't, what with being relatively well-off & coming from a 100% free family & everything. but she is depicted as actually rubbing addy's face in the fact that she knows exactly where her uncle is & addy has no idea where sam might be. what the fuck, harriet?

naturally the girls get into a scuffle over this very issue. addy tells harriet that no one cares about her stupid uncle & to shut up about it. their adult supervisor busts things up & decides to make addy, harriet, & sarah (because of course sarah jumped in to take addy's side--harriet sucks, but sarah's lothing of her seems especially bitter, & i wonder what message this sends to little girls; i'd like to see a little more girl love, please!) work the puppet show together so they can learn about teamwork & how sometimes you have to work with people you don't like. & again...addy (& sarah too!) was a slave! i think she knows all about how you don't always get what you want in life! jesus!

unfortunately, the morning of the fair, addy finds harriet in tears. apparently she just learned that her uncle died in the war & won't be coming home after all. addy feels legit bad for harriet & tells sarah to go easy on her at the fair.

fast forward to the fair. addy & sarah are doing the puppet show & harriet is working the cash box. addy notices a tall older girl wearing a very nice dress but carrying a dirty old carpetbag. the older girl is watching the puppet show. addy finds the nice dress/grungy bag incongruous, but isn't too concerned until the cash box goes missing. she just knows the older girl stole it...i guess because that must be how she paid for her nice dress? i don't really get it. addy tells sarah & harriet & they spread out in search of the girl. harriet finds her & alerts addy, but the girl knocks harriet down & makes a break for it before addy can get there. so addy books it & manages to chase the girl down & grab the carpetbag. the girl lets go of it & runs away, & when the fair director shows up to see what all the commotion is about, he discovers THREE cash boxes in the carpetbag! so i guess addy's suspicions were right. i kind of wish i was a master criminal like the carpetbag girl.

addy is hailed as a hero, but she says she couldn't have caught the girl without harriet's teamwork. awwww. they did learn a lesson after all!

addy & sarah decide to do one more puppet show before closing up shop. their show consists of making spool puppets dance around & ask riddles. addy asks a riddle that her brother came up with back on the plantation. a male voice in the audience replies, "that's easy. even my little sister knows that one." addy pops up because she thinks she recognizes the voice &...yup. it's sam! i won't lie, i teared up. can you imagine? she hasn't seen the dude in a year, since he was sold to another slaveowner & taken away in shackles. days later, addy & her mother run away to freedom & abandon baby esther. & now her brother randomly pops up at the fair that addy is helping out to raise money for freedmen's associations, including her own family's search for sam & esther? yes, it's an obnoxious deux ex machina like when daddy appeared at the church on christmas eve. but still.

sam did indeed fight in the war & lost an arm for his trouble. but now he's reunited with the family & all they have to do is find esther. & there is finally peace between addy, sarah, & harriet.

[Emily Purdy · Rating 3 out of 5]

American girl doll books are so much more than just a book to go along with a little doll. They are live lesson and help show young kids that enjoy american girl dolls that having character is an amazing thing. Addy Saves the Day is a great read about the end of the Civil War and how challenging life was for African Americans after the war ended. Families for separated, money was scarce, and prejudice still existed very much. Addy faces those issues first hand when her and some of her family are trying to find the rest of her family forcing them to move and Addy had to work for another family that were very rude to her, but once Addy saves the day the families opinion takes a turn. This book is much more than a little girl that faces a bully, it has a historically meaning because it really talks about how the Civil War effected people even after the war ended.

This short chapter book has several pictures that are beautifully drawn to show the emotion and character of Addy and the other people in the book. The book is mainly focused on the text rather than the pictures but the illustrations bring Addy and her friends to life.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was always one of my favorite AG books we w kid and it still is. I really like the character development in addy throughout the series.

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure if American Girl has any antagonistic characters that weren't later redeemed, but I do like how this shows another side of Harriet.

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story! Did not disappoint. I was completely shocked by Harriet's sad news I think my mouth might have dropped while reading. Addy was really kind though and I'm glad she and Harriet were able to work together and be kinder to one another. SUCH A GOOD BOOK.

SPOILERS AHEAD:


Can't believe that one girl had stolen THREE money boxes. She would have probably stolen more if Addy hadn't caught her bag. Also, I literally GASPED when I realized Addy's brother was back. When they hugged I almost cried! I was so moved and ugh, such a great part in the book!! I was shocked and sad he lost an arm, but loved his attitude about the whole thing. So happy for them.

[Miranda Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Addy, anger and bitterness can be like weeds. If you let them grow, pretty soon they take over and there ain't room for nothing else."

The war is over. The slaves are all free. It should be joyous and yet, Addy can't help but feel fury at their former master and at the world for being so unfair.

"If it wasn't for slavery, our whole family would be together," Addy said fiercely.

It's been months of sending letters, visiting the churches and doing whatever they can to earn money to send Poppa back south to look for Addy's missing siblings.

Addy feels devastated that after all this time, they still haven't a clue on where to look.

But the church is hosting a fair to raise money to help the newly freed slaves and Poppa will be given some of that money for his search.

Addy knows she needs to do her best at this fair - every penny earned will help her family find her sister.

This one definitely had good bones...but it just didn't feel as strong as the previous books. Most of the main story worked well, but it was the details and the side characters that ultimately brought this one down to 3 stars for me.

I did like how Harriet (the rich, snooty girl from Addy Learns a Lesson) returns in this book but her character felt off to me. In the previous book, Harriet was covert about her meanness and snobbery. Often, Addy had no idea she was being manipulated into doing what Harriet wanted until after the fact.

And yet in this one, Harriet would shout things like this:

"How could I be jealous of such a stupid idea?" ...[Harriet] threw down the puppet.

Or this:

Harriet yelled back. "We won't sell a single one! You'll see! We won't make any money and it will all be Addy's fault!"

This new tantruming Harriet felt at such odds with the sly, manipulative girl from the previous book.

Additionally, Harriet was humbled in this book but it didn't seem due to actual character growth. Instead, the author kills off Harriet's uncle in the war and Addy has the grace to be kind to her bully in her time of great emotional upheaval.

I wish there was more development shown because I think the antagonistic relationship between the girls was set up really well...just a shortcut was taken to the resolution.

Additionally, the ending felt rushed and abrupt to me.

I'm left with a lot of questions -- Who was the girl with the carpet bag? Why did she steal fifty dollars? How did Sam know where to find Addy? - and I already know that they don't get answered in the main series. Maybe in one of the spin-offs though? I hope?

Also, one last ranty-bit but this is twice now that Addy's family members find her in Philadelphia.

I don't think it would be realistic for Addy to leave the family's boarding house to search for her siblings but I also think this method of 'solving' the book's main problems felt rather passive to me.

It feels odd to have so much of the plot's tension and stress be solved by the family members finding them rather than the protagonist taking a more active role.

Sam or Poppa could at least have mentioned one of the letters she sent telling her missing family members where she and her Momma were living. Something to show that Addy's role was important to her family members reuniting.

But even with those issues, I feel so emotionally connected to Addy's story and cannot wait to continue these books.

[Lee]

A lil goofy, but pretty cute.

[Laura (Book Scrounger) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the fifth Addy book. In this story, Addy's church plans a fair to raise money to help reunite families who have been separated by the war. Addy and Sarah do not get along well with Harriet, but the three girls are forced to work together to make their booth a success. My kids enjoyed this book also, especially the ending.

[Karissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s important to keep in mind that this is a book meant for children. Addy was lucky to have her parents with her in a semi-safe community with a roof over her head every night. You can’t expect descriptions of the horrors of everything families shackled to the atrocities of that time went through being in a children’s book.
Yet the potent trauma of slavery is addressed. I think the author did an excellent job of balancing reality and knowing her audience.
What would Addy ask God? “I’d ask why there had to be slavery,” she blatantly proclaimed to her mother’s question. Yes! What the tick, God? (This is my lingo, trying to keep the wording appropriate).
I first read this when I was around seven years old and dang, it dug into me like a rusty bullet. It made me aware that despite children of every color being in my classes without any issues that a 3rd grader could pick up on, it wasn’t long ago that America was a completely different place. “What would it be like for my cousin (she’s half-black), my group of friends who were all darker than me? Would we have to go to different schools?”.
Yes, we would, as the “Peak into the Past” section mentions.
Addy Walker’s stories peeled the glaze of the glorified American history taught in school off of my eyes. I couldn’t name the feeling at the time but now I know it was empathy.

[🍓 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book continues to create an excellent character in Addy Walker and her family. It captures the frustration and unfairness of the post-Civil War era, especially for Black Americans like Addy.

Her reunion with Sam is emotional and I think choosing to have him had lives out his dream of being a solider, at a cost, helps to solidify this idea of freedom being at a price.

Harriet’s character, I feel, ended up having one of the best arcs over the books. Addy learns kindness through her, moreso than she already had, and they are able to work together to overcome their difficulties with each other.

Also, I just have to say what a badass Addy is. Escapes slavery, goes to school, settles fights, searches for her family, works for her mother, stops a THIEF at the fair, and is kind all while doing it ?? A great model for young readers.

[Sarah Anne Peterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although the church fundraiser thief portion of this story is definitely important, Addy and Harriet's reconciliation is even more so. Addy truly saved the day by extending to her former nemesis an invitation for second chances and friendship. I love the theme of purging hatred from our hearts regardless of how someone wronged us. The lesson is NOT encouraging girls to be doormats; rather, it's emphasizing that we only have control over our own actions and attitudes. If hatred persists, it should not be our fault. It is within our power to be the better person. Clinging to hatred only poisons ourselves rather than achieving justice. This applies to racists, mean girls at school, and everything in between.

[Sarah Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another wonderful installment in Addy's series! Addy and her family work hard with their church community to raise money at a local fair to help recently freed people. This leads to Addy clashing yet again with Harriet - the snooty, spoiled girl from her school who has been unkind to her in the past. But this time, Addy promises her parents that she will try to work things out with Harriet.

There is a very dramatic chase scene in this book that kept tension very high! I read this with my daughters and they both loved it. This also had a very heartwarming ending that had me tearing up. This remains one of my favorite American Girl series. Such moving stories, such endearing characters, and great life lessons. I loved rereading this with my daughters.

[Laura Fan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Addy's church is going to put on a carnival and they are selling things to earn money to help lost families get together again. Addy has the hope that her family can reunite. I like how Addy's idea wins over Harriet's but I didn't like Addy bragging about it to her mom and dad. Harriet's uncle dies, he was special and off fighting the Civil War, I didn't like that part, but I liked that it brought Addy and Harriet together as friends. I also liked the chase - a girl had stolen lots of money boxes from the booths - and that Addy got a hold of the bag handle and got the bag of money back. - age 9 (likes to read and re-read this adventure story)

[Cammy]

this one was boring and i skimmed through it lol I won't even count it as part of my reading challenge for this year.

i get that it's very important for young kids to learn about slavery and i'm not the type of person who thinks we shouldn't write about slavery anymore, but the same issue of finding the missing siblings and slavery and the plantation keep coming up and it just felt very boring. i kind of hate that Addy has to be, like... better than the other girls from the other books. like she has to not be angry and to pray and to be a "good girl" in a way I don't think Samantha, in comparison, was.

sigh

[Aimee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Uh, why is a 10-year-old way more emotionally mature than I am? Addy is just precious and her family dynamic makes me weep because the love that ties them all together makes them stronger - and in this story that helps Addy forgive a girl who has been horrible to her and find compassion to help her during a difficult time. Also, ending on this one almost made me cry. Honestly wasn’t expecting it (well, kind of was but I was thinking to myself “they wouldn’t repeat this kind of surprise twice, would they?”), but it made the story that much more touching.

[Kari Heggen (checkedoutbooks) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Harriet and Addy's inability to get along is back but then by the end they are BFFs which felt like a quick turn of events in how it happened but I'm not opposed. However....can we get some background on the girl who stole the money? it just felt so out of place and abrupt so Addy could "save the day". Oh and her family magically continues to get back together. I think I need adult versions of these books that are about 3x longer because everything happens too fast in these middle grade 60 pages

[Jacqueline M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh no. Not having to work with the mean girl who (surprise) is mean because she's actually dealing with her own stuff. Addy does truly save the day on multiple levels and unlike the rest of the girls she's not saving herself from a scenario that she's in after disobeying adults (ahem Felicity. Ahem Samantha, ahem Molly etc etc). A little rushed for me pacing wise, but a solid addition to the lineup.

[Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is probably a veryyyy close second favorite book in Addy's series—just under "Happy Birthday, Addy." I think that Addy has the most character development in this story compared to the rest of them. I especially think it teaches a good lesson about extending grace and empathy, even—or perhaps, *especially* —to those with whom we may not get along. Again, I almost shed a tear or two reading it, especially the ending lines—ugh, chef's kiss.

[Shanice Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the first book I read from The American Girls collection. I enjoyed this book. I can relate to some of the values that were being instilled in Addy by her parents. I also liked the fact that Addy did her best to be nice to Harriet and not let her mean remarks bother her. All in all the book was good!

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The American Girls books are perfect for any upper grade school child. I am loving reading these out loud with my 8 year old daughter. This installment of the Addy series is about working together and being kind. Lesson: when people are mean, they are usually just upset about something out of their control in their own life.

[Rubi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Addy hasn't had the best time getting along with Harriet, her classmate. It leads to some unsavory behavior but they learn to come together in this story. A bit of kindness and hardwork helped them realize they could not only help each other but save the day!
Good thing Addy was observant when it came to lerkers around their booth haha

[Lex · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not here for Harriet's redemption arc SORRY. i know this is a book for children and it's to teach a valuable lesson that it's important to be kind to everyone, even people you don't like, but we know harriet doesn't learn anything from this experience because she goes back to being a bully in the quilt story

[Xyra · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the character growth and lessons learned in this one.

I had a good chuckle at the line "The sidewalks were so crowded that some boys clip.bed to the top of the light poles to get a better view of the parade." Looks like Philadelphians have been climbing poles for centuries.

My heart ached with Harriet's and soared with Addy's.

[Robin Leigh · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book with a student as part of a reading program that I volunteer for. The book was very engaging and the student and I enjoyed it. We are looking forward to following Addy's adventures in the next book in the series.

[Laura Edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like that Addy and Harriet become friends in this book. I also like the compassion Addy shows, especially since I doubt Harriet would have been as empathetic if the roles were reversed and it was Sam who had died.

[Terri (TJ) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Started a little slow but great to finally see that her brother has returned. Extremely rich in touching all the feelings and senses from the molasses cookie and slide whistles and peg dolls/puppets to feelings of sympathy for Harriet and Sam. Quick read. Enjoyed overall.