Harriet the Spy in Never too Late to Read Classics

Feb 17, 2021 Manybooks rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: childrens-literature, book-reviews, bullying, nasty, writing-issues, unappealing-characters, miserable-story

Yes indeed, I do very well realise that many children’s literature experts (professors, teachers, researchers) do seem to strongly consider that Louise Fitzhugh’s 1964 Harriet the Spy is to be seen and approached as a classic amongst realistic children’s novels. But honestly and truly, as an actual reader (and both in the autumn of 1977 when we read Harriet the Spy for grade five English and in the winter of 2021 when I decided to reread Harriet the Spy in order to post a Goodreads review), sorr Yes indeed, I do very well realise that many children’s literature experts (professors, teachers, researchers) do seem to strongly consider that Louise Fitzhugh’s 1964 Harriet the Spy is to be seen and approached as a classic amongst realistic children’s novels. But honestly and truly, as an actual reader (and both in the autumn of 1977 when we read Harriet the Spy for grade five English and in the winter of 2021 when I decided to reread Harriet the Spy in order to post a Goodreads review), sorry, but even though with regard to writing style, Louise Fitzhugh does in fact present a pretty decently written story, thematically and content wise Harriet the Spy really so totally and utterly manages to rub me the wrong proverbial way that I can and will only consider but two stars maximum for Harriet the Spy, for Louise Fitzhugh’s presented narrative, and also must categorically point out that albeit Fitzhugh certainly writes engagingly, what she has penned, how she has shown and presented especially her main protagonist Harriet Welsch has really been a totally miserable and frustrating personal reading experience, with a major lack of pleasure, with really no enjoyment whatsoever (both then, both in 1977, and now, in 2021, and also just recently in 2022, when I decided very reluctantly to try once more, to give Harriet the Spy one more chance).

For while I do generally tend to appreciate and find much pleasure reading about children trying to become writers, sadly and frustratingly, the rather obvious fact that Louise Fitzhugh’s Harriet Welsch attempts to for the most part only practice her writing talents by nastily stalking, spying on and penning often really horrid and brutal observations about her friends and acquaintances in Harriet the Spy (instead of for example practicing and fine tuning her writing skills by creating original stories and/or poems and making use of her imagination), indeed, this has both as a child and as an adult reader really made me not only absolutely and totally emotionally despise Harriet with every fibre of my being and to wholeheartedly consider her, to consider Harriet Welsch both an annoying and bullying false friend, pretty much ill mannered and even in my opinion verging on being a bona fide sociopath (or worse), that there also do not seem to be nearly enough serious consequences for Harriet’s spying and that she equally does not really seem to learn any major lessons throughout Harriet the Spy either except perhaps that she should not let herself get caught out and lose sight of her filled to the brim with secret and often really quite nasty observations spy notebook, this really does make me so emotionally livid that yes, my only, my strongest reaction to the contents and themes of Harriet the Spy and to Harriet Welsch as a character is absolutely one of major rage, of massive anger and of thus also not AT ALL enjoying the thematics and contents of Louise Fitzhugh’s featured text.

And to be brutally honest, my ranking of two stars for Harriet the Spy is in my humble opinion actually even quite generous, for if I were to ONLY consider my profoundly negative in every way emotional reaction and how much I really do totally hate hate hate Harriet Welsch and her stalking, spying ways on a personal level, I should likely be considering only one star for Harriet the Spy (but well, Louise Fitzhugh does have a stylistic flair which I certainly am able to appreciate, so two stars it is for Harriet the Spy, but certainly granted only very grudgingly). Oh and by the way, the negative and bigoted referrals to Native Americans in Harriet the Spy (as recently pointed out by Debbie Reese and that they do seem to also be totally gratuitous), this certainly makes me even more livid and not very much in the mood to either recommend Harriet the Spy or to in any manner truly consider this novel as being a classic. ...more

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