The Penderwicks on Gardam Street

by Jeanne Birdsall

40/60 | Started 05.03.26 • Finished 09.04.26

This book is about four sisters: Rosalind, Skye, Jane, and Batty. There is also a dog named Hound. One day their Aunt Claire comes to visit and tells their dad that she has a blind date set up for him. The girls think this is a horrible idea. So horrible, in fact, that they hold an emergency MOPS - Meeting of Penderwick Sisters. They decide that they definitely do not want a step-mother and will do whatever they can to find bad dates for their father so that he won't want to date again. However, the only bad date they can come up with is their friend Anna's skating coach. Eventually, their father claims to have found a woman named Marianne to date. But the girls discover that she is actually a book character, and their father has been sneaking off to read instead of date. In the end, the girls realize that their neighbor, Iantha, would be perfect for their father. So they work out a plan for the two of them to go on a date. Seven months later, Mr. Penderwick and Iantha get married.

I loved the ending of the story, and it's very sad that we don't get to read the book anymore. 5 stars.

Carolyn, age 9