Not bad, but not one of my favorite kids' books. The kids are kind of goody-goody, in my opinion, (even though the author keeps making a point of saying how hard it is for them to be good). They don't have much personality -- they're sort of generic turn-of-the-century English children, very concerned with being brave and honorable and good. They're not quite as bland as I'm making them sound, but the only signs of personality they have is that the oldest understands a bit more than the younger two and tries harder to be mature, the middle sibling (a boy) tries to be brave and daring and has maybe the hardest time being good, and the youngest child is always knocking things over or accidentally ripping her skirt or tripping over her shoelaces. They spend their time saving people from train accidents and making people's lives brighter.

It's hard for me to dislike a Nesbit book(I think Water Magic is the only one I never finished) , so this one was average. Though the kids are fun, the stories are dated. Oddly enough, it could probably have fit into any time between 1840-1960 but, now, you would spend too much time explaining details to make it much fun. Though, I'm highly jealous, as always, of the seemingly limitless amount of unstructured time.

Still in bed sick reading comfort reads. In my family growing up, we were all huge E. Nesbit fans, but I didn't really remember this one. Turns out there's a reason. It's not just that there is no magic--and this is a serious loss for devoted readers of the peerless fantasies Five Children and It, The Enchanted Castle etc--it's that the book is too dated. The children themselves are earnest bores always trying to do good. And when their father disappears and their mother tells them not to ask any questions or try to find out, they DON'T! This is presented as a good thing, both on the mother's part and on theirs. That is tough for a modern reader to swallow, however devoted to old English children's books. Also when their family situation is finally resolved, they are the engines of it's happening but but they can only do it through a powerful new aristocratic friend who pulls strings behind the scenes. And there's is no reflection about what would have happened to a similarly innocent person as the children's father who didn't have connections. I've heard that Enid Nesbit had Socialist leanings but that part seems Tory through and through to me! So I was a bit disappointed. But I did read through to the end and I manages to enjoy it despite these annoying parts.

Absolutely loved the adventures of this family and the calmer freer days from a century ago. Could not put it down.

A new old classic that will mean a lot to me.

masa kanak - kanak memang menyenangkan, walaupun ada masalah kita harus tetap menikmati hidup dan terus maju. Itulah yang paling terasa setelah membaca novel ini.

Just a lovely, lovely story