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Rating: 
Summary: Something to think about
Review: In general, we love the American Girl series of books but two books in the Kirsten series disturbed me. In the book "Kirsten Saves the Day" she discovers a bee tree and decides to gather the honey by herself to suprise her family. This is understandable but she acts very foolishly when she goes back to the tree despite having seen a bear the previous day. To make matters worse, she manipulates her little brother into helping her, risking his life with her own. She nearly gets both of them killed when the bear returns to the bee treeIn the book "Changes for Kirsten" she finds a baby racoon in the woods and brings it home. Her mother specifically tells her to leave the racoon in the barn and never to bring it near the house. Despite this, the minute her mother leaves the house Kirsten defies her and brings the baby racoon in. He gets loose and knocks over an oil lamp, burning down their cabin. All in all I don't find the character of Kirsten to be the sort of person I want my girls to emulate.
Rating:
Summary: Something to think about
Review: In general, we love the American Girl series of books but two books in the Kirsten series disturbed me. In the book "Kirsten Saves the Day" she discovers a bee tree and decides to gather the honey by herself to suprise her family. This is understandable but she acts very foolishly when she goes back to the tree despite having seen a bear the previous day. To make matters worse, she manipulates her little brother into helping her, risking his life with her own. She nearly gets both of them killed when the bear returns to the bee tree In the book "Changes for Kirsten" she finds a baby racoon in the woods and brings it home. Her mother specifically tells her to leave the racoon in the barn and never to bring it near the house. Despite this, the minute her mother leaves the house Kirsten defies her and brings the baby racoon in. He gets loose and knocks over an oil lamp, burning down their cabin. All in all I don't find the character of Kirsten to be the sort of person I want my girls to emulate.
Rating: 
Summary: Kirsten is a good character, but not one of the best
Review: In the Kirsten boxed set, you will read six books about Kirsten Larson, a pioneer girl growing up in 1854. In "Meet Kirsten" Kirsten and her family are coming to America. Kirsten is one of the few characters in the American Girls Collection that stays the same. All the other characters change in some way, but I did not see this in the Kirsten books. The next five books in the boxed set show how Kirsten and her family try to combine Swedish and American traditions. In "Kirsten Learns A Lesson" Kirsten has difficulty with school and meets an Indian girl named Singing Bird. In "Kirsten's Surprise" Kirsten tries to keep some of the Larsons' Swedish traditions alive by planning a secret Saint Lucia celebration with her cousins. In "Happy Birthday, Kirsten!" Kirsten does extra chores after her mom has a baby, and then gets a special birthday party. In "Kirsten Saves the Day" Kirsten finds treasure in the woods and nearly gets herself and her brother killed when she tries to bring the treasure home. In "Changes for Kirsten" Kirsten's family loses thier home to a fire and must find a way to get a new one. The Kirsten books are good. When I was younger, "Changes for Kirsten" was my favorite of Kirsten's stories. When I went back and read it again later on, as a teen, I discovered something. In the story, the Larsons lose their house--but that is because Kirsten disobeys her mother and brings an injured raccoon in the Larson's cabin, knowing full well the mischeif they are capable of. To date, I can't pinpoint which of the Kirsten books is a favorite, but I know that "Changes for Kirsten" is not one of them.
Rating:
Summary: Kirsten is a good character, but not one of the best
Review: In the Kirsten boxed set, you will read six books about Kirsten Larson, a pioneer girl growing up in 1854. In "Meet Kirsten" Kirsten and her family are coming to America. Kirsten is one of the few characters in the American Girls Collection that stays the same. All the other characters change in some way, but I did not see this in the Kirsten books. The next five books in the boxed set show how Kirsten and her family try to combine Swedish and American traditions. In "Kirsten Learns A Lesson" Kirsten has difficulty with school and meets an Indian girl named Singing Bird. In "Kirsten's Surprise" Kirsten tries to keep some of the Larsons' Swedish traditions alive by planning a secret Saint Lucia celebration with her cousins. In "Happy Birthday, Kirsten!" Kirsten does extra chores after her mom has a baby, and then gets a special birthday party. In "Kirsten Saves the Day" Kirsten finds treasure in the woods and nearly gets herself and her brother killed when she tries to bring the treasure home. In "Changes for Kirsten" Kirsten's family loses thier home to a fire and must find a way to get a new one. The Kirsten books are good. When I was younger, "Changes for Kirsten" was my favorite of Kirsten's stories. When I went back and read it again later on, as a teen, I discovered something. In the story, the Larsons lose their house--but that is because Kirsten disobeys her mother and brings an injured raccoon in the Larson's cabin, knowing full well the mischeif they are capable of. To date, I can't pinpoint which of the Kirsten books is a favorite, but I know that "Changes for Kirsten" is not one of them.
Rating: 
Summary: Kirsten; A Journey to a Special Time
Review: Joining Kirsten in her travel from Sweden to the United States and then on to the forests of Minnesota has been an enjoyable and interseting experience for both my daughter and I. The pioneer time of our country's history has always been of an interest to me as I have read of my own family's journeys from Hingham England to Massachusetts and then on to Montana during the time of the late 1600's through the early 1800's. What a rich heritage they passed on. And now, my daughter can enjoy learning about the pioneer era with a girl her own age. We have had a great deal of enjoyment reading these books together and discussing what happened to Kirsten in each one. Especially interesting and enlightening are the "Peek Into the Past" sections found at the end of each book. We have had some interesting and lively discussions about what it would be like to live during Kirsten's time. It has been very refreshing to see my daughter and her friends develop a deep interset in these books, role playing the characters, playing with the dolls, and learning about another time rather than pursuing the mindless, empty fluff of many things vying for a young girl's attention. Although some of Kirsten's experiences are a bit far-fetched (I.e. - not fearing a bear, having a pet racoon) the books' intrinsic value is not in the experiences, but rather in the history given in a light, fun way - what better way to learn than by having fun doing it.
Rating:
Summary: Kirsten; A Journey to a Special Time
Review: Joining Kirsten in her travel from Sweden to the United States and then on to the forests of Minnesota has been an enjoyable and interseting experience for both my daughter and I. The pioneer time of our country's history has always been of an interest to me as I have read of my own family's journeys from Hingham England to Massachusetts and then on to Montana during the time of the late 1600's through the early 1800's. What a rich heritage they passed on. And now, my daughter can enjoy learning about the pioneer era with a girl her own age. We have had a great deal of enjoyment reading these books together and discussing what happened to Kirsten in each one. Especially interesting and enlightening are the "Peek Into the Past" sections found at the end of each book. We have had some interesting and lively discussions about what it would be like to live during Kirsten's time. It has been very refreshing to see my daughter and her friends develop a deep interset in these books, role playing the characters, playing with the dolls, and learning about another time rather than pursuing the mindless, empty fluff of many things vying for a young girl's attention. Although some of Kirsten's experiences are a bit far-fetched (I.e. - not fearing a bear, having a pet racoon) the books' intrinsic value is not in the experiences, but rather in the history given in a light, fun way - what better way to learn than by having fun doing it.
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