A Gift from the Lonely Doll

Rating:
Summary: a lovely Christmas gift, but...
Review: Dare Wright's classic "Lonely Doll" series books are of their time--Mr. Bear is very much in charge, and Edith questions her own opinions and rights--but they are classic nonetheless. Wright's photography, as always, complements the story beautifully, and perhaps especially so in "A Gift from the Lonely Doll." This story ought to be more well-known and more of a Christmas classic than it is. Edith wants to make something special for Mr. Bear. When she gives it to him, his reaction is unexpected. Still, it sets into motion her willingness to alter the gift to suit his expectations--and to subsequently be left with extra gifts to give! Charming.

Rating:
Summary: A memory-builder
Review: Dare Wright's classic "Lonely Doll" series books are of their time--Mr. Bear is very much in charge, and Edith questions her own opinions and rights--but they are classic nonetheless. Wright's photography, as always, complements the story beautifully, and perhaps especially so in "A Gift from the Lonely Doll." This story ought to be more well-known and more of a Christmas classic than it is. Edith wants to make something special for Mr. Bear. When she gives it to him, his reaction is unexpected. Still, it sets into motion her willingness to alter the gift to suit his expectations--and to subsequently be left with extra gifts to give! Charming.

Rating:
Summary: The only books from my childhood that still disturb me.
Review: I read these Edith books as a child (probably 3-5 years old), and in the twenty years that have passed I am still feeling disturbed by them, DESPITE the fact that I have NOT reread the books as an adult. I have had images of the stiff photograph-illustrations of the doll (Edith), in her stiff poses and eery looks. Even so, for the past 20 years I couldn't pinpoint any specific reason for why I felt such an undercurrent in these books. I devoured books of all types as a child and these are the only books/series that gave me nightmares. Just last week I found out that my sister-in-law had also read the Edith books as a child and had a similar experience; she then offered a partial "explanation": she said she recently read an article on the author that claimed the author was physically abused. I had never known that until last week, and I do not know if her information on the abuse is accurate, but now at least my experience makes sense to me. I am NOT trying to bad-mouth the author, and I am NOT saying that just because someone is abused that we shouldn't read their books. I only want to give parents a heartfelt caution and say that more than one child has been seriously disturbed by these books in a way that no other books have impacted them. Please do not think that I am just your run-of-the-mill book-banning, over-sensitive reader. As a child, these books really disturbed me; I am frankly surprised they're being reprinted.



Rating:
Summary: a lovely Christmas gift, but...
Review: Like all Lonely Doll books, this story is completely charming and a wonderful Christmas gift for a teddy-loving child. But be warned, the paperback copy I purchased was disappointing because all the photographs were really quite blurry. That is why my rating was only 3 stars though Edith and the bears personally deserve more!