Fictional families I wouldn't mind having as neighbors

One of the things that makes for me a favorite book or book series is the characters: characters who are well developed, believable, and well, just plain likable. I have stopped reading certain series because the dialog and plot weren't enough to overcome the fact that the main protagonist was someone I found myself wishing to step into the pages of their story just so I could slap them.

And one of the reasons I read more children's and young adult fiction than I do "adult" fiction is because the characters are far more likable (not to mention more interesting, smarter, and possessing a tougher moral fiber.) They are far from perfect, but that is okay, they are -- can I say it again? -- very likable!  I wouldn't mind having them as neighbors. In fact, I'd rather like it.

Madeleine L'Engle created many many wonderful characters during her writing career, and she wrote about two families who I'd like to sit on the front porch with or borrow cups of sugar and flour from -- the Murry family from The Time Quintet, as I've previously written about, and the Austin family.

Unlike the time-and-space traveling Murrys, the Austins stayed within their own solar system and time period. They did indulge in a bit in mystery (The Young Unicorns) and international intrigue (Troubling a Star), but for the most part just dealt with every day life with some serious aplomb. Whether dealing with those more tangible dangers or adjusting to welcoming a selfish and spoiled orphan into their home (Meet the Austins), a first love (The Moon By Night), or the death of a loved one (A Ring of Endless Light) -- the love of the Austin family is very real and powerful. The siblings (John, Vicky, Suzy and Rob) fight, are sometimes jealous of one another (particularly Vicky, from whose viewpoint most of the series reads, being jealous of her younger prettier sister Suzy), and each have their own strengths and weaknesses. However they are quick to come to one another's aid, quick to put aside their differences and appreciate one another's strengths.

My favorite of the Austin books is, hands down, A Ring of Endless Light, which takes place the summer Vicky is fifteen and her grandfather is dying. It is the summer Vicky is experiencing her greatest personal growth and self discovery. She is trying to understand her relationships with her family and friends (including three very different boys who are all rather fond of her), discovering her talents old and new, and the meaning of life itself when the deaths of a family friend, a small child, and a baby dolphin overshadow her grandfather's own physical and mental decline. The conversations she has with her grandfather during this time would tug at the toughest of heartstrings and are of an intellectual and theological depth that few adults, let alone children, ever engage in. These conversations were sadly left out of the 2003 TV movie adaptation in lieu of a rather stock save-the-dolphins story which was not in the novel -- dolphins do figure prominently in the novel, but in a quite different, and I think far more satisfying fashion.

A Ring of Endless Light also introduced me to seventeenth century poet Henry Vaughan. I don't "get" much poetry, but his poems from which the title is drawn touched me enough that I searched for his work at a used book store after reading this novel.


------------------------

The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy, by Jeanne Birdsall is the first of a proposed five book series about a tight knit family one cannot help but to love. Rosalind (12), Skye (11), Jane (10) and Batty (4) live with their widowed father (their mother died of cancer shortly before Batty was born.) The first book tells the tale of their summer vacation and the friends they make. Much lighter in tone than L'Engle's books but no less enjoyable. The tale is nostalgic without ever becoming corny or syrupy. Witty and charming, this is a wonderful summer read - and not just for children.

I just finished reading the first sequel, The Penderwicks on Gardam Street, and found it even more enjoyable. Perhaps this is because I allowed two years to pass between reading the two tales and I'd forgotten how wonderful this family is. This second tale of the Penderwick sisters takes place during the school following their summer vacation, but it opens with a prologue four years earlier, when Batty is newly born, Rosalind is but eight, and their mother is at the hospital seemingly responding well to her cancer treatment. But it is there that she hands a letter in a blue envelope to her sister with instructions to give it to her husband "in three or four years." Unbeknownst to her mother and aunt, Rosalind witnesses the exchange but does not understand it, and soon forgets it after the following day when her mother takes a turn for the worse.

Fast forward four years. Aunt Claire has come for a visit with non-birthday and non-holiday presents for the children, and Rosalind knows something isn't quite right. When her aunt hands Daddy a blue envelope, Rosalind remembers that night at the hospital and is afraid without knowing why. The letter contains instructions from the children's mother, instructing their shy father to start dating again. He's no more keen on this plan than the children are, but they do want to respect the last wishes. Aunt Claire even has the first date all lined up. Rosalind overhears her father, who occasionally throws out random phrases in Latin, describe the date to Claire as "Cruciatus". Rosy looks it up and is horrified to learn the word means "torture". She calls an emergency council with her sisters and presents them with the "Save Daddy Plan". They will try to arrange dates for their father (without him knowing what they are doing, of course), dates which will be decidedly not enjoyable, whereupon he can say he honestly tried to fulfill his wife's wishes, and then give up the crazy dating scheme so the children don't wind up with a horrible step mother, which Rosy convinces her sisters is exactly what is going to happen.

It's not the only subterfuge going on. Temperamental Skye and dreamy Jane swap homework assignments with very humorous results as they battle their rival soccer team. Batty and family dog Hound begin spying on their new next door neighbors, single mother Iantha and her toddler Ben. When she befriends them, Batty and Ben become the neighborhood's protectors from the mysterious "Bug Man" whom the older sisters are convinced is imaginary. Neighbor Tommy only talks to adoring Syke in vain attempts to find out if Rosy likes him as much as he likes her. Daddy meets someone on his own but always has an excuse why he can't  introduce her to the family.

One nice thing about living next door to the Penderwicks would be that Iantha would by default be my neighbor as well. With great wisdom and kindness she recognizes the fears and insecurities of each of the girls and knows how to draw them out the best in each of them. If you think you've figured out how she fits into the lives of the Penderwicks by tale's end, you're probably right, but I won't deliberately give any spoilers.

I am looking forward to reading The Penderwicks at Point Mouette, and the two as yet unwritten novels completing the series.

Do any of my readers have their own favorite fictional families they'd like to share?

-------------------------------------------

A Ring of Endless Light: The Austin Family Chronicles, Book 4

The Penderwicks on Gardam Street

"The Herbivore" from Organic Pizza Company

I discovered Organic Pizza Company a month ago, wandering about killing time while waiting for a bus. The Highlands store (there is another location downtown) doesn't face the street, so had I not been wandering I might never have known it was there. I had neither the time nor the money to eat there that day, but I took a look at the menu and knew an organic pizza was in my future. One's curiosity cannot helped but be piqued by titles such as "the Norwegian" (salmon), "the Donald" (duck), "The Tandoori" (Indian), and "The Wild West" (buffalo) -- just to name a few. There is a "design your own" option starting with a base price and adding ingredients to your heart's content. Crust can be organic white, organic whole wheat, or gluten free.  You can order "Take and Bake", or have it cooked for you. Delivery is offered within a two mile radius (upon inquiry I discovered I am outside their boundaries by about ten blocks, but was assured I could call any time and if they weren't too busy, they could deliver.)

As the Highlands store is located but a block from Sunflower Market, I decided that my next grocery run would be followed by a pizza run. That opportunity arose last Saturday. I'd just carried out two (reusable organic cotton) bagsful of (mostly organic) vittles, and was hungry for something healthy.

I selected "The Herbivore" which consists of roasted red and yellow peppers, mushrooms, arugula, and sun dried tomatoes atop Gorgonzola cheese with Alfredo sauce, topped off with rosemary. Purely out of curiosity, I asked for it on a gluten free crust.

Sound tasty? Oh, yeah. I would have liked a few more vegetables, but the toppings were by no means skimpy. The gluten free crust was thin and crispy, which I prefer over thick and doughy any day. All the ingredients tasted fresh, and there wasn't that extra half cup of grease aftertaste that so many pizzas have. Salads are available as well, in most of the same varieties as the pizzas, and my next visit will probably include a salad.

One last note. I don't know if it was something Organic Pizza Company did themselves, or a combined offering of the block of businesses in that building, but while I was chatting on the phone outside while my pizza was being prepared, I noticed a dual dog dish on the sidewalk, one side filled with doggie biscuits, the other with fresh water. So if you happen to be walking Rover in the Highlands area, and you pass by Sunflower Farmers Market, head a block in an easterly direction and get a treat for both you and your canine companion. Tell them Geoffrey sent you. They'll have no idea who you're talking about, but you'll get a great tasting pizza.



http://organicpizzacompany.net/our-locations/
http://www.sunflowermarkets.com/Default.aspx http://organicpizzacompany.net/menu/#signature-pizzas