The Doll Book of the Month Club Twofer! : Miss Happiness and Miss Flower, and Little Plum

 I'm making up for missing last month's Doll Book of the Month Club by giving you TWO books this month. They are "Miss Happiness and Miss Flower", and it's sequel, "Little Plum", by Rumer Godden.

  Ivy always had a special love for Rumer Godden's book, "The Story of Holly and Ivy". (You can read my review of it HERE.) So we looked for other books written by Rumer Godden. We came across these two at a library sale or thrift store I think, or maybe one of each. I read the first one at least to Ivy, and we thought it was okay, good, but not "The Story of Holly and Ivy" good. I don't think we ever read the second one though. So I have read it now. But let's start with the first one.

  I have seen this book described as ' a children's book for adults', in that, adults can enjoy it too. Miss Happiness and Miss Flower are two Japanese dolls. 

They have been sent to a little girl named Nona, who has been sent from her home in India to live with her aunt and uncle and cousins, (including Belinda, who is a year younger than Nona), in England. 

She feels out of place, so she feels sorry for the dolls, being so far away from home. As she and her cousins make a Japanese house and accessories for the dolls, Nona begins to feel more at home too.

   

Belinda is a crabby character who makes life hard for Nona, but that gets straightened out as well. And throughout it all, we get to hear what Miss Happiness and Miss Flower are thinking, for they can hear each other, but, of course, can't be heard by humans. 

  It's a sweet story, and there are details for how to build the Japanese house in the early editions of the book, that I think are left out in later ones. And by the end of the book, there is another Japanese doll in the dollhouse.

 

  The book gets some complaints these days for not being  politically correct in some of it's terms and stereotypes, but it means well. I think it's still readable these days, and those things can be discussed with the child at the time.    

  "Little Plum" is a Japanese doll too, but she doesn't belong to Nona, or her cousin Belinda.

In fact, there isn't nearly as much of Miss H and Miss F, or their thoughts, or even Nona, in this book.  This book centers around Belinda, and her war with the new girl next door. 

  The new girl is named Gem Tiffany Jones. Okay. Let's forgive Rumer Godden for that one. Belinda and Gem can't seem to get along. What is worse for Belinda is, Gem has a Japanese doll too, but she doesn't play with hers. Day after day the doll sits alone and forlorn in Gem's bedroom window. This riles Belinda no end, and she decides the doll needs some things, and Gem needs scolded. Add into the mix that Belinda decides to hand deliver the items to Gem's bedroom window sill via tree, not only because she has been told by Gem's snooty aunt not to come to their house. (Belinda is 'too rough' to be allowed to play with Gem.) It's made clear that no child except Belinda would or should even think of doing such a thing. Good save Rumer.

  The gifts Belinda begs Nona to make for Gem's doll, whom they name "Little Plum", sound wonderful. The fate of the gifts, well...And do Gem and Belinda, who at one point beat the tar out of each other, ever become friends? Does Little Plum ever get to be played with? You'll have to find out for yourselves. 

  I enjoyed this book actually. It's not as, shall we say, dry, as the other one. The other one is good though. I don't think you necessarily have to read the first one to enjoy the second one, but I think you'll want to.