I Read: Ellen Tebbits

Ellen Tebbits by Beverly Cleary

Beverly Cleary died recently, and in her honour, I am going to reread a ton of the Cleary classics that I read in childhood. I'm sad that she's passed, even knowing that she hasn't written in quite a long time because it's always sad when a wonderful writer leaves the world. I spent so much time in my childhood reading her novels and I can't imagine that I would be the reader or the writer, that I am without having read her work. 

Ellen Tebbits is one of the almost stand-alone novels Cleary wrote, though there is an appearance by Otis Spofford, the main character of his self-titled novel (that I"ll be reading later.)  I remember the name Ellen Tebbits being amusing as a child, but I don't really remember this book as much as the very much more well-known Henry Huggins or Ramona Quimby.  That's likely because Ellen isn't featured in a series of books the way Henry and Ramona were. It doesn't make this book any less enjoyable, nor does it mean that Ellen isn't just as engaging and inquisitive as a character. 

Cleary's style is clear in nearly everything she writes and Ellen Tebbits is no departure from that. The story is amusing, even as an adult, and would convey a thoughtful message or two to a precocious child. 

#33-2021