Changes for Samantha, A Winter Story, 1904, Book Six (6), American Girl Collection

by Valerie Tripp

Book Overview

For more than 15 years, The American Girls Collection has captivated readers with its tales of heart, hope and history. Millions of girls have fallen in love with the series' strong, appealing... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0937295477
• Release Date: September 1988
• Publisher: American Girl
• Length: 88 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.5" x 0.3" x 6.1"

Customer Reviews

great book!

i got this book from the library. it was a great book,but the ending was even better,i asked my mom to get it for me becuse i liked it so much. i think YOU should get this.

Excellent book

Ten-year-old Samantha Parkington, who is living in New York City with her Aunt Cornelia and Uncle Gard, learns that her best friend Nellie and Nellie's sisters, Bridget and Jenny, are living an an orphanage. Samantha secretly goes to visit her and finds out that Nellie and her sisters are about to be seperated. So Samantha hides them in her house. But soon the grumpy maid, Gertrude, finds out that Samantha is hiding them. What will Uncle Gard and Aunt Cornelia decide to do with Nellie and her sisters? Read this book and find out!

Samantha's saga closes with a bang

Rounding out the Samantha series, our young protagonist now heads off to New York to live with her newly married Uncle Gard and Aunt Cornelia. In contrast to the staid and demure life she knew with Gradmary, turn of the century New York City is bustling with energy, activty....and injustice. Samantha discovers her old friend Nellie is also in the area, but fell on harder times when her uncle turned out to be abusive, and the best the equally impoverished woman downstairs could do was to take Nellie and sibblings to the local orphanage. Even if she personally liked them, this woman also realized the times they all lived in did not provide the means for reasonable support options. Decidely more sober, coiffed, and put together than Miss Hannigan of Annie fame, the directress Miss Frouchy has simmilary warped social betterment ideas. Reinforcing the Victorian immutability of economic class and punnitative 'stain' of institutionalization, Nellie's hair is drab and she wears an equally unbecoming sack (which appears to be constructed of burlap). Yet, this same social structure can be easily altered as demonstrated by Aunt Cornelia and Uncle Gard's adoption of Nellie and her sisters into their own homes---not as servants, but offspring. Because adoption of older children (from any social class, let alone low-income) was especially radical in the Victorian era, and still today (where infants are prefered)the story is a bit difficult to believe at this point, but the charming illustrations manage to convey friendship and loyalty throughout.

A Real Heart-Pumper

CHANGES FOR SAMANTHA is about a 10-year-old girl who lives in New York. The year is 1904 and she lives with her aunt and uncle. Her best friend's parents just died, so her best friend, Nellie, is going to stay with her uncle in New York. Samantha gets a letter from Nellie, who promises to come and visit her. The only problem is that Nellie's uncle mistreats her and puts her and her two sisters in a room with no food, water or blankets. A woman who lives below comes and finds them all cold and hungry. Since she has 7 children, she puts Nellie and her sisters in an orphanage. Samantha gets really worried and she tries to figure out where her best friend is. The lady tells Samantha where the orphanage is and Samantha tells her aunt.I think this book is really interesting and is the best one in the Samantha series because Samantha goes through a lot of adventures to find her best friend, Nellie. It's the only one that got my heart really pumping as I read to figure out what happens next.

Another great book

This is another in the American Girls Short Stories series about Samantha Parkington, a nine-year-old orphan girl living in the America of 1904. In this book, Samantha is appalled when she learns that the parents of her friend Nellie have died of influenza, and now she and her sisters are in an orphanage. Nellie isn't too unhappy, as she can stay together with her sisters, but when Nellie is scheduled to ride an Orphan Train out West, Samantha must take action.The final chapter of this book contains a highly informative chapter on life in 1904 America. This is another excellent American Girls book. This book certainly shows the seamier side of the "good old days." In this book, the treatment of orphans is covered. My daughter and I recommend this book very highly.