Dear Pen Pal

This year, the club talks about Daddy Long-Legs while dealing with their own boarding school drama. Jess moves to the private boarding school in the same town. She's trying to acclimate into her new posh school while the other girls are trying to get used to school without their friend. Plus, their mothers have a new surprise for them. They're going to become pen pals with another mother-daughter book club in the Midwest . At first the girls are apprehensive, but as the year continues the letters flow between girls and connections are made. The third book in this warm series about friendship, family, and reading is packed with evil roommates, first boyfriends, a first kiss, a new sibling, grandmother and mother rivalry, a secret puppy, a prank war, and an unexpected trip. I wonder where high school will bring the daughters and their mothers. Reviewed by: Jennifer Rummel

This is another enjoyable book in a series of books that I have enjoyed so much. The girls in the book club are growing up and learning more about themselves and the world around them. This time they are reading books by Jean Webster. I haven't (yet) read the Webster books but my interest is now piqued. Jess is given a scholarship to the local private school where her greatest challenge is not the academics but a roommate that makes Becca Chadwick look like Miss Congeniality. Emma's relationship with Stewart grows and she finds a new friend in an unexpected place. Megan explores her relationship with her mother through a visit from her grandmother. Cassidy learns about life as the Sloane-Kincaid family grows and changes. In addition to everything that's happening in Concord, the girls are reading Daddy-Long-Legs which is told through a series of letters. To broaden the experience for the book club girls, Mrs. Hawthorne sets up a pen pal for each girl. Their pen pals are from Gopher Hole, Wyoming and each has uncanny similarities to the girls in Concord. I try (but never succeed) to read these Mother-Daughter Book Club stories slowly so that I can `hang out' with the group for just a little longer. I think that girls (and their mothers) reading these books can find a bit of themselves in each character. I look forward to the next in the series.

This is probably my favorite tween series that is out there. I absolutely adore the characters, the storylines, the setup of the entire series. It's one of the few series where I wish I could literally dive in the story and become a character. ,It combines everything that I love in a great book: a cast of characters that's totally multi-dimensional and loves to read, food, friends and fun. It's a recipe guaranteed for success, at least in my opinion. There's lots of humor in this book and I laughed out loud quite a few times. Also featured in the book are the awkward feelings that thirteen year old girls face, which I remember sadly all too well. The author does a wonderful job at portraying this without getting too sappy or uncomfortable. At the same time though, the writing is easy to read and just keeps you wanting to turn pages. I really like seeing how both the girls and their moms have changed since the beginning of the series. The mother-daughter relationships are just as important as the girls' friendship and it is interesting to see how different and unique each bond is. I was also pleased to see some Chinese culture come into play with Megan's grandmother. I will admit, I had never heard of Daddy Long Legs before reading this book but now I totally want to read it! It's always great to hear about new books and from the talk in this book, this sounds like a great children's classic that I missed out on. The FAQ sheets that are handed out at the book club meetings serve as a plus for the readers who want to learn more about the author and how they wrote the book. I'm wondering if we'll be getting a first person section from Becca in the following books. I am really impressed at how she's matured since the first book and has now become part of the gang. I'm also glad to see that the other girls do not hold grudges against her. These girls are very mature for their age and it's nice to see them act responsible. At the same time though, they still act like kids which is perfectly fine. It's such a refreshing change from books like The Clique series, where the characters there are acting like miniature wannabe adults. I cannot wait until the next book in the series comes out. Honestly this is one of those books that I cannot find a single fault in. Everything in this book is truly wonderful and readers of all ages will enjoy it and be inspired to read the books mentioned in it as well. VERY HIGHLY recommended.

I have thoroughly enjoyed reading the Mother-Daughter book club series by Heather Vogel Frederick; and the third book in the series DEAR PEN PAL is another wonderful middle-grade book. I feel as if I already know (and love) the girls in the book club, and I just really enjoy reading about their middle school experiences. In fact, I was a little sad when I finished this book because there isn't another one waiting for me. I am going to have to wait awhile for book 4 (and book 5) in the series. In DEAR PEN PAL, the girls are now in 8th grade and their last year of middle school. I love to read about middle grade girls because I think they are at such an interesting age. There are so many changes going on in their lives (as well as their bodies) during these years. I think so many young girls are starting to figure out who they really are; and I thought it was quite appropriate that the author chose to have "change" as a central theme in this novel. All of the girls experience some type of change in this book. One of the girls, Jess, ends up going to a local boarding school instead of the public middle school that all of her friends attend. Of course Jess' life has drastically changed because she is attending a new school, but she also has to deal with not seeing her friends on a daily basis and she has to learn to adjust to a difficult roommate. In addition to Jess, Cassidy has to deal with her mother's marriage as well as another huge surprise; and Megan has to handle being caught in the middle when her grandmother comes to live with her family. And finally, Emma (my favorite) not only misses her best friend Jess but finds that she is the first girl in their group to get a real boyfriend! As is the case with all of the books in the Mother-Daughter Book Club series, DEAR PEN PAL had a classic book tie-in. This time it was DADDY LONG LEGS by Jean Webster. I wasn't familiar with this book prior to reading DEAR PEN PAL, but I am totally sold on it now. It sounds fantastic, and I can't wait to read it and see the little drawings. I really appreciated how the author not only had the girls read this book for their book club, but she also incorporated some of the characters' actions and story lines into the girls' 8th grade lives. Another part of this book that I really liked was how the girls became pen pals with another mother-daughter book club in Wyoming. Since this was the mothers' idea, some of the girls weren't entirely sure that they wanted to hand-write letters to total strangers. I loved how the author not only tied in letter writing to the book DADDY LONG LEGS, but she also pointed out how valuable letter writing can be and why we shouldn't stop just because we have modern (and instantaneous) technology. Pen pals almost seem to be a thing of the past, and I think that's kind of sad. It's difficult for me to express why I love these books so much (because there are so many reasons), but I think the main one is because of the characters. Th

I just love this series! Its a great Middle School book and a great one for both mother and daughter to enjoy together!. My daughter and I both read them and then discussd the book and the relationships. I love the first two books and this one too! I look forward more in this series, or at least from this writer! Our favorite parts of the books is how they interweaved a classic book. The first book made us want to read Little Women as soon as we finished!