Finding Walter

The Mennyms have turned this reader into a fan of doll books which will delight readers who have yet to convert. When the family is forced to move back to grandma's house in the country (so Dad can recuperate from his heart attack) Emily and Rose are distracted by a curious, neglected doll house in the attic which hasn't been touched since Aunt Alice played with it many years ago. Emily is immediately captivated and able to communicate with the dolls through thoughts and dreams. Rose, who is very angry about their recent move and jealous of her sister's attention to the dolls, is more difficult to win over. Their story of sibling discord is one children will relate to but the dolls' story is the dominant one. The author skillfully creates exciting and dramatic scenes (when the dolls plan, with the help of the family dog, to search outside for their lost baby brother Walter and when they become stranded outside in the woods in the midst of a grassfire). She handles the touching scenes (like when they get refurbished at the doll maker's office) just as well. The dolls' characters are unique and humorously drawn (William speaks like a bible-thumping minister because he picked up the lingo when he once traveled to church in Aunt Alice's dress pocket.) The two plots are seamlessly woven together in a timeless but old-fashioned atmosphere and unfurl themselves at just the right pace. This is funny, exciting, sweet, and has a very satisfying ending.

A charming and delightful story for anyone who knows dolls come alive when people are not around. When Emily and Rose begin to play with their aunt's long abandoned doll house, the doll family who live there discover that their baby, Walter, is missing. The doll family's problem nicely mirrors the difficulties the sisters' family face without being too heavy handed. By sending the girls mental images, the dolls are able to communitcate their need to find Walter and enlist the help of the girls. Rose's anger and the fighting between the sisters are well drawn, and are wonderfully commented upon and analyzed by the warm, old-fashioned dolls. Emily is convinced that reuniting the doll family will ease her own family's transition into a new phase of their lives, and it gently does. A must read for doll lovers of all ages.