The Bagthorpe Saga: Ordinary Jack

One of my all-time favorites from childhood, and I was pleasantly surprised to find it holds up just as well on a re-read as an adult. Maybe better; I didn't get all the humor and wit at age ten! The lone average child in an extremely eccentric family, Jack feels left out and begins a campaign to be special too. Highly recommended!

It's been a long time since I read a children's book that really knocked my socks off. I had heard in various children's book circles about the mysterious Bagthorpe saga. A series of stories in which a single ordinary boy must learn to live with his genius/insane family. What I had heard, however, was not exactly conclusive. For all I knew, these books could be good or they could be overrated justly forgotten tripe of the lowest order. Out of the merest curiosity (and because I could locate a copy in my library) I found an original 1977 edition of the book, complete with illustrator Trina Schart Hyman's fabulous cover in which every single Bagthorpe member is rendered in the flesh. What I discovered will now eat up hours and hours of my spare time as I systematically track down each and every Bagthorpe edition in the series available to me. This is an amazing children's experience that must be read to be believed. Jack is just your average kid. In any other family, this would be a good thing. In Jack's family, it's just short of catastrophe. For you see, in the clan of the Bagthorpes, everyone's a genius. Jack's brother William has a ham radio, plays darts, enjoys the bongos, and often goes about searching for new exciting talents to add to his bag of tricks (or, as they say, strings to their bows). Rosie, Jack's younger sister, is an accomplished portrait painter and recently beat Jack at swimming. Living in such a conceited family might push anyone over the edge, but fortunately Jack has one person he can count on. His Uncle Parker married into the family and, though extraordinary in his own ways, he's just as normal as his nephew. Together, the two plan to make Jack into the kind of guy his siblings see as an equal. They're going to make him into a prophet. This may mean they'll have to employ dowsing rods, crystal balls, purple suits, bear costumes, and tarot cards, but in the end it'll all be worth it. So many in-jokes, clever puns, and smart plot twists pop up in this book that you'll wonder how long these characters were wandering around author Helen Cresswell's head before she committed them to paper. Adults reading this book will recognize characters they've met in real life while children will read about them and find themselves wishing they belonged to families just this crazy. There's more than a little "Cheaper By the Dozen" in this book, except that each character you meet in "Ordinary Jack" comes with their own very particular personality. I can even pinpoint the moment I feel head over heels in love with the book. After a particularly disastrous birthday celebration that ends in the dining room catching on fire, Uncle Parker laments that, for him, the real loss of the evening was that he won't be able to get the little mottos out of the crackers now. Americans, unfamiliar with crackers, may need a bit of explanation about this Britishism. Those who know what they are, however, will be delighted by Uncl

This book is usually billed as a children's book. I'm pretty sure that's the reason it's out of print. It's an *excellent* book, one of the best I have ever read. The characters come vividly alive, driving the storyline. The plot is deeply involved, yet easy enough to follow. The prose is crisp and colorful and draws the reader into the story. The only problem is, the vocabulary is a little more advanced than a lot of children these days can comfortably handle. If the book were marketed for adults, it would be a bigger hit. This is not to say that children cannot read this book. They can, if they're avid readers with a good grasp on vocabulary. I could have read it by sixth grade or so -- about the same time I was ready to read Dickens and Shakespeare. I didn't happen to run into it until somewhat later, however, and I can confirm that it's a great book for adults. This book will exceed your expectations and capture your imagination. You'll read it in notime flat, because you won't put it down for mundane things like meals. The second book, Absolute Zero, is just as good. The others in the series are also not bad, though the first two are easily the best. This is the one to get first.

How COULD they have stop printing these books? I have loved the Bagthorpes since I first got Ordinary Jack as a kid and wanted to get the Bagthorpe series for my niece and friends who are having children. Even though I was labeled "gifted" as a child, Jack is readily identifiable and the books are written with such a gentle humor that they are well worth fighting for.Really, are we supposed to let "Sweet Valley High" set the tone for our pre-adolescents?