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Happy Birthday, Felicity! (American Girl: Felicity #4) by Valerie Tripp

 

Summary (from the publisher): Spring brings Felicity's tenth birthday, and a visit from her grandfather. He arrives with a precious gift for Felicity—a guitar that belonged to her grandmother. Felicity is so enchanted with the guitar that she disobeys her mother by taking it out of the house to show her friend Elizabeth and Elizabeth's sister, Annabelle. Her parents and Grandfather are angry when they learn what she's done. They refuse to believe a message Felicity has overheard that means danger for the colonists. Felicity risks more of her parents' anger when she decides she must alert the colonists herself!

Review: Felicity is so excited that her grandfather has come to visit right before her tenth birthday and brought her a guitar that belonged to her grandmother. However, she quickly gets in trouble when she defies her mother by taking the guitar out of the house without permission, leading to them not believing Felicity when she tells them she overheard something of grave importance that means potential danger to the colonists of Williamsburg. Undeterred, Felicity decides the matter is too important and she must act, even if she risks upsetting her parents even more. 

 I loved that this book is set in springtime, and we get to meet Felicity's grandfather. The unrest between the colonists and British rule continues to rise in prominence in this novel. I re-read this book with my daughters and my younger daughter (five) was scared of the scene where Felicity sneaks out of the house to try to raise the alarm about the raid on the Williamsburg magazine. I will say, it was crazy to me to imagine a ten-year-old sneaking out of the house for such a purpose! While I understand Felicity's presence in the scene allowed a real historical event to be described and explored, Felicity continues to be the most defiant AMerican Girl, who is always risking her own safety in pursuit of her own goals. 

My daughters and I particularly enjoyed the focus of the "Looking Back" section at the conclusion of the book in this novel. It focused on childhood in the colonies, including what babies and children would have worn, toys they would have had, and their education. My girls were particularly struck by learning that all children, including boys, wore dresses as babies and toddlers before boys were "breeched." They were also upset to learn about the rate of infant and childhood mortality during the time period before modern medicine. I love that these books help children learn and explore history in a fun and entertaining way. 

Stars: 4

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