| Title | : | Betsy in Spite of Herself (Betsy-Tacy, #6) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 352 |
| Publication | : | First published June 28, 1946 |
Then Betsy's old friend Tib Muller invites her to spend Christmas in Milwaukee. And it's there that plain old Betsy begins her transformation into the dramatic and mysterious Betsye. With her new identity, she should be able to convince Phil she is special. The trouble is, Betsye can't help being Betsy in spite of herself - but as she discovers, that's even better.
Betsy in Spite of Herself (Betsy-Tacy, #6) Reviews
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Oh, what a friend I've found in Betsy... and how dearly I love escaping to Deep Valley (especially now!) These books are such a comfort, with all the warmth and coziness of Betsy's happy, close-knit family and her cheerful Crowd of dear friends. Much is charmingly old-fashioned and yet, at heart, Betsy's journey is so deeply honest, it rings so true even today. Put aside the crank-start automobiles and pompadours and there's so much that's contemporary here. I think most teen girls even in recent decades could relate to Betsy's attempts to fine-tune who she thinks she ought to be to impress the people she thinks she ought to impress... though perhaps today that is a bit more complicated than changing the color of your hair ribbons and walking with a dramatic stoop like Ethyl Barrymore -- Betsy even dares to begin signing her name "Betsye" oh my! ;-) Betsy longs to be dramatic and mysterious and impress dashing Phil Brandish with his posh manners and his gorgeous car. Personally, I wasn't as enamored with Phil as Betsye was, and, like her dear old chums in the Crowd, I was eager for her to get back to being just Betsy. So, I didn't enjoy all of this *quite* as much as
Heaven to Betsy. That said, I really have absolutely nothing negative to say about this book. It is wonderful and I still love it five stars worth. Especially charming are the chapters when Betsy goes to visit Tib in Milwaukee. I loved the German Christmas celebrations! So sweet that the Rays let Betsy go to Milwaukee over the holidays, when they are so close-knit -- and so sweet that Betsy missed them in spite of her wonderful new adventures. Betsy's family is wonderful. They are one my favorite families in children's literature. It’s funny that I used to think the parents had no distinct personality in the first few Betsy-Tacy books because now I love Mama and Papa Ray! I love how Mama and little Margaret snuggle up in Betsy's or Julia's room to hear about the girls' parties, and how all the Crowd so loves the family they congregate at the Ray's house on Sunday afternoons. How I wish I had Mr Ray to make me some onion sandwiches or put on a pot of coffee when I get overwhelmed these days! I love seeing how Julia and Betsy's relationship has evolved from the somewhat antagonistic big-sister/little-sister squabbles of the first few books and how close they are now. The sense of poignancy at Julia's graduation just squeezed my heart. I love that these books have such wonderful "morals" without being the least bit preachy. Betsy is so organic... she stumbles but always finds her footing. I'm so glad Betsy stayed Betsy, in spite of herself and look forward to her future adventures! ;-)
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I think I have firmly established my friendship with Betsy Ray at this point. I love her. I love her family. And I need more Joe Willard in my life. When will I get more Joe???!?
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This is a cute little story, and part of a series about the life of a high school girl around 1908. Published in 1946, it arrived in my childhood home in the 1970’s. A relative gave it to my sister, then I thought I wanted to read it. Flash forward to now, and it fulfills the reading challenge prompt of the book that has been on your TBR the longest.
While the main character does “enjoy her freedom” when she breaks up with her boyfriend, she also shares many cringey thoughts, like the understanding that girls must subordinate their conversational interests to those of boys. Also, the young teacher dating a student…NO.
Times have changed, and I realize that. The ultimate message was that girls should be true to themselves, not change for boys. That’s a good message, but I wouldn’t recommend this book for today’s girls. The writing and grammar were excellent. I loved the vocabulary and the history and culture that were woven into the story. -
Unlike
Heaven to Betsy, I liked this book immediately. I suppose I was already used to the high school aged Betsy. I am eager to read the rest of
Maud Hart Lovelace's books. Heaven did grow on me, but this book felt cozy to me almost as much as did the first four books in the series, and I liked it almost as much as the first four books.
Not one false note! There isn’t anything that rings false in any of these Betsy-Tacy books. This book, along with all the others in this series, is so well written; the descriptions are so vivid. I also liked all the German words included in this story.
These books make me way too hungry though; the food is plentiful and always sounds so delicious, even the stuff I would never eat and the stuff I wouldn’t even like and never would have liked.
I really enjoyed Betsy’s trip to see Tib and hearing about Julia’s trip to see opera, I would have appreciated more of Tacy but liked what was included, and I love Joe. I can tell I’m going to be delighted with Joe.
I found it interesting that the kids have to buy their schoolbooks for public school!!! I was interested in so much about how life was then. This is wonderful historical fiction.
I don’t like the illustrations that much; the teenagers look like adults in some of them and, even when they look their age, they’re not my favorite, but having illustrations did add to the book.
I’d been so sure I’d read Heaven to Betsy and this book when I was about ten, thinking they were the only two Betsy books, and not enjoying them enough to read them more than once, but I didn’t remember anything as I was reading and that isn’t typical for me, so now I’m not certain. Thanks to Goodreads friends, I’m now thoroughly enjoying this series. I’ve reserved
Betsy Was a Junior at the library and intend to get to all the books by the end of 2010, including hopefully a biography of the author. -
My least favorite of the series, even though I adore the Christmas in Milwaukee part. I find the whole Phil Brandish episode too heavy-handed.
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Second reading, October 2022:
Still one of my very favorite books in the Betsy-Tacy series! Chapter after chapter of humor, fun, warmth, and charm. I love it.
January 2021:
It took me two months of fits and starts to read
Heaven to Betsy, and two days to read this sixth book in the series, Betsy in Spite of Herself. This one was so good! Pure delight from start to finish, with all the family, friendship, humor, and amusing eventfulness I loved in the early Betsy-Tacy books. I couldn't put it down and now I can't wait to start reading the next book. -
Betsy Ray enters "The Winding Hall of Fate" in this sixth installment of Maud Hart Lovelace's Betsy~Tacy series, which opens just as she is about to become a sophomore at Deep Valley High School. As fun-loving and popular as ever, she is soon caught up in an eventful new year, replete with many firsts: dining at the fancy Moorish Café for her parents' wedding anniversary, visiting Tib in Milwaukee for Christmas, and spending time with wealthy newcomer Philip Brandish. As she struggles to reconcile her desire to be someone else - the mysterious "Betsye" - and her need to just be herself, Betsy eventually comes to see the wisdom of Shakespeare's immortal words, "To thine own self be true."
I was a little surprised at how thoroughly I enjoyed Betsy In Spite of Herself, after my somewhat ambiguous feelings regarding the previous installment. Once again, Betsy sells herself short, whilst in pursuit of a boy, and although she does not sacrifice her writing this time around (thank goodness!), her time with Tacy and the rest of "The Crowd" suffers. But although there is a pronounced similarity in theme between this, and her freshman experiences in Heaven to Betsy, somehow I found that my reaction here was one of sympathy with Betsy, rather than annoyance.
I too experienced that longing to be someone else, as a teenager, and this sense of fellow-feeling undoubtedly made me more tolerant: yes, Betsy's a bit of an idiot about Phil and his famous red auto, but weren't we all rather foolish, at that age? Also, the shock of the new boy-crazy Betsy (so prevalent in
Heaven to Betsy) had worn off by this point, and I was no longer mourning the passing of the little girl depicted in earlier books, from
Betsy-Tacy to
Betsy and Tacy Go Downtown, or longing for Lois Lenski's illustrations. In fact, I discovered that I enjoyed Vera Neville's pretty drawings immensely, and although I will probably always prefer Lenski as an artist, can see that her style would not have suited Betsy's older years.
As for the story itself, it was fun and refreshing, with enough real human emotion and drama to make it "real," without being too serious. I really enjoyed reading about Betsy' trip to Milwaukee, with all the German Christmas traditions, the history of the German immigrants to that part of the world, and the many phrases in German (which I am able read). And of course, like Betsy, I was thrilled at the news that Tib might be returning to Deep Valley - I shall hope to see her in Betsy Was a Junior! I also like that Betsy really made an effort in the essay-writing contest this time, and appreciated the added insight given into Joe Willard's character.
All in all, an immensely entertaining installment in the series, one that has me eager to continue! -
This book, which recounts Betsy's sophomore year in high school really stands out for two things: the absolutely magical visit to Milwaukee to visit Tib at Christmas, and Betsy's attempts to change herself into someone more 'dramatic' and 'mysterious' who could attract a rich guy like Phil Brandish. All of Betsy's friends, and certainly the reader, know that Betsy is most appealing when she is just being her natural, true self. But then these books are about adolescence, and the sometimes tough experience of figuring out who you are, and it is entirely natural that someone with an imagination like Betsy's ends up experimenting. One of the (many) things that I love about this series are the 'life lessons' (still relevant to middle-aged readers) that MHL imparts with such grace. Betsy 'likes' Phil for all of the wrong reasons, and over times she realises - with no one else's intervention - that he is not the right person for her. He does not make her happy, and he does not bring out the best in her - or even recognise it when he sees it.
I probably didn't consider the parents much when I first read this series, but I'm really struck as I reread it about how wonderful they are. Letting Betsy go to Milwaukee for Christmas, when they are such a tight knit family, was a typically generous gesture. I also admire the way they let Betsy figure out her various follies by herself, although Mr. Ray is not adverse to the judicious comment or tease. Betsy leads a charmed life, and that is part of the appeal of these happy books, but she is definitely not perfect - and her flaws and mistakes are truly the points of identification and empathy. -
Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Betsy is a sophomore in high school. I love her friendship with Tacy and how it has developed. As they have gotten older their differences are more and more pronounced, but their care and love for each other is so great. I love Mr Ray and the rest of the Ray family, but especially Mr. Ray. He just warms my heart. Phil, I could have done without Phil and his pretentious ways, but that storyline was important for Betsy to recognize and love qualities in herself that others already love. And Joe, let's not forget Joe! I can't wait for more Joe on the pages!!!
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8/2015 I came to this book for comfort but found a mirror instead.
9/2012 Oh, Betsye! Sophomore year, Betsy learns a lot about being true to herself. There are tantalizing glimpses of Joe Willard here, and this time through the whole Grand Opera bit made me cry. But now I have to read
Betsy Was a Junior and that's the hardest one for me.
12/2009 Betsy is a sophomore here, and though she learned some important lessons her freshman year, she is certainly not finished tripping herself up. She gets an opportunity, about half-way through the book, to spend Christmas in Milwaukee with Tib. She chooses to use this time to re-invent herself, but we as readers are privileged to be immersed in the uniquely German holiday customs of the early part of the last century. It's a brilliant bit of writing, and never fails to transport me utterly. Again, I never noticed until I was grown what an incredible writer Lovelace is. She captures adolescence so perfectly! -
This book is just so amazing! The main theme is 'to thine ownself be true.' Well, Betsy really needs to learn this lesson, as she starts out this book deciding to be a 'new and improved Betsy.' Or should I say Betsye? Anyway, she puts on new clothes, new perfume, and a new personality ... and goes out to catch a new boy! And she gets him ... though, of course, not as Betsy ... as 'Betsye.' xD
Here we have more hard lessons and more hilarious situations and more cuteness. Honestly, it's just the best!
~Kellyn Roth,
Reveries Reviews -
NEVER ENOUGH JOE.
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Man, I didn't love Betsy in this one and Phil sucks.
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3.5 stars
this book was....... so cozy. maud hart lovelace really knows how to capture what it's like growing up <3
(i will admit that i was a bit bored when betsy went to visit tib - i skipped most of those chapters *hides*)
the to all the boys i've loved before vibes were immaculate 💛 and oh my stars i ship betsy and joe so much~ they lowkey remind me of anne and gilbert ;) -
I need this book.
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3.5 stars. Thankfully, Betsy isn't quite as boy crazy in this one as she was in Heaven to Betsy. She still likes boys and still makes some poor decisions, but you see her coming out of her stupor and growing in wisdom and maturity.
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To thine own self be true, Betsy ("Betsye") girl! I love this one so much. All of us women and girls can identify with Betsy's challenges to be something different than who and what she is. I love how sweetly and compassionately Maud Hart Lovelace writes about Betsy's growing pains.
I also love this book because Betsy gets to visit Tib in Milwaukee over Christmas and I love reading about all the German customs and which Grandparents like the Kaiser and which ones don't and why--after all, it's Christmas 1907 and things are heating up in Germany.. ...
I love how after all the New Year's celebrations for the 1908 Leap Year, Betsy and Tib stay up all night drinking coffee and talking about all the changes they are going to make in their "personalities" as they sit by the window looking out at the purple snow and starlight. -
I rather enjoy the childishness of Betsy. Teenagers don't really get a chance, anymore, to be this goofy and, yet, so mature (in some ways) at this time of life. In any case, I'm really enjoying the slow pace.
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Love: ALMOST EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE. ESPECIALLY JOE.
Dislike: Phil Brandish and his sister Phyllis.
Enough said. -
By book 5, I was losing steam. Rather than enjoying Betsy's high school years more than her younger years, as I thought I would, I'm finding them hard to get through. The never-ending goings-on of The Crowd doesn't interest me particularly.
So I started book 6 and then put it aside for a while. Finally finished it today. It is fine, so sweet and tame. Phil getting "spoony" by trying to hold her hand. Ha! She's not that sort of girl. It's fascinating that good girls didn't hold hands, but no one bats an eye at high school senior Julia going around with Harry and then--Betsy's teacher!
It is an oft-written story about a girl who tries to change herself for a boy, and then the boy doesn't like the real her, and then she's better off for it. But all that doesn't happen until the last chunk of the book.
It's too bad that Betsy is told that she's better off having tried to change herself because now she looks better and acts better, and that she needs to keep her new skills for future men. Ah well. -
In this book, Betsy's adventures into "The Great World" include a meal at The Moorish Café (oo la la!), a trip to visit her dear friend Tib in a very German city called Milwaukee, and springtime jaunts in a shiny red car at the breathlessly exhilarating speed of 20 miles per hour. The Betsy that I know and love is back in this book and, even though she experiments (unsuccessfully) with transforming herself into a different person, someone "Dramatic and Mysterious", her sincerity and warmth and kindness always shine through. I'm back in the Betsy-Tacy fan club.
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I liked this entry in the series reasonably well, especially the journey to Milwaukee, but I found the inevtiable 'I must change myself' plot a little wearying -- I say inevitable because it does seem to be a consistent part of growing up for those children who have the space to think so much about their identity and how they wish to be seen, so I cannot really begrudge that Betsy goes through it -- but since I knew how it would end, I was glad when that phase of her development was done.
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I absolutely adore these last two Betsy-Tacy books! They transport me back to my high school days, and I find myself completely engrossed in every single page. Betsy is such a relatable and lovable character; she's exactly the kind of girl I would have been friends with. In particular, "The Crowd" resonates deeply with me as it reminds me so much of my own group of friends. These books have truly captured the essence of those memorable high school years, and I couldn't be more thrilled to read the next one. PS: Joe Willard ❤️😍😭
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Even though I didn't like Heaven to Betsy, this next book was delightful. The writing is vivid and engaging, with just the right amount of description, and the character interactions all ring true. Tacy gets more meaningful time with Betsy, and Joe Willard also gets more character development and makes some more appearances.
The premise of this book concerned me, since I didn't want to read about even more boy drama, but Betsy's episode with Phil Brandish is secondary to the larger sweep of the story, which focuses on lots of different events and experiences from sophomore year. Betsy is still obsessed with wanting to be beautiful, mysterious, and alluring to boys, but the book covers lots of fun adventures that have nothing to do with boy drama.
My favorite part of the book involves Betsy's Christmas trip to Milwaukee to visit Tib. Since Tib is my favorite character from the series, I enjoyed her reappearance, and the cultural and historical flavor in this part of the book is truly delightful. I enjoyed knowing almost all of the German words and phrases that appeared, and the Christmas traditions and celebrations were great fun to read about and vividly picture based on the pitch-perfect writing.
Also, when Betsy does date Phil, she learns a lot about herself in ways that propel the series arc forward. I also appreciated how Lovelace portrayed Phil fairly, showing his negative and self-focused traits while also acknowledging his dignity as a person, instead of making him a caricature or an obstacle that Betsy had to overcome. It's a very realistic portrayal of an adolescent relationship, and the story is entirely fair to both Betsy and Phil, while also gradually showing the reader Betsy's realization that he isn't right for her.
This book's overall plot shows Betsy learning how to be herself, and the book teaches life lessons by showing instead of telling. Even though the book can convey some negative messages while the reader is in Betsy's head, the story shows her gradual development and greater maturity, conveying life lessons without lecturing or moralizing. This was really lovely, and I'm excited to read the rest of the books soon. -
As I anticipated, I didn't enjoy this one all that much, although to be fair it *did* improve along the way.
I'm not sure if it's because I missed out on the whole teenage/high school culture or what, but I just can't relate to a bunch of frivolous, silly teenagers acting the way they act in this book. So concerned with hair and clothes and flirting with boys and all that.
I did find it a bit confusing with all the characters at the beginning and apparently the Rays moved. I missed a book or two since the library doesn't have the whole set.
I was glad that in the end Betsy grew up and matured to a point where she knew she could just be herself and didn't have to do silly things just to impress.
Oh, and another thing that turned me off as a teen was the illustrations. I found that they still bother me. It's not just because I like Lois Lenski's art in the first four books... and it's not that the art in these is bad, per se. It just seems flippant and fluffy and changes the entire mood and even seems to affect the characters.
Oddly, although the later art is more realistic, for what it's worth, I find that the simplicity of Lois Lenski's art seems far more approachable. I wonder why she didn't illustrate the rest of the series. -
A snapshot from this book that shows why I love this series so:
Walking home from a chaperoned school dance [where the dances tended towards waltzes instead of popping and locking and twerking and jerking]
Betsy's escort, Phil, tries to hold her hand, an act she deems 'spoony'
Betsy: You might as well know that I don't hold hands. I don't hold hands. I just don't hold hands.
End scene.
It's from a simpler time, when a 'spoony' action on the part of a date is not him trying to get you into bed but simply trying to hold your hand. And Betsy is no meek girl. She stops this spooniness immediately, like any decent Mankato girl would.
I know that I should not glorify these old-fashioned series--Anne of Green Gables and Little House on the Prairie included--but I can't help myself. I've always adored simplicity, and these books are simplicity incarnate. Though the girls and their families struggle, their values ease their troubles. We can learn so much about the good life from these books. I mean, even the modern 21st century girl needs to know how to ward of spoony gentlemen... -
When I was in 3rd grade, I read the first four Betsy-Tacy books. I loved the stories so much that I wrote my own Betsy-Tacy story in which Tib's family invites Betsy and Tacy on a trip to Milwaukee during summer break. My teacher asked me if I had copied it from one of the stories and I assured her I had not. My ideas were my own original ideas. Years later when I read this for the first time, I discovered that something very similar did happen to Betsy when she was in High School.
And that is why I always enjoy rereading this one. How can I ever tire of Betsy's trip to Milwaukee to visit Tib and her German relatives during her Christmas break? Traveling alone by train for the first time, catching up with an old friend, celebrating the holidays with endless get-togethers with Tib's grandparents, aunts & uncles and staying up all night (for the first time) on New Year's Eve. -
It's good to see Betsye surrender and acknowledge her true, best Bestyness. It's honest to the teenage experience, and still delightfully quaint. Lovelace's signature Victorian charm is on parade as usual, but her darn preoccupation with Mr. Brandish makes Heavens to Betsy superior. Still, I'd throw on a Merry Widow hat and waist in a second if I could join this wonderful world of Deep Valley!
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Re-read 9/02.
Re-read 1/08.
Re-read 4/11.
Re-read 8/12 (in lieu of convention).
Re-read 10/13.
Re-read 11/16. Needed it in the run-up to election. Hillary, "to thine own self be true."
