Elizabeth (Lizzie) Woodbourne, still 'under seventeen', and her younger sisters, worldly Katherine and sententious Helen, are the daughters of the Vicar and his saintly, but now defunct, first wife. Four younger children, mainly represented by Dora, an extremely clear-sighted seven year old, have been born to the second Mrs. Woodbourne: the gentle, inoffensive and generally useless Mildred, Visitors to the Vicarage include family relative Lady Merton, paragon and moral arbiter of the novel, and her children Anne and Rupert Merton. Anne is Lizzie's great friend and shares her passion for tales of chivalry; Rupert, whose delayed arrival adds tension to the plot, is a nineteen year old undergraduate distinguished by missing front teeth (lost in a playground accident), a talent for 'paper games' and the habit of teasing the girls. Less welcome guests are the Hazleby family, referred to as The Hazlebies and led by abrasive 'Scotch' Mrs. Hazleby, insensitive, dishonest Harriet, downtrodden Lucy and the egregious canine Fido.
This is one of the most emotional and poignant literary works of Yonge. She has portrayed the feelings and sentiments of two teenage girls in a picturesque way and touched the level of modern sensational novel through this captivating work. The troubles, conflicts and confusions associated with the particular age group. A Page-turner!
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