Book Review: Hitty, Her First Hundred Years

With this selection, we returned to an old family favorite. I had read this book aloud years ago to the "first wave" (translation: the older three children). They loved it! In fact, Mackenzy convinced Kregg to make her a Hitty doll.


The other day, when looking for our next read-aloud, I found this and pulled it off the shelf. The "second wave" (translation: the four youngest) were not thrilled when they asked me what it was about and I told them, "A doll." They wanted something filled with exciting adventures and interesting characters. I encouraged them to give it a chance. They decided that, since I was not negotiating, their best bet would be to simply get it over with as quickly as possible. 


They didn't know what I already knew: this book is a gem!


Rachel Field received the Newbery Award for her work, Hittie, Her First Hundred Years, in 1930. 


The story opens in an antique shop well into the first half of the 1900's, when Hitty decides to write her memoirs. She tells of her "birth" when she is crafted by a peddler from mountain ash wood into a doll for a little girl named Phoebe Preble in the early part of the 1800's. The Preble family lived in Maine and Captain Preble soon took them to sea with him on a whaler out of Boston. At the time, it was thought bad luck for a woman to be aboard, but the captain had been unable to find enough crewmen to fill out his roster. So Mrs. Preble shipped aboard as cook, and Phoebe went along with her brother. 


The whaler had great success in the South Seas and all her crew would have made a great deal of money had they made it back to harbor with their cargo. The first mate, a real trouble maker, had tried multiple times to incite the crew to rebel against the captain and so when the fire broke out, some thought it had been deliberately set by him. In the end, it didn't matter because, no matter how hard they tried, the fire still gained ground. It became obvious that the ship would be lost and the only question was which direction to travel in her remaining few hours afloat. The mate wanted to go one direction, the captain another. Most of the crew finally sided with the mate and they took all but two of the long boats and left the ship. The captain, his family and a few loyal sailors were left to their fate. They gathered the remaining provisions and prepared to leave in the last two boats. In the confusion and thickening smoke, Hitty was left aboard.


It could have been a very short book, indeed, except for the fact that, just before the flames reached her, there was a sudden violent jolt and she was thrown overboard, afloat on some flotsam. Incredibly (don't you love fiction?), she was cast ashore, ending up in a tide pool upon the very island where the two longboats bearing her family had landed. 


Their new home was in a group of islands, some of which were inhabited by not-so-friendly, possibly cannibalistic, natives. When they discovered our castaways, the only thing that saved them from a violent introduction was Hitty. The chief of the tribe thought she was an idol, so he took her to his tribe's island, built her a shrine, and brought offerings to set before her. It was quite humorous to hear Hitty's narrative as she described being worshiped by heathens and pawed at by monkeys. 


This is just the beginning of Hitty's travels around the world and from one owner to the next. She was owned by missionaries & Quakers, met Charles Dickens, and ended up in an auction of antiques back in the house she started from in Maine.


It really is a charming book and was enjoyed by all, boys and girls. It would have been fun to make a chart of her travels on a map. Didn't think of it until we'd finished. So maybe you might try it if you read about Hitty. :)


This is #30 in the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge. 


I think I can, I think I can, I . . . think . . . I . . . can . . .

Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks