Horn Book Review
Living cheerfully through the Depression is the theme of these formulaic series entries. Kit runs off to experience hobo life in the rather unrealistic [cf2]Saves.[cf1] She uses her writing skills to bring attention to homeless children in [cf2]Changes.[cf1] In [cf2]Birthday,[cf1] everybody celebrates the old-fashioned way. The idealized paintings add to the glossy look at the era, but the appended historical sections add authenticity. [Review covers these American Girls Collection titles: [cf2]Changes for Kit; Happy Birthday, Kit!; Kit Saves the Day[cf1].] From HORN BOOK Spring 2002, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
Gr. 3-5. When Kit receives a refurbished winter coat, she gives her old one to a child at a nearby soup kitchen. Back at home, she takes on the responsibility of caring for her elderly, disagreeable uncle, who has moved in while recovering from a fall. Required to take dictation about letters disapproving of unemployed "drifters," Kit writes her own letter to the editor of the local newspaper, asking for support of poorly clothed children sheltered at the soup kitchen. Though Kit and her uncle's points of view are quite different, each individual earns the other's grudging respect. Colorful paintings, from full-page pictures to tiny vignettes, brighten the pages. An eight-page section of history, illustrated mainly with photos, is appended. A fitting addition to the appealing stories about Kit, the Depression-era heroine in the American Girls series. --Carolyn Phelan