Felciity Saves the Day

Published in 1991; author Valerie Tripp; illustrators Dan Andreasen, Luann Roberts, and Keith Skeen

Plot

Felicity and her siblings are visiting their grandfather at his plantation to escape the summer heat of Williamsburg. They have a wonderful time, aside from having to be stiffly proper for visitors. One couple in particular, the Wentworths, take up a lot of time. Mrs. Wentworth blusters on and on about many topics, often her distrust and disdain of the Patriots. During one such visit, Felicity's grandfather rescues her from awkwardness and boredom by inviting her to accompany him and Mr. Wentworth to a horse seller. Felicity is stunned to see none other than Penny there for sale. She's wild and thin, but recognizes Felicity and calms down when she approaches the horse. Beneath her un-groomed hide, she's healthy. Felicity's grandfather buys the horse (and some others for his plantation) on the spot. Penny will have to stay at her grandfather's, but Felicity is thrilled to be able to enjoy her in the summer, and to know that her horse is safe.

While on a ride with Penny, Felicity finds a note...left for her by Ben. With the map he drew, she finds him nearby. He's run away from his apprenticeship agreement to join the Patriot army that George Washington is starting. But he's injured his leg, and can't seek help for fear of being caught. At first Felicity balks at the idea of keeping his secret, but he reminds Felicity that he kept her secret about Penny last fall. So Felicity agrees to help him, and starts treating his leg. She doesn't stop herself from pointing out that while Ben is right to stand up for what he believes in, he's going about it the wrong way. He didn't ask her father for permission, assuming he wouldn't give it, and now he's hiding from everyone. What will he do when he meets an enemy?

Before she can get through to him, her father places a notice in the newspaper offering a reward for Ben's return. She gives Ben a map and directions to Yorktown, where the army is forming, and supplies. But just after she's sent him on his way, a pair of bounty hunters tell her grandfather that they're searching for Ben...right where Felicity sent him. She rushes out on Penny as a storm gathers, desperate to find Ben before the bounty hunters, who had all but promised to rough him up. With Penny's speed and stamina, she finds Ben and convinces him to come clean, stressing that what he's done is dishonest and cowardly. He agrees and returns to the plantation with her. Felicity's father is there in the morning, and after a long talk with Ben, he agrees to let Ben join the Patriot's army AFTER he turns 18, two years from now, assuming there is still such a thing. He'll still have one year left of his apprenticeship contract, and Felicity's father excepts Ben to return to complete it. Both Felicity's father and grandfather express how impressed their are with Felicity's determination and integrity. In fact, Felicity's grandfather says that with Jiggy Nye in jail and Penny so spirited, perhaps the horse should return to Williamsburg with Felicity. Naturally, Felicity agrees.

Looking Back

Most people in Felicity's day didn't partake in much travel. It wasn't as easy to get places back then, without decent roads or fast transportation. But some of the better-off town dwellers had family in the country, where they could get away for a time. In Felicity's case, the place in the country was a plantation staffed by slaves.

Misc

This book is dedicated to "the staffs of the Pleasant Company and of Colonial Williamsburg, with thanks."

Slaves show up quite often in the background of Felicity books, which is consistent with her time and class. I wonder if the slave characters in her books influenced the decision to make the next American Girl one who escaped slavery (Addy, next month's focus).

Blackberries are mentioned again, but this time they're maturing at the right time (mid to late summer). Felicity and her grandfather also talk about medicinal herbs, which is pretty interesting to read.

Felicity's mother in pregnant, due in winter.

The grandfather in the book is Felicity's mother's father.

I hope Felicity's grandfather made sure her parents were okay with bringing home another horse before giving her the animal.

Happy Birthday, Felicity!

Published in 1991; author Valerie Tripp; illustrators Dan Andreasen, Luann Roberts, and Keith Skeen

Plot

Felicity is excited about her upcoming tenth birthday. Her grandfather is coming to visit, so she and her mother plan a small party, basically a fancy lunch with her family and Ben. Her grandfather arrives with gifts for the children: a lamb and their late grandmother's guitar. Both are intended to help them, especially Felicity, demonstrate that they can be responsible. They name the lamb Posie, because of its preference for sitting in the flower bed. Felicity is especially excited about the guitar, as Annabelle has started music lessons with Miss Manderly. Felicity can't help but feel jealous and impatient to start learning to play music too.

Eager to show off the guitar, Felicity takes it to Miss Manderly's (for tuning) and then to Elizabeth's. Without permission--she was supposed to leave it in the parlor. When she's at the Cole house, some British soldiers come to visit Mr. Cole, and in the awkwardness of the political situation, Felicity leaves the guitar there. She quickly goes back to retrieve it, and overhears the soldiers discussing a plot to steal gunpowder from the armory later that night (the real-life Gunpowder Incident of 1775). She rushes home, and her mother catches her with the guitar, the strap torn. She's scolded harshly, and told to ask her grandfather for forgiveness. She does, and is sent to her room. But she knows she has to tell her father what she overheard. Her parents don't believe her and her grandfather, a loyalist, is even more upset. Felicity retreats to her room in tears.

Still, she knows she has to tell someone. Virginia's militia needs to be able to defend itself, and the governor is going to just take their supplies without permission or pay. She slips out of her room to tell Ben, and together they enlist the help of Isaac, a free black man who's a drummer in the militia. The three of them keep vigil at the armory, watching for signs of theft. A little after midnight, they see British soldiers secreting away the gunpowder. Isaac sounds the alarm and soon all of Williamsburg sees the duplicity of the governor. Felicity's father is in the gathering crowd, and takes Felicity and Ben home. The next morning Felicity wakes, reflecting on the events of the previous night and the fact that it's her birthday. Soon her father comes to get her. He reassures Felicity that while she still was wrong in taking the guitar, it's clear that she does try to do the right thing and is trustworthy. She's back on good terms with her parents, and her grandfather. There will be some tension among the adults after the raid, but Felicity's birthday celebration is on as planned, and she's able to enjoy her special day with her family.

Looking Back

The historical section in this book is about growing up in Felicity's time. Most families had more children than Felicity's, although about half of colonial children died before the age of six. The children that did grow up would have different experiences based on the societal class of their families. Upper class children like Felicity would do pretty much what Felicity does in the books: take lessons in being gentlemen or gentlewoman, and learn how to manage homes (boys might be apprenticed or attend college). Lower classes had to work more, and slave children, as one might expect, would be forced to work from a young age.

Misc

This book is dedicated to Ann, Bobby, Katie, and Sarah.

Felicity is happy her birthday is in the springtime because of the association with new life. Since it's spring, she suggests the serve blackberry, raspberry, and peach tarts. Those all mature in the summer to autumn. But maybe she means to use preserved fruit.

Elizabeth has blue eyes.

I'm annoyed with the Looking Back part for being so judgmental about the high child mortality rates. Yes, germ theory wasn't really grasped yet, but the parents were trying their best. And the children died of diseases like smallpox because vaccines weren't invented yet. People then didn't have the luxury of living in a time when smallpox is extinct and we can vaccinate to prevent other horrific illnesses.

Felicity's Valentine

Short story collection published in 2006; author Valerie Tripp; illustrator Dan Andreasen, Susan McAliley, or Philip Hood

Plot

Felicity and Elizabeth are excited about Valentine's Day. Miss Manderly is having them practice their handwriting skills, and Elizabeth takes the time to write Felicity a poem about how grateful she is for their friendship, to F. M. from E. C. Concerned that Miss Manderly will scold them for not taking their work seriously, the girls hide the note quickly. But when one of the men in town stops by with a delivery, a gust of wind sends papers flying, and the Valentine slips out of Felicity's pocket. To make matters worse, Miss Manderly's first name is Frances (F. M.) and the initials of the man who stopped by are E. C (Everard  Chelton). The next lesson, Miss Manderly asks Felicity and Elizabeth to deliver a letter to Mr. Chelton. The girls notice a folded note in Miss Manderly's pocket labelled "A Valentine from E. C. to F. M."  Miss Manderly thinks the valentine poem Elizabeth wrote was for her, and is now going to embarrass herself by sending her own back to him! Although...they would make a good couple...Felicity and Elizabeth deliver the letter as asked, but first make a point of talking up the many wonderful things about Miss Manderly to Mr. Chelton. Mr. Chelton reads the note, and declines to have Felicity and Elizabeth carry back a reply: he'll do that himself, in person! The girls are pleased with their success playing Cupid. However, there's one more twist: the next time they're at Miss Manderly's, they see the valentine Elizabeth wrote, peeking out from under a rug where it was blown in the first place. Mr. Chelton and Miss Manderly were already sending valentines to each other!

Looking Back

Paper was expensive in Felicity's day, so Valentine cards were especially precious. People took great care to make them by hand, cutting fancy shapes, drawing picture, and writing verses. Valentine cards weren't sold commercially, but people could purchase books of things to write in cards or even publish in newspaper (using code names for both recipient and sender). If people wanted to send Valentines or other mail to people in the same town, they would often send servants to do the errand. Mail going further away went in the care of postmasters, who would deliver the letters to central locations in towns, often taverns. There were no stamps; instead the recipients had to pay to get their mail. Most of the time Valentines between courting men and women were delivered by hand, as they were very private and sometimes even on the level of marriage proposals.

Misc

There's a bit of subplot that Annabelle is staying home from lessons because she's convinced she will have throngs of gentlemen callers delivering Valentines. She doesn't, of course.

Felicity's Surprise

Published in 1991; author Valerie Tripp; illustrators Dan Andreasen, Luann Roberts, and Keith Skeen

Plot

It's December, and as Christmas celebrations get underway, Felicity receives a stunning invitation: she, Elizabeth, and Annabelle have been asked to a dance lesson at the governor's palace! Miss Manderly arranged it for them. Felicity is worried that her parents' political views will cause trouble (Elizabeth and Annabelle's parents are loyalists), but her father and Miss Manderly assure her that because she was invited and she knows her manners well, things will be fine. Her father is even hopeful that this offer of civility between the governor's children and the colonists' means that the colonists can work out their difference with the king without war. Ben thinks Felicity shouldn't go at all because it would imply loyalty to the king, but Felicity prepares to go with her parents' blessing.

She's still nervous though, more so when she infers from conversation with Elizabeth that her church dress won't be fancy enough for the lesson, which will almost be like a ball. When she and her mother go out shopping for some new lace or other additions to dress up her gown, Felicity sees a doll wearing a gorgeous blue dress. The store owner explains that he adapted a pattern that the governor's wife was wearing, and he has a pattern that would work for Felicity and some beautiful blue silk that will compliment her complexion and red hair perfectly. It's a complicated pattern, but Felicity's mother works hard while Felicity helps out more with chores so her mother can focus on the dress. She makes good progress, but comes down with a serious illness just after Christmas (still before the dance). She's too ill to get out of bed, much less finish the dress. As time goes on, she's still very weak and feverish, and struggling to breathe. Felicity pours herself into taking care of her mother and keeping her brother and sister from worrying too much. All her efforts are focused on doing whatever she can to help her mother get well.

Felicity's father notices how hard she's been working, and on New Year's Day he gives her a present: the doll from the shop that Felicity admired. But now the doll reminds Felicity of how she thought the dress was her priority, not the people she loves. She gives the doll to Elizabeth, who agrees only to keep it for Felicity until Felicity is ready to have it again. Felicity also tells Elizabeth that she won't be able to attend the dance after all, not with her mother so ill and the dress unfinished.

But January 7, the day of the dance, Felicity's mother is stronger, and finally truly on the mend. And Felicity finds the finished dress and the doll waiting for her on her bed. Ben even offers to escort her to the dance, now agreeing with her father that Christmas is a time to hope for peace. It turns out that he and Elizabeth coordinated getting the dress pieces out of the house, and Elizabeth, Annabelle, and their mother finished the dress. Felicity has a wonderful time at the ball, taking in everything so she can share the memories with her mother.

Looking Back

Christmas in Felicity's time had a lot of familiar customs, like parties and church services. But it was more an adult celebration than one for children. At that time, children were more often treated like little adults. It wasn't later centuries that kids were allowed to act like kids, and Christmas was a good time to shower them with attention without spoiling them. (I gleaned that last bit from my History of Christmas DVD)

Misc

This book is dedicated to Alice Martin Tripp.

Miss Manderly has got to be the most caring teacher in the history of ever. She's always making all her students feel important.

The Christmas season didn't end on January 6, past tense. It DOES end on January 6. At least on the liturgical calendar, anyway. The twelve days of Christmas are from Christmas to Epiphany.

The book makes a big deal of how complicated the dress pattern is. But my mom sewed me a dress to match my Felicity doll's for Christmas when I was a kid, and she said it wasn't too hard (picture on my December 25, 2013 post). But Mom had a sewing machine and is very talented with needle arts. And she wasn't deathly ill.

Oh, funny. I have an episode of Friends on in the background and Chandler just told Monica she needs to "settle" before leaving a poker game. She says, "Settle what?" and he says. "The Jamestown colony of Virginia."

Felicity's Dancing Shoes

Short story collection published in 2006; author Valerie Tripp; illustrator Dan Andreasen, Susan McAliley, or Philip Hood

Plot

Felicity's lessons are now focused on dancing. Although Felicity is confident with many coordinated movements like horseback riding or climbing, she finds the dainty work of dancing difficult. It doesn't help that Annabelle continues being harshly critical of her. Despite Miss Manderly's insistence that the ability to dance lies solely in the feet (tee hee), Felicity convinces herself that she needs dancing shoes. She ruined her own by being careless with them, but she's able to borrow Nan's in exchange for teaching Nan dance steps. With the lighter shoes, Felicity finds it much easier to dance, although Nan's are a tight fit. After a few weeks, Felicity's mother finds out that she been using the shoes of her three-years-younger sister and puts a stop to it. With a heavy heart, Felicity trudges to the next dance lesson in her old, clunky shoes. But all the dancing with Nan has improved Felicity's so much that she doesn't even make a single mistake! Felicity happily recalls what Miss Manderly says: "Gracefulness is in the foot, not the shoes."

Looking Back

Like the historical segment of Felicity Learns a Lesson, this one is about the type of education an upper class girl would have had during the late 1700s in the United States. It gives some more information about the priority that dancing would have had in the southern colonies. There, knowing how to dance was very important to be properly cultured. Balls were a huge social event. By contrast, many people in the northern colonies saw dancing as highly inappropriate, shocking, or even sinful.

Misc

There's a character named Mr. Halibut. I've never heard that as a last name. There are a few entries for it as a name on Ancestry.com, and apparently a Navy ship and a submarine have been named the USS Halibut, but they were named after the fish.

While music lessons were popular for girls, instruments like the French horn and violin were discouraged. It was considered unladylike for a woman to purse her lips or stretch out her neck.

Felicity Learns a Lesson

Published in 1991; author Valerie Tripp; illustrators Dan Andreasen, Luann Roberts, and Keith Skeen

Plot

Now that Felicity is getting closer to her tenth birthday, her parents agree that she should learn proper manners. She starts lessons with Miss Manderly, a gentlewoman in town. Felicity is reticent at first, imaging the lessons will be mind-numbingly boring, but goes along with it to please her parents. She's pleasantly surprised to find that the lessons are interesting and enjoyable. A pair of sisters who recently moved from England take the lessons with Felicity. The older sister, Annabelle, is stuck-up and looks down on Felicity for being a colonist and shopkeeper's daughter, despite the fact that Felicity's father is one of the most important people in Williamsburg (and the fact that she's never met Felicity). The younger sister, Elizabeth, is Felicity's age and much more agreeable. She's quieter and shyer than her sister, too. Felicity and Elizabeth become fast friends.

While this is going on, Felicity overhears bits and pieces of gossip about colonial anger over the rising taxes on tea and other aspect of English rule. She's confused about what's really happening. After Annabelle expresses her horror at the perceived uncouthness and ungratefulness of the Boston Tea Party, Felicity asks her father to explain the politics of the events to her. He lays out the facts about the colonists feeling taken advantage of, but won't tell Felicity what to think. She has to decide for herself whether the king is mistreating the colonists or if the colonists are wrong. Even after he signs a pledge to stop selling tea in his shop, he insists that Felicity must make up her own mind.

Before she has a chance, it's time for another lesson with Miss Manderly, and it's Annabelle's turn to serve tea. Felicity is nervous: should she accept or refuse the tea? Annabelle makes the decision for, explaining to Miss Manderly with dripping sarcasm that she purposely neglected to fill Felicity's teacup because Felicity, being a colonist, would simply dump the tea on the carpet. As Annabelle scolds Felicity, it's clear that Elizabeth told Annabelle about the pledge Felicity's father made. Furious, Felicity storms out of the lesson and back home. Her mother calms her down, and encourages Felicity to not give up on Elizabeth: surely Elizabeth doesn't think so poorly of her as Annabelle, even if Elizabeth didn't stand up to her sister. It's harder for Elizabeth to stand up to Annabelle than it is for Felicity. Heeding her mother's words, Felicity returns for the next lesson, and finds that Elizabeth does indeed still want to be friends, and even stands up to her sister when Annabelle chides her for complimenting Felicity's stitching on her sampler. That day, it's Elizabeth's turn to serve tea. Felicity turns her cup upside down and politely refuses the tea, with Miss Manderly complimenting her manners.

Looking Back

An American girl growing up in Felicity's time couldn't expect the sort of education one does today. Their lessons were mostly guided toward the proper running of a household, entertaining, and manners. While there is use for many of the skills Felicity would learn (cooking's a nice thing to know how to do), things like reading and math wouldn't be featured so much. Some people even considered reading to be a waste of time for a lady. Boys, on the other hand, might be apprenticed to a trade or even attend colleges as they grew older. That is, of course, if families could afford to educate their children. Children of poorer families had to focus on helping with subsistence farming and whatever else their families needed to do to survive.

Misc

This book is dedicated to Elizabeth and Sasha. I wonder if the character Elizabeth was named for the one in the dedication (Sasha doesn't seem like a colonial name).

Felicity describes Annabelle as a snob, a word which seemed too modern for the 1700s. So I looked it up, and snob dates from the 1820s, and was first used in England.

One of the lessons Felicity has involves "homework" of inscribing an invitation. She practices the lettering over and over. Given the expense of paper in 1774, her family is clearly well-off (that, and they have at least two slaves; one in the store and a cook, Rose).

So...next lesson it would be Felicity's turn to serve tea, right? I wonder how she'd handle that. Serve coffee, maybe...that's what the colonists started drinking instead of tea!

Meet Felicity

Published in 1991; author Valerie Tripp; illustrators Dan Andreasen, Luann Roberts, and Keith Skeen

Plot

Felicity Merriman has a generally happy life in colonial Virginia: she enjoys spending time in her father's store (although as she grows older she's being encouraged to let his workers do that and go be more lady-like), her mother keeps a comfortable home, and she likes being with her little siblings, her sister Nan and her brother William. Most of all, she loves horses. When she hears that the town drunk/tanner Mr. Nye has a new horse, she can't wait to go see it. Rumor has it that Mr. Nye works his animals to death, so Felicity must move quickly. She gets her chance when she accompanies her father's apprentice, Ben, to make a delivery to Mr. Nye. The horse is a beautiful chestnut mare, but Mr. Nye mistreats her horribly, making her wild and vicious. Felicity is sure she could convince the horse to be gentle...if only she could get close enough. She's especially motivated when she hears Mr. Nye yelling to the horse that he'll give her to anyone who can ride her.

For the next few weeks, Felicity sneaks out in the wee hours of the morning to visit the horse, which she named Penny, for the copper color of her coat and for independence. Gradually the horse come to trust her, and finally Penny lets Felicity ride her. They start slow, but gradually the two work together perfectly. It's about this time that Ben realizes where his missing breeches have gone: Felicity has been using them to ride Penny. Ben agrees to let her keep them for a little bit longer, but soon she'll have to reveal what she's doing. She brushes and curries Penny's coat until it shines, and rides the horse to her father's store. She tries to explain to her stunned parents that the horse is hers now, since she can ride it. When Mr. Nye comes raging to the scene, her father has to explain that it was an idle promise; Felicity does not own the horse. Worse, Mr. Nye says that because of Felicity's duplicity, he won't even consider selling the horse to the Merrimans.

Felicity and Ben know that Mr. Nye will kill the horse with abuse and neglect. But they can't find a way to buy it from him; he won't sell Penny now. Felicity borrows Ben's breeches one last time, and rides Penny into the woods, where she was found in the first place, and sets her free. It's better for her to be a stray horse than live a short, cruel life with the eventuality of a painful death.

Looking Back

The historical section talks a lot about the fashions and pastimes of the wealthy in Felicity's day. With her father being a respected shopkeeper, Felicity would have been upper-class. It contrasts Felicity's experiences with those of the lower classes; like the back-breaking labor endured by apprentices like Ben in the hopes of a a better life one day...and that endured by people like Marcus, a slave who works at the Merriman store.

Misc

This book is dedicated to Kathleen and Granger Tripp, the author's parents.

Felicity Takes a Dare

Short story collection published in 2006; author Valerie Tripp; illustrator Dan Andreasen, Susan McAliley, or Philip Hood

Plot

Felicity and her little sister and brother (Nan, six, and William, three) are enjoying the spring fair. Felicity is most excited to see the racehorses. They're more skittish than the farm horses she's used to, but her grandfather has taught her how to be around horses, so she's not worried and keeps a respectful distance with her siblings. But being only nine, she lets herself get riled up when a group of boys starts teasing her and dares her to go up to one of the horses. Heeding her grandfather's instruction, she goes into the pen and is able to successfully get a horse to literally eat out of her hand. Just as she's about to head back out, a gunshot is fired off to start a footrace. The horse panics and kicks Felicity, breaking her arm. She's able to get out of the pen safely, and sends Nan to get their mother. Fortunately, it's a simple break. The apothecary makes a house call and sets her arm, then applies leeches to drain the "extra" blood so it will heal faster. Felicity is ashamed that she let herself be dared into doing such a foolish thing, but her mother assures her that as long as Felicity learns from her mistakes and continues to mature, she turn out just fine. Encouraged, Felicity feels well enough to sit in a chair by her window and watch the fireworks with her mother.

Looking Back

The fair that Felicity visited took place during Publick Times. When Virginia's highest court held session, there were so many visitors to Williamsburg that the city would be bursting at the seams with fairs, races and other contests, plays, and even extravagant balls at the governor's house.

Misc

I remember reading this as an article in the American Girl magazine. The Looking Back section in that one was about leech use in medicine; how maladies were thought to be caused by an excess of blood. I specifically remember the part that headaches were treated with leeches up the nose.

Leeches are making a small, specific comeback in medicine. They can be used to treat particular types of swelling. Maggots--grown in sterile environments--are also useful in certain types of wound debridement.