nocowardsoul

1. I don't see how Hugo is such a terrible name that you have to call your own stepfather Mr. Smith. I like it! I wonder if the kids grew out of it.

2a. “Martha always had the same thing, a soda she'd invented, marshmallow with vanilla ice cream, which made the others gag.” Why is that gag-worthy? If it was a weird flavor I'd understand, but it's vanilla. Because it's overly sweet, or too bland?

2b. I like the detail about Mark wanting to order celery soda or malt marrow, but every time deciding to order next time. #relatable

3. Ivanhoe addicted to science fiction is still funny, as is the Normans vs. Saxons baseball game. And yes, I always liked the Little Women crossover.

4. N. M. Bodecker doesn't have a Wikipedia page, if there are any bored Wikipedia editors reading this.

5. “As their mother often said, he [Roger] was the thoughtful one.” I object to this. Ann displays as much thoughtfulness, if not more, than Roger in the books.

6. I looked up Umpty Six Formal and I found Umpty Six was a fraternity at Toledo High School.

1. Miss Dowitcher the librarian totally knows the book is magic. She checked it out when she was young and had an adventure of her own.

2. “They all played an old-fashioned game called Steps, also known as Red Light (but not to be confused with the other game of that name sometimes referred to in less refined circles as Cheezit).”

I assume the first game is Red Light Green Light because Wikipedia says it's called Grandmother's Footsteps in the UK. I would love to know what Cheezit is.

3. I am a bit concerned about Grannie's age and mental state combined with Susan and John's youth. What if she dies or requires full-time care before they're old enough to live on their own? I suppose Barnaby's parents will look after them. They're already doing it a little.

4. I love Barnaby's self-insert story. And Abbie's first line of a poem - “Alas, for human dignity!”

5. I had forgotten that Barnaby's mother was a realtor.