It is nothing short of tragic that the All-of-a-Kind Family series is out of print. I have the whole set, carefully guarded since childhood, but it is just so sad that they are so hard to come by.
Update: The series was reprinted in 2014! Hooray! I have not read the reprints and I am unsure whether any updates were made. Reviews reflect the earlier editions.
More All-of-a-Kind Family picks up a bit after where All-of-a-Kind Family leaves off. Little Charlie is no longer a baby, but a cheerful toddler spoiled by his older sisters. Ella is sixteen, old enough to be noticing boys. The younger sisters are less of a focus in this book, with Uncle Hyman’s romance with Lena being one of the main plots. Lena is far newer to the United States than the family, and the girls begin to mock some of her ways. There is a very nicely done section where Mama explains quite calmly to the girls how and why their talk is unkind. This book is also slightly more sombre than its predecessor, with the 1916 polio epidemic overshadowing life in the city. Jewish holidays, traditions and celebrations are all beautifully rendered and with much detail. An added bonus is that despite the time period, you’ll find that Papa is a pretty modern character. He can cook (in fact, he’s the one who taught Mama to make gefullte fish and how to clean a chicken). He also helps with the laundry.
I would recommend this for independent readers any time after third grade. The content is appropriate for third grade (or possibly younger if you are reading aloud) but the book is a more advanced reading level. The shift in focus away from the younger girls will also make this more appealing to older readers, who will enjoy following both Uncle Hyman’s romance and Ella’s meeting her first beau.
Sex, Nudity, Dating – Lena jokes that they must marry off five daughters. Ella thinks a boy is very handsome. She is invited on a date. Uncle Hyman has a girlfriend and becomes engaged. Fanny’s sister has a boyfriend.
Profanity – None. The word “gay” is used to mean happy which may need some explanation for modern readers.
Death, Violence and Gore – Lena has left behind family and worries that they will not be safe because of the war. Papa spanks a girl. The story of Hanukkah is told: an army tries to force Jews to follow a different religion; Jews are killed; there is a war; unclean animals are sacrificed. Uncle Solomon smacks the backsides of some boys that misbehave during a wedding reception.
Drugs, Alcohol and Smoking – Charlie is given a cigar, but it is not a cigar at all, it opens to reveal an American flag. Adults drink glasses of wine to celebrate; the children are given thimblefuls. Adults drink schnapps.
Frightening or Intense Things – Charlie runs in front of a carriage and is nearly run over. A woman saves him and is slightly injured in the process. There is a polio (infantile paralysis) epidemic in the city. (1916) A family member gets sick. The illness results in paralysis of a leg.
I always loved these and am glad that I have one or two in my library. Maybe I will manage to recommend them today!
I have my mother’s copies of these books. Sadly, the last three are falling apart- they were softback books. But this one and the first are hardcover. I adore these books. Now I’m going to have to find them so I can start reading them again to be ready for when G. can understand them!
I love the whole series, but this book is probably my favorite. Uncle Hyman and Lena’s courtship is so dear.
As I read this my 12 year old is sitting across the room rereading this book after coming upon it while cleaning her room. She just told me how she wished she had the whole series to pass onto her own daughter some day. This brought tears to my eyes as I clearly remember myself about this age some 35 years ago packing away this book and telling myself that some day my own daughter would read this book and love it as much as I did. You are right- it is criminal that these books are no longer in print.
I have been rereading this series and I’m curious about something- I’m currently reading All of a Kind Family Downtown. In it, the Uncle Hyman character is described as single with no children. But I’m sure that I just read in the last book that he was married to Lena and they’d had a baby boy. What happened? Did I really miss or forget something happening to them like a divorce or death? I have been searching all over the internet to try to find the answer to this question and no luck. PLEASE HELP. I have to borrow the books on an inter-library loan and it can take weeks to receive them, meanwhile this is driving me crazy. Haha
Your problem might be that the books weren’t published in the order that they take place in. If you check out the start of this post you’ll see what I mean. All of a Kind Family Downtown was written later than the other books in the series BUT is meant to take place between the first two books (All of a Kind Family and More All of a Kind Family). You didn’t miss anything!! I always found it confused too and in my classroom we used to keep a posted list of the correct order for the books because so many people found it confusing.