The Pye family is back, with nine (almost ten) year old Rachel, brother Jerry who is ten, Papa who is a famous ornithologist or bird man, Mama, three (almost four) year old Uncle Bennie, cat Gracie, and very smart dog Ginger. Mr. Pye has an assignment to do a study of birds on Fire Island, so he takes the whole family with him and rents a cottage appropriately named The Eyrie from Mrs. A. A. Pulie. While there, the Pyes adopt a little black cat with one white paw whom they name Pinky. And what is amazing is that Pinky knows how to type! However, Papa’s friend Hiram Bish, another famous bird man, and his wife are sailing on the S. S. Pennsylvania near Fire Island and during a terrible storm lose their rare pet owl, one of the smallest in the world, when it is blown out of Mrs. Bish’s hands by the wind. Meanwhile at The Eyrie on Fire Island, Pinky is earning a place in the Pyes’ hearts by boxing with Ginger, playing games with Mr. Pye, watching Uncle Bennie collect crickets and grasshoppers, and, of course, typing her meditations. Then after the storm, first Gracie, who has been sitting on the porch roof and looking at the attic window, then Rachel, and then Pinky all start watching something that is moving around in the attic of The Eyrie, but they can’t quite make out what it is. Uncle Bennie is putting his crickets and grasshoppers in the attic to sleep at night, but in the morning they’re gone and their box is poked through with holes. He thinks that maybe they are poking their way out and escaping. What is happening to them? What or who is in the attic? And what kind of meditations will Pinky type? This delightful story, the sequel to the Newbery Medal winner Ginger Pye, was an ALA Notable Book. As the owner of several cats through the years, I can testify that the author captures the personality of a cat perfectly in her portrayal of Pinky. There is very little that might be considered objectionable—a reference to the ages of rocks when the earth broke away from the sun millions of years ago and a few instances of pipe and cigar smoking. What I like is that the Pyes are a family that, while a little quirky, really love each other and are not afraid to show that love. “Rachel’s heart swelled up with love for her father” (p. 126). The Pyes are also friends with the Moffats who are the subjects of four other children’s novels by Eleanor Estes: The Moffats, The Middle Moffat, Rufus M., and The Moffat Museum, two of which were Newbery Honor books.
I didn't even know there was a sequel to Ginger Pye until I looked up reviews after recently re-reading it, and then I thought I might as well pick it up and see if the author was able to maintain the nostalgic, if dated, charm that was so notable in her first book. I was surprised to find that I enjoyed the sequel much more than the first book!Pinky Pye tells of the Pyes' summer in the northeastern US sea on Fire Island, and their discover of a remarkable and precocious abandoned kitten. Unlike its predecessor, this book features the titular character throughout, and she is hilarious. She's clever and a little bit bratty, and the family is soon delighted to discover that she can use a typewriter (or thinks she can). Poor Ginger and Grace-the-cat take a back seat to black-and-white Pinky, who steals the show with her meditations and instructions on how to play the best cat games and keep the humans interested. The story is a little less flimsy than the first book's, but the characters are much more realized--Jerry, Rachel and Uncle Bennie are still around and going strong, but Lucy and Edgar, Mama and Papa, are much more fun and interesting. There's still the feeling of nostalgia and a time long gone by, but this one seemed a little more engaging, and it also featured the title character more, who really did live up to her reputation as a cleverer than usual pet (poor Ginger).I really liked this book, and it's rare when the sequel can live up to its predecessor, even if it's written by the original author (I'm looking at you, Dodie Smith). I would love to read this to my kids one day. It also really made me want a kitten.
Do You like book Pinky Pye (2000)?
Sweet, rather slow story about a family who moves to an East Coast island for the summer so that the ornithologist dad can do some research on the local bird population and ends up taking in a clever and funny abandoned black kitten. Gentle humor that appealed to all of us (including my husband, who is more of a horror/thriller reader). We solved the "mystery" early on, but it was still fun to hear about the family and their pets. Especially if you've enjoyed Estes' other books, or the books of Elizabeth Enright, you're likely to enjoy this.
—Logan
Surprisingly, I thought this book was awful. Previously, I read its predecessor, Ginger Pye, which was a Newbery Medal winner. Well, this one was not and it is clear why. The plot was so loosely constructed I found many of the chapters absolutely unnecessary which really should never happen in a book, much less a book for children. It was, altogether, boring. It's a shame because Eleanor Estes is a really great author and I love most of her novels. But with this one, in my opinion, she should have taken a break from her typewriter.
—Ashley Herring Blake
An old-fashioned, comfortable children's book. Better and more focused than Estes' Ginger Pye, to which this is a sequel, but with the same warmth, and with the author demonstrating the same ability to get into a kid's head.Here, the Pye family spends the summer on Fire Island where the father intends to study birds, but finds himself laid up with a sprained ankle instead. Housebound, Pye bonds with the newly-adopted kitten, who fascinates herself with the typewriter. Much of the charm of the book is found in the portions "written" by the kitten. Also, the Pyes' four-year-old "Uncle Bennie" is still the most interesting character of the bunch. The arrival of a fellow ornithologist and the mysterious occurrences in the eaves of their cottage form the overall plot of the story -- and as mentioned above, the plot is certainly more focused. It's also fairly predictable -- certainly for grown-up readers. The kids loved it and wished that there were more adventures of the Pye family. Alas, we'll have to move on to Estes' Moffats series, I suppose.
—Drew
