Ginger Pye

Series: Pye, Book 1

By: Eleanor Estes / Narrated By: Kate Forbes

Length: 5 hrs and 55 mins

Again, I realize I’m not the intended audience, but still… >yaaaawn<

Huh? Whazzis? Am I panning the classic Ginger Pye?!?

Uhm, well kinda sorta. I mean okay, okay, I get it. It’s for kids, and I shouldn’t expect all Kid Lit to be enchantingly written, stuff that’s transformative or takes the adult reader back to a more innocent time, or nudges said reader forward into a wonderful and fantastical universe (Oh, well, if ALL I’m expecting from Kid Lit is the Universe… I mean, high expectations, anyone?).

But you would hope that, as it’s a strong possibility that you’ll be roped into co-reading/listening with a youngster, the story and writing would be at least mildly engaging. Nope, not here. And honestly, I can’t see little kids having the patience for it as it was written all willy nilly with hours of flat-out silly nothingness going on.

When the story opens, 10-year old Jerry is jonesing for a puppy he’s seen, and he’s trying to psyche little sister, 9-year old Rachel, into getting onboard with a Bring a Puppy Home type of campaign. So we think this might be about striving to achieve a goal, fulfill a dream, right? Nope, not here. The $1 the puppy costs is easily earned and pup Ginger joins the Pye family for a few chapters.

But there are strange goings on, and eventually little Ginger is stolen from the family, and the rest of the book is about wishing Ginger was back at home, walking around calling for him, handing out drawings of “Unsavory” who is the suspect (Mom calls certain people unsavory characters and Jerry and Rachel dub their nefarious pup snatcher that accordingly).

So we have a mystery then, right? Nope, not here. With Ginger gone, the hunt for him winds up being sporadic and most of the book is of silly kid things like Rachel suddenly getting scared of heights, and of wanting to see caves where regicides holed up for three years, and eating a lot of food at a picnic, and of 3-year old Uncle Bennie biting into a robin’s egg. Seriously! For hours! I know I know I know; I shouldn’t be whining cuz this audiobook comes in at just under 6 hours, but I’m NOT kidding when I say that it’s just about what pops into a kid’s head as one day flows into the next.

I jacked up my x1.3 listening speed (And I’m filled with woe that most audiobook apps went away from x1.25 in favor of x1.2 or x1.3 as the nearest speed options… I’m NOThing if not into my rigid practices) to x2 cuz I was really bored with what all was going on in Rachel’s head, and I just wanted to know What Happened to Ginger Pye!

THAT part, what happened to him, was written well enough, very vividly described, and quite touching. Heartbreaking even. So if you start the audiobook, do stay until the end. It’s just that the middle is also filled with questionable stuff like Ginger having to have his tail hacked off since It’s What One Does for the Breed, Mr. Pye (Dad) is nowhere around, but his family continues to consider him a sage even though from what I could see, he was unengaged and not particularly concerned with his family, the part about Tramps was a trifle unsettling and a bit offensive, and the family let Ginger run loose and chase the neighbors’ cats, etc etc.

What am I expecting, though, since this was ostensibly first published in 1951 when things were more innocent and soooo non PC?

Make of it what you will, but I didn’t find it all that charming…

… tho’ the narration was peachy keen…!