Wednesday, March 20, 2013

A Spoonful of Sugar

 About The Book: 

From Britain's beloved oldest living nanny comes a charming and uplifting memoir of a real-life Mary Poppins.

In her extraordinary memoir, Brenda Ashford shares her endearing and amusing experiences as a British nanny caring for generations of children over the past sixty-two years.

Brenda's lifelong love for children began the minute she laid eyes on her baby brother, David. As a teenager, she applied to London's Norland College, famous for producing top-class nannies, and, after a grueling interview, she was accepted on scholarship. It was a radical change from her idyllic country life in the village of Surrey. The training was rigorous and discipline strictly enforced, as Brenda and her classmates scrambled to pass inspections on everything from morality and neatness to needlework and pram pushing. Meanwhile, World War II began, and Brenda's heart was broken twice. She vowed never to fall for a man again and devoted her life to caring for other people's children, never having any of her own.

Brenda's memoir offers readers an enticing glimpse into the joys, frustrations, adventures, and mishaps of children of all ages and situations. She peppers her story with delightful bits of cultural history and timeless life lessons. A Spoonful of Sugar is an irresistible Mary Poppins story that will touch your heart and remind you of what is truly important in life




 My Review
I loved reading this book just simply to look into someone else's life. I loved how it had the schedules of her days along with having her tell her story. I loved how it was kinda like a parenting lesson while reading at least to me. If you like getting a glimpse into someone else's life who also happens to be a British nanny(which is seriously what interested me) then you will want to read this book! I had always dreamed of being a British nanny and since I couldn't I highly enjoyed getting to see into the life of one. I give this book 4 penguins.

Goodnight Brian

I don't know where to begin with this book, I had such a mix of emotions the whole time I was reading it. I cried, I laughed, I smiled, I sighed, I got mad, I wished that something happened. This book had me wrapped up into it like it was a family member telling me the story. I fell in love with the characters and related to them. I admired them and learned from them. Mama more so out of any of them. I tell myself sometimes when I get done reading a book that it is my new favorite but I had never read this book. I don't think another book is going to top this one on my list for a long time. I think everyone should read this book and let it wrap you up in it's story like it did to me. The author did an amazing job with describing scenes, I felt like I was really there with the characters. I was honestly sad to finish the book and sad to see it end but I was happy with how everyone's life turned out and how they grew up right before me through the whole book. I want to keep talking about this book but to do so would give away the story and I don't want to ruin any of the magic for anyone else so with that being said I give this book 5 penguins only because I can't go higher!