Betsy and Joe (Betsy-Tacy) [Paperback]

Maud Hart Lovelace (Author), Vera Neville (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up | Series: Betsy-Tacy

Made for Each Other?

Betsy Ray has always thought that she and the fascinating Joe Willard would make the perfect couple. Now, in her senior year at Deep Valley High School, it looks as though she'll get her wish. As soon as Joe returns from his summer job in North Dakota, he's on the Rays' porch with sweet words for Betsy. It's going to be a wonderful senior year!

Then Tony Markham, Betsy's longtime chum, comes calling -- and his intentions are definitely romantic. Betsy is torn. She really cares for Joe, but she doesn't want to hurt Tony. Can she figure out a way to follow her heart without ruining her friendship?

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Some characters become your friends for life. That’s how it was for me with Betsy-Tacy.” (Judy Blume, bestselling author )

“I am fairly certain that my independent, high-spirited grandmother must have had a childhood similar to Betsy Ray’s…As I read..., I felt that I was having an unexpected and welcome peek into Granny’s childhood-a gift to me from Maud Hart Lovelace.” (Ann M. Martin, creator/author of The Baby-sitters Club )

“I truly consider BETSY AND TACY GO DOWNTOWN to be the finest novel in the English language! I will never love any other books as much as I love the Betsy-Tacy books.” (Claudia Mills, children's book author, winner of National Book Award and Golden Kite Award )

“When I was growing up in the Bronx, I had lots of friends. But the girls I most enjoyed spending time with were Betsy, Tacy and Tib....in the series by Maud Hart Lovelace... - three girls full of good ideas, adventures and fun.” (Johanna Hurwitz, award-winning author of more than sixty popular books for young readers )

“The Betsy-Tacy books were among my favorites when I was growing up.” (Nora Ephron, Academy Award-nominated director )

“Family loyalty and the devotion of friends to one another, which for me are the defining characteristics of the Betsy-Tacy stories.” (Esther Hautzig, award-winning author, former Director of Children's Book Promotion for Thomas Y. Crowell Co., and former publicist for Betsy's Wedding in 1955 )

“I grew up 30 miles north of Mankato, and trips to town were filled with mystery and magic, because I was walking the same streets that Betsy and Tacy once walked. The Betsy-Tacy books...., more than any other books, fed my dream of becoming a writer one day.” (Jill Kalz, 2008 MN Book Awards Readers' Choice Award winner )

“I re-read these books every year, marveling at how a world so quaint - Shirtwaists! Pompadours! Merry Widow Hats! - can feature a heroine who is undeniably modern.” (Laura Lippman )

“I read every one of these Betsy-Tacy-Tib books twice. I loved them as a child, as a young adult, and now, reading them with my daughter, as a mother. What a wonderful world it was!” (Bette Midler, actor and singer )

“There are three authors whose body of work I have re-read more than once over my adult life: Charles Dickens, Jane Austen, and Maud Hart Lovelace.” (Anna Quindlen )

“Slipping into Betsy’s world is like slipping into a favorite pair of well-worn slippers: It’s always a pleasure to live in Betsy’s world for a little while, to experience her simple joys, but also her (thankfully short-lived) sorrows.” (Meg Cabot ) --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

About the Author

Maud Hart Lovelace (1892-1980) was the beloved author of the Betsy-Tacy books as well as many other books for adults and children.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: HarperTrophy (February 3, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 006440546X
• ISBN-13: 978-0064405461
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,555,592 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful, descriptive story of a young couple, February 17, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Betsy and Joe (Betsy-Tacy) (Paperback)

I have read and loved every book of Maud Hart Lovelace's Betsy-Tacy series. But this book stands apart as a wonderful touching story. Betsy, at a small town high school, has always liked and been fascinated by Joe Willard, a proud orphan boy who is as talented a writer as she. Though they have their ups and downs, Betsy and Joe end up together in the end, like any good romantic story, and figure out they loved each other all the time. It just takes a wonderful story for them to find their love, which blossoms in the literary style and wonderful description of this enchanting story.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I LOVE these books, August 2, 2005

By 

Cubs Fan (Southeast Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Betsy and Joe (Betsy-Tacy) (Paperback)

My mother's hometown is the real Deep Valley, and I have loved these books for as long as I can remember. My grandmother and I spent a summer vaction tirelessly hunting down out of print, hardcover copies of all the high school books. They were, and remain, my very favorite young adult literature. I read them over and over because the invoke memories of a less frenzied time. I strongly recommend them for anyone.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A delicious experience, full of grace, charm, and humor, September 18, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Betsy and Joe (Betsy-Tacy) (Paperback)

Betsy and Joe finally come together . . . and even then things don't always go smoothly! Full of tendeness and humor. Deep Valley at its best.