Meet Kirsten (American Girls Collection) [Paperback]

Janet Shaw (Author), Renée Graef (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up | Series: American Girls Collection

Kirsten Larson and her family arrive in America in 1854, after a long sea voyage. Everything looks so different from the life Kirsten knew back in Sweden--the ways people talk and dress seem strange! Getting lost in a big city and parting with her best friend only add to Kirsten's worry. Will she ever feel at home here? It is only when the Larsons arrive at a tiny farm on the edge of the frontier that Kirsten believes Papa's promise--America will be a land filled with opportunity for them all.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 80 pages
• Publisher: American Girl (March 1, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0937295019
• ISBN-13: 978-0937295014
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 6.1 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #473,994 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another great American Girl book, February 14, 2001

By 

Kurt A. Johnson (North-Central Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Meet Kirsten, An American Girl (Turtleback School & Library Binding Edition) (American Girls Collection: Kirsten 1854) (School & Library Binding)

This is another in the American Girls Short Stories series about Kirsten Larson, a nine-year-old girl from Sweden. This is the first book in this series. In it, we meet Kirsten on the Eagle, a sailing ship bringing her and her family from Sweden to America in 1854. Leaving behind the life she knew, Kirsten sails across the wide Atlantic, takes her first ever train ride, sees several big cities, and begins her new life in frontier Minnesota. It is a journey mixing joy and grief, and fear and happiness.

This book is quite fascinating, showing the joys and dangers in the life of an immigrant to the United States in the Nineteenth Century. Kirsten is adorable, and yet teaches the young reader. As an added bonus, the book contains a final chapter that provides a great deal of information on the experiences of immigrants in that time. As always, Renee Graef's illustrations are plentiful and beautifully done, adding greatly to the story. My nine-year-old daughter loves these books, and I must admit that reading them with her has kindled my own interest in my Swedish ancestors. This is a great book!

11 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Our 5 year old daughter enjoys these books!, December 20, 1999

By 

Nicole P. - See all my reviews

This review is from: Meet Kirsten: An American Girl (Hardcover)

I have read the first two in the Kirsten AG series with my 5 year old daughter. I love the fact that Kirsten is polite and respectful to her elders. You don't find books that portray parents as anything less than idiots, these days. The pictures were beautiful, and the story simple enough for our daughter to follow. I can only pray that AG keeps putting out wholesome products like this!

8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great read aloud for some preschoolers, all elementary students, August 21, 2006

By 

Kelly Mcelwain (SC) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Meet Kirsten (American Girls Collection) (Paperback)

My preschooler is ready for chapter books, but most chapter books are either meant for beginning readers, with a controlled vocabulary, or are meant for older kids, with content that isn't appropriate for a four-year-old. The Kirsten books are both appropriate read-aloud material for preschoolers on up, with good stories, clear plot lines, simple yet not controlled vocabulary. Using the story of a little girl to teach historical fiction leads to discussions about different time periods, often leading us to do further research about modes of transportation, geography, farm life, immigration, etc.

My daughter really enjoys these books, and so do I. If her dad reads a chapter, I find myself going back and reading it so I know what I missed! A previous reviewer was upset by the use of Swedish words. The only Swedish words in the first book were "Tak" which means "thank you" and was clearly understood using context clues, and her names for her grandparents, which my daughter found no more confusing than her friends' names for their grandparents: Nanny and Pappy, Granny and Pop Pop, Grammie and Grampie, etc.

Yes, Marta dies. Yes, Kirsten gets lost in the city. Yes, the family faces hardships. What family doesn't? But the message is that the Larson family sticks together, works hard to overcome their difficulties and make a better life for themselves. The parents clearly love the children, the children love and respect the parents, and they all understand the importance of working together for the good of the entire family. Along with the Little House on the Prairie books, this series is wholesome and educational while being fun and enjoyable.